Tough Guy: The Life of Norman Mailer

Norman Mailer's life is examined in a new biography that offers a unique insight into American history from World War II to Barack Obama's election, highlighting his controversial personality and writings. Richard Bradford's biography draws on Mailer's personal letters and explores his relationships with other writers and his critical reception.

Format: Hardback
Length: 304 pages
Publication date: 19 January 2023
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Norman Mailer, a Pulitzer Prize-winning author, is the subject of the first biography to explore his life as a twisted lens, providing a distinctive perspective on American history from the end of World War II to the election of Barack Obama. Mailer's life is characterized by his Pulitzer Prize-winning works, including "The Armies of the Night" (1969) and "The Executioner's Song" (1980). His novel "The Naked and the Dead" was celebrated not only for its intrinsic qualities but also for its impact on the sub-genre of military fiction, which includes "Catch-22" and "MASH." Richard Bradford's biography delves into Mailer's personal letters, which reveal his literary narcissism and shape the characters of one of the most widely celebrated World War II novels. Bradford's biography offers a merciless portrayal of Mailer's personality and writings, drawing on diary entries, journal extracts, and newspaper columns. It explores Mailer's friendships with contemporaries like James Baldwin, his failed correspondences with Hemingway and the Kennedys, and the criticism he faced from figures like William Faulkner and Eleanor Roosevelt. Through this biography, Mailer's ferocious personality and writings are brought to life in a unique, snappy, and convincing manner.

Weight: 608g
Dimension: 164 x 241 x 32 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781448218141