Also available in German

Marcel Proust (1999)

Considered the greatest—and most influential—writer of the twentieth century, Marcel Proust was also one of its most fascinating figures. In this brilliant portrait, Edmund White, author of an acclaimed biography of Jean Genet and the much admired novel A Boy's Own Story, displays a rare understanding of this most complex man. A strange, reclusive genius who often lay in bed for days at a time in his cork-lined room, obsessively rewriting his masterpiece, Remembrance of Things Past, Proust was at other times a tireless socialite, attending the grandest parties and dazzling guests—especially the most important ones—with his vivacity and wit. White also depicts the yearning, lonely boy, the ambitious grasper after honors, and the miserably-closeted homosexual, an aspect of his life that this book explores frankly and perceptively.

White's Marcel Proust is a masterly exemplar of biography in the short form, illuminating both the man and the age with the eloquent economy that will introduce to a new generation of readers this once popular genre.