Literary Life: A Second Memoir [Deckle Edge] [Hardcover]

“A master reflects on the joy of writing . . . An invitation into the working writer’s head.” —The Boston Globe

“The master of the showstopping anecdote.” —Kristy Davis, O, The Oprah Magazine

“Entertaining and enlightening.” —David Hendricks, San Antonio Express-News

“A rambling, shambling, and ambling autobiography.” —John Barron, Chicago Sun-Times

“Mr. McMurtry is an outsider with insider stories and connections. . . . Strewn through this book’s loose narrative are stories about things like eating chicken gizzards and attending a stock car race in Texas with Susan Sontag. . . . The book is also, happily, filled with his literary enthusiasms.” —Dwight Garner, New York Times --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Pulitzer Prize and Oscar Award-winning author Larry McMurtry’s engrossing and deeply personal reflections on the life of a writer, now in paperback.

• A critically acclaimed memoirist: Larry McMurtry’s literary career has been one of varied and remarkable successes: as a bookseller, as the author of more than forty books, and as a writer of screenplays that have won not only the hearts of audiences, but numerous awards, including an Oscar Award and a Golden Globe. McMurtry’s elegiac prose and sharp wit are omnipresent not only in his novels but in his autobiographical work, which has received rave reviews.

• Writing from the other side of the fence: Recounting moments from his earliest inkling of a future career to his tenure as a Wallace Stegner fellow at Stanford to his success as a published author, Literary Life will be cherished by McMurtry fans and aspiring writers alike. Including literary anecdotes and gossip, and packed with memorable observations about writing, writers, and the author himself, the book provides rare insight into the mind of a brilliant, intensely private writer.

• A popular topic: Readers have devoured memoirs about writing by authors ranging from Amy Tan to Stephen King. Here, this iconic recluse proves he is, “the master of the show-stopping anecdote” ( O, The Oprah Magazine ). --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Larry McMurtry is the author of twenty-nine novels, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning Lonesome Dove, three memoirs, two collections of essays, and more than thirty screenplays. He lives in Archer City, Texas.