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Light in August
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Check link for latest rating. ( 65,770 ratings, 3,705 reviews)
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See moreA landmark in American fiction, Light in August explores Faulkner's central theme: the nature of evil. Joe Christmas - a man doomed, deracinated and alone - wanders the Deep South in search of an identity, and a place in society. Yet after the sacrifice, there is new life, a determined ray of light in Faulkner's complex and tragic world.
Winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature
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Description
Winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature
A landmark in American fiction, Light in August explores Faulkner's central theme—the nature of evil. Joe Christmas— a man doomed, deracinated and alone—wanders the Deep South in search of an identity, and a place in society. After killing his perverted, God-fearing lover, it becomes inevitable that he is pursued by a lynch-hungry mob. Yet after the sacrifice, there is new life, a determined ray of light in Faulkner's complex and tragic world.
Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?
Light in August by William Faulkner is praised for its fierce indignation against cruelty, stupidity, and prejudice, marking it as a significant work. Critics admire Faulkner's inexhaustible invention and powerful imagination, suggesting he writes exceptionally well. He is recognised as one of the strongest American novelists of the century, often being compared to literary greats such as Hawthorne and Melville.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9780099283157
Publisher: Vintage Publishing
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 05 October 2000
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Vintage Classics
Audience: General / adult
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 24.0mm
Width: 129.0mm
Height: 198.0mm
Weight: 272g
Pages: 384
About the Author
Born in 1897 in New Albany, Mississippi, William Faulkner was the son of a family proud of their prominent role in the history of the south. He grew up in Oxford, Mississippi, and left high school at fifteen to work in his grandfather's bank. Rejected by the US military in 1915, he joined the Canadian flyers with the RAF, but was still in training when the war ended. Returning home, he studied at the University of Mississippi and visited Europe briefly in 1925. His first poem was published in The New Republic in 1919. His first book of verse and early novels followed, but his major work began with the publication of The Sound and the Fury in 1929. As I Lay Dying (1930), Sanctuary (1931), Light in August (1932), Absalom, Absalom! (1936) and The Wild Palms (1939) are the key works of his great creative period leading up to Intruder in the Dust (1948). During the 1930s, he worked in Hollywood on film scripts, notably The Blue Lamp, co-written with Raymond Chandler. William Faulkner was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1949 and the Pulitzer Prize for The Reivers just before his death in July 1962.
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