American Writers (One Hundred Pages at a Time)

In this episode, I dig deeper into the fourth volume of the selected letters of H. P. Lovecraft. There are some unhinged stuff in this set, especially the letters to J. Vernon Shea.

The finale of my review of THE PROUD TOWER by Barbara Tuchman also finishes off our look at this mid-century American historian.

More of Lovecraft's letters are examined in this episode covering the period from January to April 1933. Some of the most notable elements include the publication of DREAMS IN THE WITCH HOUSE and the death of H.S. Whitehead.

As we move on in Barbara Tuchman's THE PROUD TOWER we explore chapters devoted to the Hague Conventions on peace with their successes and failures, as well German culture. The later chapter deals almost exclusively with the career of Richard Strauss, the composer.

In this episode,  I talk about the fourth volume of H. P. Lovecraft's Selected Letters, focusing on the winter of 1932-1933. Overall, a tame set of letters during a transformative period for the United States and the world.

In chapters 3-4 of THE PROUD TOWER by Barbara Tuchman we examine the emergence of a new phase of American imperialism and the Dreyfus Affair in France. These two chapters are not very related, but the entire book is quite fragmented.

I continue to explore the fourth volume of Lovecraft's selected letters. While these 20 letters are not the most exciting we see a continuation of some important themes: frustration with publication in commercial fiction market and Lovecraft's flirtation with fascism.

I kick off my four-part look at THE PROUD TOWER by Barbara Tuchman. The first two chapters of this book look at pre-Great War British aristocracy and anarchism. Two topics that do not see to meld, within a book that does either.

In these letters we see Lovecraft's continued frustration over the the state of the magazine fiction market and the personal impact of the death of his aunt, Lillian Clark.

The finale of my review of THE GUNS OF AUGUST by Barabara Tuchman. I give my overall feelings of this text along with a look at the last chapters and Tuchman's conclusion.