Edgar A. Poe: A Biography - by Kenneth Silverman (Paperback)

About the Book

From a Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer, the most revealing, fascinating, and important biography of one of our greatest literary figures. "An authoritative biography that both clarifies many problems in Poe's life that have baffled readers for a century and a half and enriches interpretation of many of Poe's writings. . . ".--New York Times Book Review. 33 photographs. Index.

Book Synopsis

"Vivid, absorbing, superbly handled, and completely riveting." --Boston Globe

"This biography of Edgar Allan Poe shows us how the mourning, melancholy, alcoholic literary innovator derived his uncanny tales and graveyard poetry from his chronic despair, and how he consoled himself by inventing the modern detective story. An engrossing literary biography." --Leon Edel

Pulitzer Prize-winning author Kenneth Silverman's authoritative biography of one of the greats of American literature, Edgar Allan Poe.

Few writers have had such a profound, lasting impact as the incomparable Edgar Allan Poe. Though written more than two hundred years ago, his stories have lost none of their power to enchant, thrill, and terrify. Poe's tales of mystery and death continue to work their eerie magic on readers of all stripes.

Yet, for all the attention given to his work, many of the details of Poe's life remain shrouded in obscurity. A man whose stories are familiar to all, Poe was a tortured soul who died a relatively young man under mysterious circumstances. In this fascinating biography, called "the best biography of Poe yet written," by the Washington Post, Silverman illuminates the dark life of the beloved storyteller, going beyond the literary genius to the intimate details of Poe's tormented life.

Edgar A. Poe is the definitive account of the life of a true master.

From the Back Cover

From a Pulitzer-Prize winning biographer, the most revealing, fascinating, and important biography of one of our greatest literary figures.

Review Quotes

"Absorbing...compelling...balanced and carefully researched.""--New York Times"