The Letters of Sylvia Beach - (Paperback)

About the Book

Founder of the Left Bank bookstore Shakespeare and Company and the first publisher of James Joyce's Ulysses, Sylvia Beach was a legendary nurturer of literary talent. In this first collection of her letters, we witness Beach's day-to-day dealings as bookseller and publisher to expatriate Paris. Her friends and patrons included Ernest Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, H. D., Ezra Pound, Janet Flanner, William Carlos Williams, F. Scott Fitzgerald, James Joyce, and Richard Wright. As a librarian, publicist, publisher, and translator, Beach carved out a unique space for herself in English and French letters. She negotiated with Marianne Moore to place Joyce's work in The Dial, she battled the piracy of Ulysses in the United States, and she struggled to keep Shakespeare and Company afloat during the Depression. These letters shed new light on Beach's childhood in New Jersey; her work in Serbia with the American Red Cross; her internment in a German prison camp; her relationship with French bookstore owner Adrienne Monnier; and her friendship with a new generation of expatriates in the 1950s and 1960s. A consummate American in Paris and a tireless champion of the avant-garde, Beach's warmth and wit made the Rue de l'Odeon the heart of modernist Paris.

Book Synopsis

Founder of the Left Bank bookstore Shakespeare and Company and the first publisher of James Joyce's Ulysses, Sylvia Beach had a legendary facility for nurturing literary talent. In this first collection of her letters, we witness Beach's day-to-day dealings as bookseller and publisher to expatriate Paris. Friends and clients include Ernest Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, H. D., Ezra Pound, Janet Flanner, William Carlos Williams, F. Scott Fitzgerald, James Joyce, and Richard Wright. As librarian, publicist, publisher, and translator, Beach carved out a unique space for herself in English and French letters.

This collection reveals Beach's charm and resourcefulness, sharing her negotiations with Marianne Moore to place Joyce's work in The Dial; her battle to curb the piracy of Ulysses in the United States; her struggle to keep Shakespeare and Company afloat during the Depression; and her complicated affair with the French bookstore owner Adrienne Monnier. These letters also recount Beach's childhood in New Jersey; her work in Serbia with the American Red Cross; her internment in a German prison camp; and her friendship with a new generation of expatriates in the 1950s and 1960s. Beach was the consummate American in Paris and a tireless champion of the avant-garde. Her warmth and wit made the Rue de l'Odéon the heart of modernist Paris.

Review Quotes

Academics and students interested in literary culture, especially of writers of the Lost Generation, will find this book valuable.-- "Library Journal"

Beach is an entertaining companion, a wonderful person to spend time with... readers...will be quick to celebrate this editorial achievement.-- "Papers of the Bibliographical Society of Canada"

Beach's letters are crisp, detailed, patient, and articulate. Editor Walsh's meticulously orchestrated scholarly apparatus--footnotes, appendices, glossary, and index--all work well to enhance the material.--David Emblidge "Publishing Research Quarterly"

Keri Walsh has produced a commendable work.--Diane Leach "Pop Matters"

Keri Walsh's compact and revealing volume introduces Beach as a character's character-- "New Criterion"

Reveal[s] the difficulties faced head on by this patron saint of independent booksellers who altered the course of expression in print.-- "Publishers Weekly"

The consummate portrait of an incredible woman.--Robert J. Wiersema "The Vancouver Sun"

The patron saint of independent booksellers everywhere and the spunky proprietress of Shakespeare and Company, the famed Left Bank bookshop, Beach was a one-woman clearinghouse for literary modernism, 'a culture hero of the avant-garde, ' as Keri Walsh writes in her fine introduction to this collection.... Beach was an animated correspondent.--Matthew Price "Bookforum"

This lovely book, scholarly and well annotated, is a pleasure to hold. It documents what Beach once called 'my missionary endeavor' and also what she called, correctly, her 'interesting life.'--Dwight Garner "New York Times"

With The Letters of Sylvia Beach... we now have an unvarnished view of life from the bookshop floor.--John Palattella "The Nation"

About the Author

Keri Walsh is assistant professor of English at Fordham University in New York.