Twain & Stanley Enter Paradise - by Oscar Hijuelos (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

An "ambitious, fascinating, and richly detailed" work of fiction inspired by the real-life, 37-year friendship between two towering figures of the late nineteenth century--​famed writer and humorist Mark Twain and legendary explorer Sir Henry Morton Stanley: "In a class by itself" (Gay Talese).

Hijuelos was fascinated by the Twain-Stanley connection and eventually began researching and writing a novel that used the scant historical record of their relationship as a starting point for a more detailed fictional account. It was a labor of love for Hijuelos, who worked on the project for more than ten years; indeed, he was still revising the manuscript the day before his sudden passing in 2013.

The resulting novel is a richly woven tapestry of people and events that is unique among the author's works. Ingeniously blending correspondence, memoir, and third-person omniscience to explore the intersection of these Victorian giants in a long-vanished world, the novel superbly channels two vibrant but very different figures, from their early days as journalists in the American West, to their admiration and support of each other's writing, mutual hatred of slavery, social life together in the dazzling literary circles of the time, and even a mysterious journey to Cuba to search for Stanley's adoptive father.

A compelling and deeply felt historical fantasia that utilizes the full range of Hijuelos's gifts, as well as an unforgettable coda to a brilliant writing career.

Includes a reading group guide.

Review Quotes

"A brilliant posthumous capstone."--EW.com

"A magical story."--David Baldacci, author of The 6:20 Man

"An extraordinary feat of imaginative historical re-creation."--Booklist (starred review)

"It is a rollicking adventure tale, bromance, and portrait of two fascinating men who battled their way to prominence during an era defined by yellow fever, the Civil War, and a pioneering American zeal."--O, The Oprah Magazine

"Oscar Hijuelos, who left us suddenly and far too soon, has been deeply missed by those of us who were his friends--missed both as a friend and as a writer. The friend will not be coming back, but what a miracle that he has given us this last novel, which is a fine and wonderful novel, and surely among the best books Oscar ever wrote."--Paul Auster, author of City of Glass

"So sad that this is our last Hijuelos novel, so fabulous that we have it."--Library Journal (starred review)

"The final masterpiece by the Pulitzer-Prize-winning writer . . . Twain fans, get ready."--Huffington Post

"The great Oscar Hijuelos lives on in this ambitious, fascinating, and richly detailed work that, like the author, is in a class by itself."--Gay Talese, author of A Writer's Life

"This book is good news for Hijuelos fans."--Kirkus

"Vividly imagined and detailed epic . . . How lucky we are to have this rich novel."--Publisher's Weekly (starred review)

"What a wonder to have Oscar Hijuelos return from the celestial beyond with a tale that is thoroughly of this world and firmly anchored in history! Twain & Stanley Enter Paradise is a marvelous blend of research and the imagination, resurrecting two fascinating contemporaries-Mark Twain and Henry Morton Stanley-and lending a bygone era the shimmer of here and now."--Marie Arana, author of American Chica, Cellophane, and Bolívar: American Liberator.

About the Author

Oscar Hijuelos, the son of Cuban immigrants, was in New York City in 1951. He is a recipient of the Rome Prize, the Pulitzer Prize, and grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Guggenheim Foundation. His novels -- Mambo Kings, Our House in the Last World, The Fourteen Sisters of Emilio Montez O'Brien, Mr. Ives' Christmas, Empress of the Splendid Season, and A Simple Habana Melody -- have been translated into twenty-five languages.

Craig Nova is the author of fourteen novels, which have been translated into 11 languages. He has had an Award in Literature from the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters, a Guggenheim Fellowship, the Harper-Saxton Prize (previous recipients have been James Baldwin and Sylvia Plath), multiple awards from the National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship, and other prizes. His work has appeared in the Paris Review, Esquire, New York Times Magazine, Men's Journal, Best American Short Story series, and other publications. As a screenwriter he has worked for Touchstone Pictures (a division of the Walt Disney Company), Amblin Entertainment, and other producers. A film was made in 2018 from his novel, Wetware.