Never a Lovely so Real

The Life and Work of Nelson Algren

De: Colin Asher

Narrado por: David Colacci

This definitive biography reclaims Nelson Algren as a towering literary figure and finally unravels the enigma of his disappearance from American letters.

For a time, Nelson Algren was America's most famous author, lauded by the likes of Richard Wright and Ernest Hemingway. Millions bought his books. Algren's third novel, The Man with the Golden Arm, won the first National Book Award, and Frank Sinatra starred in the movie. But despite Algren's talent, he abandoned fiction and fell into obscurity. The cause of his decline was never clear. Some said he drank his talent away; others cited writer's block. The truth, hidden in the pages of his books, is far more complicated and tragic. Now, almost 40 years after Algren's death, Colin Asher finally captures the full, novelistic story of his life in a magisterial biography set against mid-20th-century American politics and culture.

Never a Lovely so Real offers an exquisitely detailed, engrossing portrait of a master who, as esteemed literary critic Maxwell Geismar wrote, was capable of suggesting "the whole contour of a human life in a few terse pages."

©2019 Colin Asher Bosio-Cady (P)2019 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books

Deeply researched engaging story

If you like biographies, depression stories and history brought to life via Audible, you will love this tale. Nelson Algren is a singular talent, as a writer, as a listener, as a teller-of-tales. Algrens story is brought to life in this telling. If White City caught your imagination, you'll love this. If you are engaged as a reader of intelligent critique and history, you'll love this.

Wonderful biography of an underappreciated author

A holistic account of the author's life. Can't help but wonder what he would have accomplished if the FBI hadn't meddled so much into his life.

Very well read audio book too

Great voice

thanks for this book, powerful reading of colin asher book. truly lovely as nelson put it