by John O'Hara (Author), Charles McGrath (Introduction by), Neil Gower (Illustrator)
One of Time's All-Time 100 Best Novels
The writer whom Fran Lebowitz called "the real F. Scott Fitzgerald" makes his Penguin Classics debut with this beautiful deluxe edition of his best-loved book.
One of the great novels of small-town American life,
Appointment in Samarra is John O'Hara's crowning achievement. In December 1930, just before Christmas, the Gibbsville, Pennsylvania, social circuit is electrified with parties and dances. At the center of the social elite stand Julian and Caroline English. But in one rash moment born inside a highball glass, Julian breaks with polite society and begins a rapid descent toward self-destruction.
Brimming with wealth and privilege, jealousy and infidelity, O'Hara's iconic first novel is an unflinching look at the dark side of the American dream--and a lasting testament to the keen social intelligence if a major American writer.
For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
Front Jacket
A twentieth-century classic, Appointment in Samarra" is the first and most widely read book by the writer Fran Leibowitz called "the real F. Scott Fitzgerald."
In December 1930, just before Christmas, the Gibbsville social circuit is electrified with parties and dances, where the music plays late into the night and the liquor flows freely. At the center of the social elite stand Julian and Caroline English--the envy of friends and strangers alike. But in one rash moment born inside a highball glass, Julian breaks with polite society and begins a rapid descent toward self-destruction. Appointment in Samarra" brilliantly captures the personal politics and easy bitterness of small-town life. It is John O'Hara's crowning achievement, and a lasting testament to the keen social intelligence of a major American novelist.
Author Biography
John O'Hara (1905-1970) was one of the most prominent American writers of the twentieth century. Championed by Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Dorothy Parker, he wrote seventeen novels, including Appointment in Samarra, his first; BUtterfield 8, which was made into a film starring Elizabeth Taylor; Pal Joey, which was adapted into a Broadway musical as well as a film starring Frank Sinatra; and Ten North Frederick, which won the National Book Award. He has had more stories published in The New Yorker than anyone else in the history of the magazine. Born in Pottsville, Pennsylvania, he lived for many years in New York and in Princeton, New Jersey, where he died.
Charles McGrath (introducer) is the former editor of
The New York Times Book Review and former deputy editor of
The New Yorker. He is currently a writer at large for
The New York Times.
Neil Gower (cover illustrator) is an internationally acclaimed graphic artist. He spent ten years as a contributing artist to
Condé Nast Traveler and has provided art for major publishing houses and for such magazines as
The New Yorker,
The Economist, and
Vanity Fair. He lives in Sussex, England.
Number of Pages: 240
Dimensions: 0.7 x 8.3 x 5.6 IN
Publication Date: April 30, 2013
