This extensive collection of autobiographical writings by the author
of The Turn of the Screw and The Portrait of a Lady offers a
revelatory self-portrait and an inside glimpse into his famous
family
**
**In 1911, deeply affected by the death of his brother William the year
before, Henry James began working on a book about his early life. As was
customary for James in his later years, he dictated his recollections to
his secretary Theodora Bosanquet, who recalled how "a straight dive into
the past brought to the surface treasure after treasure." A Small Boy
and Others (1913) and the two autobiographical books that
followed--Notes of a Son and Brother (1914) and the incomplete,
posthumously published The Middle Years--stand with his later novels
as one of the enduring triumphs of his final years.
Not only did James create one of the singular self-portraits in American
literature, he also fashioned a richly detailed account of his renowned
family, especially his father, the social philosopher Henry James Sr.,
his brother William, and his dear cousin Minny Temple, inspiration for
the heroines of two of his greatest novels, The Portrait of a Lady and
The Wings of the Dove. Rounding out the volume is a selection of eight
other personal reminiscences and, as an appendix, his secretary's
insightful and affectionate memoir, "Henry James at Work."
LIBRARY OF AMERICA is an independent nonprofit cultural organization
founded in 1979 to preserve our nation's literary heritage by
publishing, and keeping permanently in print, America's best and most
significant writing. The Library of America series includes more than
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