"I think it A Work of genius, I think it The Work of a Genius, I think
it brilliant, splendid, etc. If there is literature (and this proves
there is) this is where it's at." -John Cheever
A Penguin Classic
Saul Bellow's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel explores the long friendship
between Charlie Citrine, a young man with an intense passion for
literature, and the great poet Von Humboldt Dleisher. At the time of
Humboldt's death, Charlie's life is falling apart: his career is at a
standstill, and he's enmeshed in an acrimonious divorce, infatuated with
a highly unsuitable young woman, and involved with a neurotic Mafioso.
And then Humboldt acts from beyond the grave, bestowing upon Charlie an
unexpected legacy that may just help him turn his life around.
This Penguin Classics edition features an introduction by Jeffrey
Eugenides.
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.