Read more
"In The Making of Americans, Gertrude Stein sets out to tell "a history of a family's progress," radically reworking the traditional family saga novel to encompass her vision of personality and psychological relationships. As the history progresses over three generations, Stein also meditates on her own writing, on the making of The Making of Americans, and on America"--
About the author
Gertrude Stein (1874-1946) was born in Pittsburgh to a prosperous German-Jewish family. She was educated in France and the United States, worked under the pioneering psychologist William James, and later studied medicine. With her brother Leo she was an important patron of the arts, acquiring works by many contemporary artists, most famously Picasso, while her home became a popular meeting place for writers and painters from Matisse to Hemingway. Her books include
Three Lives,
Tender Buttons, and
The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas.
Steven Meyer is Associate Professor of English at Washington University in St. Louis.
William H. Gass (1924-2017) was an essayist, novelist, and literary critic. He graduated from Kenyon College and received his PhD at Cornell University. He taught philosophy at both Purdue University and at Washington University in St. Louis where he was the David May Distinguished Professor of Humanities. In 1990, Gass founded the International Writers Center (now known as the Center for the Humanities) and served as its director until his retirement in 2000.
Summary
In The Making of Americans, Gertrude Stein sets out to tell "a history of a family's progress," radically reworking the traditional family saga novel to encompass her vision of personality and psychological relationships. As the history progresses over three generations, Stein also meditates on her own writing, on the making of The Making of Americans, and on America.
Foreword
Print and digital publicity targeting the New Yorker, Harper’s, Paris Review, NPR, New York Times, Bookforum, New York Review of Books, London Review of Books, LARB, Literary Hub
Campaign emphasizing Dalkey Archive Essentials series
New introduction from recognized writer
Marketing highlighting the author's legacy
Targeted bookseller mailing
Promotion/outreach to university English and comparative literature departments
Virtual and in-person events centered on book and author's importance
Promotion on publisher’s website and social media; promotion via e-newsletters to booksellers, reviewers
Additional text
“Indubitably the most monumental fiction to be given since the publication of Ulysses.”—Saturday Review of Literature
