James Wright

The authorized and sweeping biography of one of Americas most complex, influential, and enduring poets In the extraordinary generation of American poets who came of age in the middle of the twentieth century, James Wright (19271980) was frequently placed at the top of the list. With a fierce, single-minded devotion to his work, Wright escaped the steel town of his Depression-era childhood in the Ohio valley to become a revered professor of English literature and a Pulitzer Prize winner. But his hometown remained at the heart of his work, and he courted a rough, enduring muse from his vivid memories of the Midwest.

A full-throated lyricism and classical poise became his tools, honesty and unwavering compassion his trademark. Using meticulous research, hundreds of interviews, and Wrights public readings, Jonathan Blunks authorized biography explores the poets life and work with exceptional candor, making full use of Wrights extensive unpublished workletters, poems, translations, and personal journals. Focusing on the tensions that forced Wrights poetic breakthroughs and the relationships that plunged him to emotional depths, Blunk provides a spirited portrait, and a fascinating depiction of this turbulent period in American letters.

A gifted translator and mesmerizing reader, Wright appears throughout in all his complex and eloquent urgency. Discerning yet expansive, James Wright will change the way the poets work is understood and inspire a new appreciation for his enduring achievement.

Blunk is a poet, critic, essayist, and radio producer. His work has appeared in The Nation, Poets & Writers, The Georgia Review, and elsewhere. He was a co-editor of A Wild Perfection, the selected letters of James Wright.