Lillian Hellman: A Life with Foxes and Scoundrels
Deborah Martinson, . . Counterpoint, $26 (448pp) ISBN 978-1-58243-315-8
Martinson, an associate professor of English and writing at Occidental College, aims to capture a "more complex" and "human" Hellman than other biographers have. Her portrait of the famed playwright and memoirist (1905–1984) is more admiring than those of William Wright or Carl Rollyson. Martinson excels in evoking Hellman's forceful presence: the cigarette-husky voice, the galvanic sexuality of a woman who refused to be defined by her plain face or tiny stature. She also grasps the crux of Hellman's romance with Dashiell Hammett, which was his invaluable editing and guidance in shaping her plays, from
Reviewed on: 10/24/2005
Genre: Nonfiction
Paperback - 480 pages - 978-1-58243-723-1