Her Again: Becoming Meryl Streep

Schulman, a first-time author and frequent New Yorker contributor, draws heavily on interviews and archival materials to present an insightful portrait of the acclaimed actor at the dawn of her career. The book begins in 2012 with Streep winning her third Oscar, for The Iron Lady, and then backtracks to her early life, following Streep from her New Jersey upbringing to her time at the Yale School of Drama. Streep is lauded as one of her generation’s finest acting talents, and her development of her art dominates the narrative, but the author’s informal approach allows us to see a more down-to-earth and relatable side of the actor. We get to know Streep through her brief and impassioned relationship with character actor John Cazale, cut short by his death from lung cancer in 1978, and watch as she grapples with the shifting roles of women in the 1970s and develops her own identity as a feminist. Schulman concludes his book in 1980 with Streep accepting her first Oscar, for Kramer vs. Kramer, and appreciative readers will undoubtedly hope that a follow-up volume is in the works. Agent: Becky Sweren, Kuhn Projects. (May)