Gore Vidal's State of the Union: Nation Essays 1958-2005
About this ebook
1958 and 2005. The early literary ones reflected Vidal’s status as a
rising young novelist of the postwar generation, and as he expanded
confidently into nonfiction, his essays range widely over politics,
religion, society, manners and morals. We see him emerge as the
pre-eminent essayist of his generation, winning a 1993 Nation Book Award
for a collection of nonfiction works.
Vidal’s Nation years—his
Golden Age at the magazine—really commenced in 1981 when Victor Navasky
invited him to become a contributing editor. Gore’s first contribution,
“Some Jews and the Gays,” would be his most explosive one. This
collection exemplifies his critical vision in great works like “Requiem
for the American Empire,” “Monotheism and Its Discontents,” “Notes on
Our Patriarchal State,” and the delightful “Birds and the Bees” with its
Monica–Lewinsky era sequel, “The Birds and the Bees and Clinton.”
Prepare to have your preconceptions challenged. Prepare also to smile or laugh out loud.
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About the author
Nation contributing editor Gore Vidal was a prolific novelist, playwright and essayist, and one of the great stylists of contemporary American prose.
