Norman Maclean: a Life of Letters and Rivers

Description

Rebecca McCarthy's intimate portrait of Maclean draws on her long friendship with the author from the time she became a student at the University of Chicago through the rest of his life. Irrepressible as a teacher, Maclean shared guidance, advice, campus and city rambles, and loyal friendship with generations of students. Behind the scenes, he honed an art as meditative and patient as his approach to fly fishing. McCarthy's experiences intertwine with stories from friends, family, colleagues, and others to detail an incredibly rich life that seemed destined to remain divided―until the creation of his classic American story.

A vivid evocation of an iconic figure, Norman Maclean reveals the forces and events that shaped the author-educator and formed the bedrock of his beloved stories.

Reviews
"Provides a fine inside view of one of the more unusual stories in American letters in recent memory. We discover Norman Maclean as mentor, English professor and administrator, and Chicagoan, and these facets deepen our appreciation of Maclean the writer of exquisite prose."―O. Alan Weltzien, editor of The Norman Maclean Reader

"Biography, one of the most difficult of genres, can go awry in any of a dozen different directions. Most challenging of all is when the writer is a close friend of the subject. That Rebecca McCarthy has published this important book in which her friendship with Norman Maclean is a complement and asset rather than a detriment is a wonderful achievement."―Rick Bass, author of For a Little While

"A profoundly intimate glimpse into the life of an enigmatic man who became most notable for his exquisitely rendered novella, A River Runs Through It. . . The witness McCarthy presents is supplemented by meticulous research, letters, and interviews that capture a well-rounded portrait of Maclean."―Shelf Awareness

"McCarthy's personal portrait is noteworthy and unique among works about Maclean."―Booklist

"[T]he first full-length biography of Maclean. . . is long overdue, and not only because his fiction cleaves so closely to his life that the two are best considered side by side."―New Yorker

"[P]art author bio, part literary memoir, told by Rebecca McCarthy, a former student of Maclean who kept a lifelong friendship with the Hyde Park legend."―Chicago Tribune

"Just as [Norman Maclean's] stories were drawn from reality, but written with what he called "literary latitude," so [Rebecca McCarthy's] book is a braiding, combining her memories of a man who was a friend and mentor with what she learnt from his colleagues, former students and family. It's affectionate, but clear-eyed."―Times Literary Supplement

"Norman Maclean is a wily old devil, and Rebecca McCarthy's Norman Maclean: A Life of Letters and Rivers makes that slipperiness and devilishness more accessible. . . [Her] diligent discovery of what exactly in "A River Runs Through It" is fiction . . . offers what is probably most interesting to readers of a book about the famous author of the most famous fly-fishing story around."―Missoulian

"What makes Norman Maclean such a pleasure to read is that it's written by an acolyte of sorts, Atlanta author Rebecca McCarthy, who brings a tremendous amount of intimacy and insight to the telling. . . A compassionate account of a compelling individual."―Atlanta Journal-Constitution

"Drawing from her personal friendship with Norman, conversations with the Maclean family, and subsequent research over the last four decades, McCarthy looks beyond the common perceptions of Norman Maclean the author. . . In doing so, she broadens her reader's understanding of what contributed to Maclean's professional persona across his multi-decade teaching and writing career."―Trout Unlimited

"McCarthy's portrait expertly blends personal recollections with a journalistic examination of the correspondence and other writings that Maclean produced throughout his life and career. Readers will find a wealth of insight into the creative output and encompassing world of this acclaimed author."―Big Sky Journal

"McCarthy returns to Maclean's struggles as an aspiring author throughout her book, but the strength of the portrait is spent with the man."―Mountain Journal

"In this stylish and fittingly fluent blend of scholarship and reminiscence, McCarthy gives us multiple glimpses of her idiosyncratic subject."―The Spectator