Aspern Papers and Other Tales The

Product Description

'Writing books, unless one be a great genius - and even then! - is the last road to fortune. I think there is no more money to be made by literature'

In these unsettling stories Henry James explores writers, artists and the creation of art. In 'The Aspern Papers', a tenacious critic attempts to get his hands on a trove of memorabilia from his idol, a long-dead poet, but finds that the cost may be too great. 'The Lesson of the Master' shows a comfortably married novelist warning a young colleague against the distractions of marriage, while in 'The Author of Beltraffio', an austere wife's disapproval of her husband's work has tragic consequences. And, in further tales, James considers enduring, disturbing questions of literary ambition, lost potential, and the tension between making art and making a living.

Edited with an introduction by Michael Gorra
General Editor Philip Horne