Walt Whitman: The Song of Himself

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Walt Whitman: The Song of Himself is the first full-length critical biography of Walt Whitman in more than forty years. Jerome Loving makes use of recently unearthed archival evidence and newspaper writings to present the most accurate, complete, and complex portrait of the poet to date. This biography affords fresh, often revelatory, insights into many aspects of the poet's life, including his attitudes toward the emerging urban life of America, his relationships with his family members, his developing notions of male-male love, his attitudes toward the vexed issue of race, and his insistence on the union of American states. Virtually every chapter presents material that was previously unknown or unavailable, and Whitman emerges as never before, in all his complexity as a corporal, cerebral, and spiritual being. Loving gives us a new Poet of Democracy, one for the twenty-first century.

SYNOPSIS

In Walt Whitman: The Song of Himself , Jerome Loving offers the first full-length critical biography in more than four decades of the man who wrote Leaves of Grass. In researching this thorough look at the man and his work, Loving had access to recently discovered archival material, which lends his portrait a richness and complexity not always found in previous treatments of the poet's life. Anyone with a fondness for the work of this beloved American icon will want to experience this fresh new look at his life and work.

FROM THE CRITICS

Times Higher Education Supplement

Strikes a balance between substance and speculation; it is scholarly and precise while also leaving room for the reader's own conclusions...[Loving's] biography succeeds above all through its vivid evocation of its subject. Whitman's spirit is well preserved in this book.

Los Angeles Times Book Review

Lovings biography succeeds in conveying much of what makes Whitman such an indispensable figure in our heritage.

ForeWord Magazine

With careful research and a thorough command of prior biographies and Whitman criticism, Loving has written what will be the definitive critical biography for years to come. . . . A thorough and insightful work that adds significantly to our understanding of Americas greatest poet.

Erik Bledsoe - ForeWord

With careful research and a thorough command of prior biographies and Whitman criticism, Loving has written what will be the definitive critical biography for years to come.

Atlantic Monthly

For Whitman enthusiasts, Mr. Loving has provided a fine, thoroughly interesting, worthwhile biography with much new material. Read all 13 "From The Critics" >

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING

Hats off to Jerome Loving, who combines lucidity and learning in equal measure!. . . The book is riveting from start to finish. — Frederick Crews

Robert D. Richardson