Bright Pages: Yale Writers, 1701-2001

By J.D. McClatchy

Book Overview

College years-when ideas collide, literature intrigues and inspires, lasting passions are first fired-can stamp a young writer for life. This extraordinary book contains the work of dozens of writers whose experiences at Yale over the past three centuries exerted a powerful force on their writing lives. Formed and nurtured by the unique intellectual community of the university, writers as diverse as Noah Webster and Gloria Naylor emerged from Yale to make their own fresh contributions to our nation's remarkable literary heritage. From the galaxy of authors Yale has produced, J. D. McClatchy selects a rich and varied sample. He includes sermons, essays, poems, short stories, and excerpts from novels. The book opens with a section devoted to the work of four great teachers of writing at Yale in recent decades: John Hersey, Robert Penn Warren, John Hollander, and Robert Stone. The middle and most generous section of the volume focuses on writers who have been working since the end of the Second World War. Each of these selections casts a strong light on its author and his or her work. In the final section, McClatchy draws on the work of earlier literary figures from James Fenimore Cooper to Thornton Wilder, in many cases retrieving little-known material. A stroll through the pages of this bountiful anthology, dazzling in the diversity of its offerings, will appeal to any reader. Each of the authors was challenged and inspired by Yale. In this volume, each in turn challenges and inspires us. Among the authors and poets in this volume: Jonathan Edwards, Sinclair Lewis, Cole Porter, Robert Penn Warren, Brendan Gill, Robert K. Massie, William F. Buckley, Jr., Calvin Trillin, Paul Monette, Garry B. Trudeau, Claire Messud, Chang-rae Lee

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0300089457
• ISBN13: 9780300089455
• Release Date: April 2001
• Publisher: Yale University Press
• Length: 594 Pages
• Weight: 2.23 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 7.0" x 10.0"

Customer Reviews

a carefully crafted tribute to 300 years of Yale writers

Bright Pages is comprised of writing selections from people who have attended Yale; this common ground is surprising in light of the variety of perspectives and styles the book contains. The introductions at the beginning of each section by J. D. McClatchy chronicle the personal history of the writer, and the selections are diverse and intriguing. Some of the writers that I enjoyed were Tom Wolfe, James Fenimore Cooper, Robert Penn Warren, Thornton Wilder, and Jonathan Edwards. The selections span sermons, short stories, poems, and cartoons. Each selection is so different from the others that the whole book is captivating-- there isn't a moment of repetition. In all, the book is very well organized and representative of the variety and depth of writers that have sprung from Yale.