Synopses & Reviews
The book that brought Isherwood back into the public eye in the twenty-first centuryA Single Man was Christopher Isherwoods own favorite of his novels and was the basis for the Tom Ford movie starring Colin Firth.
Welcome to sunny suburban 1960s Southern California. George is a gay middle-aged English professor, adjusting to life on his own after the tragic death of his young partner. He is determined to persist in the routines of daily life. A Single Man follows him over the course of one day, an ordinary twenty-four hours. Behind his British reserve, tides of grief, rage, and loneliness surge—but what is revealed is a man who loves being alive despite all the everyday injustices.
When A Single Man first appeared, it shocked many with its frank, sympathetic, and moving portrayal of a gay man in midlife. Now it stands as a beautiful, lyrical meditation on life as an outsider. Wry, suddenly manic, constantly funny, surprisingly sad, the novel catches the texture of life itself.
This is the beginning of a multiyear plan to reissue all of Isherwoods best work, culminating with the publication of a definitive new biography in 2015.
Review
“An absolutely devastating, unnerving, brilliant book.” —Stephen Spender
“Isherwoods A Single Man, published in 1964, is one of the first and best novels of the modern gay liberation movement.” — Edmund White
“A testimony to Isherwoods undiminished brilliance as a novelist.” — Anthony Burgess
Synopsis
Welcome to sunny suburban 1960s Southern California. George is a gay middle-aged English professor, adjusting to solitude after the tragic death of his young partner. He is determined to persist in the routines of his former life.
A Single Man follows him over the course of an ordinary twenty-four hours. Behind his British reserve, tides of grief, rage, and loneliness surge—but what is revealed is a man who loves being alive despite all the everyday injustices.
When Christopher Isherwoods A Single Man first appeared, it shocked many with its frank, sympathetic, and moving portrayal of a gay man in maturity. Isherwoods favorite of his own novels, it now stands as a classic lyric meditation on life as an outsider.
About the Author
Christopher Isherwood (1904-1986) was born outside Manchester, England. He lived in Berlin from 1929 to 1933 and emigrated from Europe to the United States in 1939. A major figure in twentieth-century fiction and the gay rights movement, he wrote more than twenty books.