A William Somerset Maugham Encyclopedia

(Hardback)

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Description

William Somerset Maugham was one of the most popular and successful British writers of his time. From October 1897, when he completed his medical education at St. Thomas's Hospital in London, until his death in December 1965, Maugham wrote twenty novels, filled nine volumes with his short stories, wrote thirty-one plays and published seven volumes of prose nonfiction. His writings reflect the tensions of the Boer War, World War I and World War II; the lavishness of the highest levels of British and American society during the first six decades of the 20th century; the glamour of Hollywood, Paris, New York, San Francisco and London; and the romance of China, Malaya, Borneo and India. His popularity brought him prosperity. At a 1962 auction, 35 of his paintings sold for nearly US$1.5 million; bequests in his will totalled US$280,000; his royalties during the last ten years of his life averaged US$50,000 per year; and his Riviera estate, purchased in 1927 for US$48,000, sold for US$730,000 in 1967. This reference book is a guide to Maugham's life and career, beginning with a brief discussion of the importance of Maugham's life and work, followed by a chronology of important biographical and literary events. Through several hundred alphabetically arranged entries, the encyclopaedia overviews Maugham's drama, fiction and prose nonfiction; his family; the persons whom he knew and with whom he associated; the places where he lived and to which he journeyed, particularly the cities and villages that he inserted into his works; and the historical, cultural, social and political issues that governed his life and career. Each entry closes with a brief bibliography, and the volume includes a selected bibliography of critical studies.

Reviews

Rogal has produced a useful, accessible guide to Maugham's life, career, and works... Articles include biographical entries on Maugham and his family, friends, and associates, plus some of those who influenced his art. Articles on each of Maugham's works, including those very obscure, are tightly written and informative. In addition, Rogal includes helpful accounts of movies and plays based on Maugham's fiction...valuable guidance for Maugham readers and scholars.-Choice
"Rogal has produced a useful, accessible guide to Maugham's life, career, and works... Articles include biographical entries on Maugham and his family, friends, and associates, plus some of those who influenced his art. Articles on each of Maugham's works, including those very obscure, are tightly written and informative. In addition, Rogal includes helpful accounts of movies and plays based on Maugham's fiction...valuable guidance for Maugham readers and scholars."-Choice

Author Bio

SAMUEL J. ROGAL is Chair of the Division of Humanities and Fine Arts at Illinois Valley Community College. He has written some 150 articles, and his more than 25 books include A Companion to the Characters in the Fiction of W. Somerset Maugham (1996), Sing Glory and Hallelujah! Historical and Biographical Guide to Gospel Hymns Nos. 1 to 6 Complete (1996), Agriculture in Britain and America, 1660-1820: An Annotated Bibliography of the Eighteenth Century Literature (1994), Medicine in Great Britain from the Restoration to the Nineteenth Century, 1660-1800 (1992), A Chronological Outline of American Literature (1987), A Guide to the Hymns and Tunes of American Methodism, 1878-1964 (1986), The Children's Jubilee: A Bibliographical Survey of Hymnals for Infants, Youths and Sunday Schools Published in Britain and America, 1655-1900 (1983), and A Chronological Outline of British Literature (1980), all published by Greenwood.