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Benjamin Taylor

ベンジャミン・テイラー

Benjamin Taylor

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1952-08-20 （Fort Worth, Texas）
Nationality
United States
Languages
English
Residence History
Fort Worth, Texas → New York City

Career

Occupations
Writer, Editor, Professor
Active Years
1995-
Affiliations
The New School (Graduate Writing Program), Washington University in St. Louis, 92nd Street Y (Poetry Center), Bennington College, Columbia University, New York Institute for the Humanities (Fellow), PEN American Center (former board secretary)
Memberships
Edward F. Albee Foundation (Trustee), New York Institute for the Humanities (Fellow), PEN American Center (former board member)
Influenced By
Edward W. Said, Frank Kermode, Quentin Anderson

Education

Haverford College
Degree: B.A.
Country: United States
Columbia University
English and Comparative Literature
Degree: Ph.D.
Country: United States
Studied under teachers including Edward W. Said and Frank Kermode during his doctoral work.

Awards

Harold J. Ribalow Prize
1996
Work: Tales Out of School
Result: Winner
Barnes & Noble Discover Award
2009
Work: The Book of Getting Even
Organization: Barnes & Noble
Result: Winner (one of three Discover Award winners)
Guggenheim Fellowship
2012
Organization: John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Result: Fellowship (2012–2013)
Los Angeles Times – Christopher Isherwood Prize for Autobiographical Prose
2017
Work: The Hue and Cry at Our House: A Year Remembered
Category: Autobiographical Prose
Organization: Los Angeles Times
Result: Winner
American Academy of Arts and Letters Literature Award
2021
Organization: American Academy of Arts and Letters
Result: Recipient
Iphigene Ochs Sulzberger Residency at Yaddo
Organization: Yaddo
Result: Residency
MacDowell Colony Fellow
Organization: MacDowell Colony
Result: Fellowship/Residency

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Tales Out of School

1995 Fiction

A debut novel set on Galveston Island in 1907, following the Mehmels, a German-Jewish family whose fortunes decline.

ImmigrationFamily declineJewish identity

The Book of Getting Even

2008 Fiction

Tells the story of Gabriel Geismar, an aspiring young astronomer drawn into the orbit of a charismatic but troubled family.

Coming of ageFamily dynamicsRevenge and restitution
Translations
  • El Libro de la Venganza (Spanish edition)

Into the Open: Reflections on Genius and Modernity

1995 Essay/Critical

A book-length essay examining notions of genius and modernity through the work of Walter Pater, Paul Valéry, and Sigmund Freud.

AestheticsModernityTheory of genius

Naples Declared: A Walk Around the Bay

2012 Travel memoir / Nonfiction

A travel memoir that walks the Bay of Naples, meditating on place, displacement, and the serendipity of encounters.

Place and memoryCultural encounters

Proust: The Search

2015 Biography / Criticism

A biographical and critical study of Marcel Proust, published as part of the Yale Jewish Lives series.

Memoir and memoryLiterary historyModern French literature

The Hue and Cry at Our House: A Year Remembered

2017 Memoir / Nonfiction

A memoir recounting a year in Taylor's childhood in Fort Worth, Texas, following the assassination of John F. Kennedy.

ChildhoodPersonal impact of historical events

Here We Are: My Friendship with Philip Roth

2020 Memoir / Nonfiction

An essayistic memoir about Taylor's friendship and relationship with Philip Roth.

FriendshipWriters and craft

Chasing Bright Medusas: A Life of Willa Cather

2023 Biography

A biography tracing the life of Willa Cather.

BiographyAmerican literary history

Bibliography

  • Into the Open: Reflections on Genius and Modernity (1995)
  • Tales Out of School (1995)
  • Saul Bellow: Letters (editor) (2010)
  • The Book of Getting Even (2008)
  • Naples Declared (2012)
  • There Is Simply Too Much to Think About: Collected Non-Fiction of Saul Bellow (editor) (2015)
  • Proust: The Search (2015)
  • The Hue and Cry at Our House: A Year Remembered (2017)
  • Debriefing: Collected Stories of Susan Sontag (editor) (2017)
  • Here We Are: My Friendship with Philip Roth (2020)
  • Chasing Bright Medusas: A Life of Willa Cather (2023)
  • "Prodigal Son" (essay in Loss Within Loss: Artists in the Age of AIDS) (2001)

Translations of Works

  • The Book of Getting Even → El Libro de la Venganza (Spanish edition)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Erudite, critical proseReflective, essayistic narrationCareful editorial annotation and selection
Recurring Motifs
Memory and recollectionPlace and displacementFriendship among writers / biographical interest

Legacy

Benjamin Taylor has contributed to contemporary letters through fiction, nonfiction, and careful editorial work. His edited volumes of Saul Bellow's letters and biographical studies such as the Proust book have been widely praised, and his travel and memoir writings have received critical acclaim.

Academic Societies

  • New York Institute for the Humanities
  • American Academy of Arts and Letters (awardee)

Quotes

  • "The Book of Getting Even is among the most original novels I have read in recent years... [It] is exuberant and charming and heartbroken by turns."
    Source: Philip Roth (blurb/review) (2008)
  • Taylor has selected, edited, and annotated these letters with exquisite judgment and care.
    Source: Leon Wieseltier (New York Times Book Review) (2010)

Trivia

  • Appeared on ABC's Primetime: What Would You Do? on March 16, 2012, in a segment where he berated an actress portraying an abusive fashion editor.
  • The Book of Getting Even was translated into Spanish and named a best book of the year in Spain.
  • Known for editing Saul Bellow's letters; his selection and annotation of the letters received critical praise.