Friday, June 20, 2014

"THE BOHEMIANS"--Author Ben Tarnoff's atmospheric historical reveals how four pioneering western writers reinvented American literature



  Mark Twain and the San Francisco Writers Who Reinvented American Literature 


THE BOHEMIANS  by Ben Tarnoff   


The unforgettable story of the birth of modern America and the western writers who gave voice to its emerging identity


"The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug."--Mark Twain
 


The Bohemians begins in 1860s San Francisco. The Gold Rush has ended; the Civil War threatens to tear apart the country. Far from the front lines, the city at the western edge roars. A global seaport, home to immigrants from five continents, San Francisco has become a complex urban society virtually overnight. The bards of the moment are the Bohemians: a young Mark Twain, fleeing the draft and seeking adventure; literary golden boy Bret Harte; struggling gay poet Charles Warren Stoddard; and beautiful, haunted Ina Coolbrith, poet and protectorate of the group. Ben Tarnoff’s elegant, atmospheric history reveals how these four pioneering western writers would together create a new American literature, unfettered by the heavy European influence that dominated the East.   


"To succeed in life, you need two things: ignorance and confidence."--Mark Twain


Twain arrives by stagecoach in San Francisco in 1863 and is fast drunk on champagne, oysters, and the city’s intoxicating energy. He finds that the war has only made California richer: the economy booms, newspapers and magazines thrive, and the dream of transcontinental train travel promises to soon become a reality. Twain and the Bohemians find inspiration in their surroundings: the dark ironies of frontier humor, the extravagant tales told around the campfires, and the youthful irreverence of the new world being formed in the west. The star of the moment is Bret Harte, a rising figure on the national scene and mentor to both Stoddard and Coolbrith. Young and ambitious, Twain and Harte form the Bohemian core. But as Harte’s star ascends—drawing attention from eastern taste makers such as the Atlantic Monthly—Twain flounders, questioning whether he should be a writer at all.



"The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man who lives fully is prepared to die at any time."--Mark Twain  



The Bohemian moment would continue in Boston, New York, and London, and would achieve immortality in the writings of Mark Twain. San Francisco gave him his education as a writer and helped inspire the astonishing innovations that radically reimagined American literature. At once an intimate portrait of an eclectic, unforgettable group of writers and a history of a cultural revolution in America, The Bohemians reveals how a brief moment on the western frontier changed our country forever.


"A person who won't read has no advantage over one who can't read."--Mark Twain    



Praise for "The Bohemians": 

San Francisco Chronicle:
“Tarnoff breathes fresh life into his narrative with vivid details from the archives… giving us a rich portrait of a lost world overflowing with new wealth and new talent... [A] stylish and fast-paced literary history.” 


Chicago Tribune:
“Tarnoff powerfully evokes the western landscapes, local cultures and youthful friendships that helped shape Twain. He has a talent for selecting details that animate the past.”


The Wall Street Journal:
“In 1869, the Transcontinental Railroad joined the country together and tore San Francisco apart. That’s the conclusion afforded by two fine books: The Bohemians: Mark Twain and the San Francisco Writers Who Reinvented American Literature, Ben Tarnoff’s nonfiction chronicle of the literary Bay Area in the 1860s and Emma Donoghue’s historical novel of the 1870s, Frog Music. Rich hauls of historical research, deeply excavated but lightly borne, distinguishes both.”


Boston Globe:
“Adeptly wrapping a wonderful story around these young writers; Tarnoff glides smoothly along….[A] delightful book.”


The New Yorker Page-Turner Blog:
“Tarnoff provides a fascinating snapshot of the era, when the city’s prosperity and unique international character (he points out that in 1860 almost two-thirds of the city’s adult males were foreign-born) brought about a thrilling, if chaotic, admixture of idealism and fun."


Publishers Weekly:
“Tarnoff’s glimmering prose lends grandeur to this account of four writers (Mark Twain, Bret Harte, Charles Warren Stoddard, and Ina Coolbrith) who built ‘an extraordinary literary scene’ in the frontier boom town of 1860s San Francisco….The lively historical detail and loving tone of the interwoven biographies make a highly readable story of this formative time in American letters, starring San Francisco as the city that lifted ‘Twain to literary greatness.’


Booklist:
“Tarnoff energetically portrays this irresistible quartet within a vital historical setting, tracking the controversies they sparked and the struggles they endured, bringing forward an under-appreciated facet of American literature. We see Twain in a revealing new light, but most affecting are Tarnoff’s insights into Harte’s ‘downward spiral,’ Stoddard’s faltering, and persevering Coolbrith’s triumph as California’s first poet laureate.”    




Ben Tarnoff   


Image of Ben Tarnoff 


Ben Tarnoff has written for The New York Times, the San Francisco Chronicle, and Lapham's Quarterly, and is the author of The Bohemians: Mark Twain and the San Francisco Writers Who Reinvented American Literature and A Counterfeiter's Paradise: The Wicked Lives and Surprising Adventures of Three Early American Moneymakers. He was born in San Francisco. Visit bentarnoff.com to learn more.

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