by Janna Malamud Smith

Bernard Malamud—a Pulitzer Prize–winning author, peer of Philip Roth and Saul Bellow, and a great influence on some of today’s most accomplished young writers—was a very private man. In this “beautifully written book” (Newsday), Malamud’s daughter brings the revered author to vivid life. Culling from her own memories as well as her father’s personal papers, including intimate letters and journals, she offers a unique insight into the man and his work. Respectful in her revelations, she “tenderly fills in the missing pieces of a man who exists as much on the page as he does in her memory” (Vogue). Enhancing our understanding of the relationship between an author’s life and art in the spirit of Dream Catcher—Margaret Salinger’s memoir of life with her reclusive father—this New York Times Editors' Choice is an indispensable companion for readers of Bernard Malamud's fiction.