The Master - Softcover

"A spectacular novel."
-- Alice Sebold, author of The Lovely Bones

"A marvel."
-- John Updike, The New Yorker

"The work of a first-rate novelist artful, moving and very beautiful."
-- The New York Times Book Review

"A gorgeous portrait of a complex and passionate man."
-- Azar Nafisi, author of Reading Lolita in Tehran

"A deep, lovely, and enthralling book that engages with the disquiet and drama of a famous writing life."
-- Shirley Hazzard, author of The Great Fire

"Tóibín takes us almost shockingly close to the mystery of art itself. A remarkable, utterly original book."
-- Michael Cunningham, author of The Hours

Nineteenth-century writer Henry James is heartbroken when his first play performs poorly in contrast to Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest and struggles with subsequent doubts about his sexual identity, his decision not to marry, and his difficulties with emotional intimacy. Reprint. 75,000 first printing.