Discovering Author Saul Bellow

Reading books is one of my favorite pastimes so I was excited to learn that I would be a Squidoo angel for the Fiction Authors neighborhood. While exploring this neighborhood recently, I came across a page about the writer, Saul Bellow (1915-2005), written by DaveStone13. Dave is a full time writer, so certainly has the expertise to write about his favorite authors.

It is clear from the beginning that Dave knows a lot about Saul Bellow and has great admiration and respect for him. The title, "Greatest American Writer of His Time," tells you what Dave thinks. It is clear that he has read Bellow's books and can speak in depth about them. This, of course, is what makes a lens come alive.

Dave begins by citing Bellow's many accomplishments, including a Nobel Prize for Literature. According to the Nobel Committee, Bellow exhibited "exuberant ideas, flashing irony, hilarious comedy and burning compassion."

Dave explains that Bellows' work has an autobiographical component in that there are common themes that seem to apply to Bellows' own life - "the meaning in life, a deep conviction that there is "something more," and trouble with beautiful women."


He then goes on to present detailed descriptions of several of Bellow's books, including his own personal take on these books. For example, in describing the book Herzog, Dave writes, "This book made Bellow a star, and it made me fall in love with him as incomparable storyteller."

His reviews are persuasive and make me want to revisit Bellows books, which I think was the point of this article.

Dave ends by providing an excerpt from Bellows' Nobel lecture, "The novel can't be compared to the epic, or to the monuments of poetic drama. But it is the best we can do just now. It is a sort of latter-day lean-to, a hovel in which the spirit takes shelter." I couldn't agree more.

Image Credit: "Writer." poster by mikelizzio

Written by kimmanleyort