The Eye You See with - by Robert Stone & Madison Smartt Bell (Paperback)

About the Book

"The definitive collection of nonfiction--from war reporting to literary criticism to the sharpest political writing--from the "legend of American letters""--

Book Synopsis

The definitive collection of nonfiction--from war reporting to literary criticism to the sharpest political writing--from the "legend of American letters" (Vanity Fair)

Robert Stone was a singular American writer, a visionary whose award-winning novels--including Dog Soldiers, Outerbridge Reach, and Damascus Gate--earned him comparisons to literary lions ranging from Samuel Beckett to Ernest Hemingway to Graham Greene. Stone had an almost prophetic grasp of the spirit of his age, which he captured with crystalline clarity in each of his novels. Of course, he was also a sharp and brilliant observer of American life, and his nonfiction writing is revelatory.

The Eye You See With--the first and only collection of Robert Stone's nonfiction--was carefully selected by award-winning novelist and Stone biographer Madison Smartt Bell. Divided into three sections, the collection includes the best of Stone's war reporting, his writing on social change, and his reflections on the art of fiction. This is an extraordinary volume that offers up a clear-eyed look at the twentieth century and secures Robert Stone's place as one of the most original figures in all of American letters.

Review Quotes

"Novelist Bell presents a sterling collection of essays on literature, culture, politics, and war by the late Stone (1937-2015), best known for his National Book Award-winning novel Dog Soldiers. Spanning the 1970s to the aughts, the essays demonstrates Stone's remarkable capacity for capturing an era's ethos while making larger, and still current, points...Throughout, Bell provides useful biographical information, which in combination with the essays provides a vivid portrait of Stone's background and guiding philosophy. Fans of Stone's novels will especially appreciate the insight, but any reader of narrative nonfiction will find plenty of interest in this fine collection." -- Publishers Weekly

"This first collection of Stone's nonfiction, edited by his biographer, Madison Smartt Bell showcases the same dizzying welter of ideas and passions that defines Stone's landmark fiction...In 'What Fiction Is For, ' he says that 'art is the only medium we have for removing a moment from the whirl of events and placing it under scrutiny in all its dimensions.' These essays, however, argue persuasively that, for Stone, nonfiction can do the same thing." -- Booklist

About the Author

ROBERT STONE (1937-2015) was the acclaimed author of Dog Soldiers, winner of the National Book Award, and Bear and His Daughter, a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize.

MADISON SMARTT BELL is the author of thirteen novels and two short story collections and has been nominated for the National Book Award.