Boswell's Presumptuous Task by Adam Sisman
James Boswell died a disappointed man, considered by his contemporaries to be a "foolish failure". Yet today his "Life of Johnson" is esteemed as the template for modern biography and Boswell himself is regarded as a formidable, if somewhat anti-heroic intellect in his own right. Sisman provides not only an account of Boswell's life but a creative investigation into how Boswell managed to be simultaneously so risible and outstanding and, by extension, an investigation into the nature of biographers and biography. Making use of Boswell's letters and journals (only recently uncovered and unhindered by the constraints of academia), Sisman's book depicts Boswell and the 18th-century world he lived in with clarity and frankness.| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780241136379 |
| ISBN 10 | 0241136377 |
| Title | Boswell's Presumptuous Task |
| Author | Adam Sisman |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Hardback |
| Publisher | Penguin Books Ltd |
| Year published | 2000-11-02 |
| Number of pages | 416 |
| Prizes | Short-listed for Whitbread Prize (Biography) 2001, Short-listed for Whitbread Book Awards: Biography Category 2001 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |