Viking critical library

A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is the first novel of Irish writer James Joyce and is a key work of twentieth century literature that remains as fresh, challenging and relevant as the day it was first published. It is a autobiographical novel and describes the early life and development of its central character, Stephen Dedalus (representing Joyce). Stephan, an intelligent but frail child, struggles toward maturity in Ireland at the turn of...

"It is a two-act tragedy set in 1940s New York told through a montage of memories, dreams, and arguments of the protagonist Willy Loman, a travelling salesman who is disappointed with his life, and appears to be slipping into senility. The play contains a variety of themes, such as the American Dream, the anatomy of truth, and infidelity. It is considered by some critics to be one of the greatest plays of the 20th century.

Tells the story of Paul Morel, a young artist growing into manhood in a British working-class community near the Nottingham coalfields. His mother Gertrude, unhappily married to Paul's hard-drinking father, devotes all her energies to her son. They develop a powerful and passionate relationship, but eventually tensions arise when Paul falls in love with a girl and seeks to escape his family ties. Torn between his desire for independence and his abiding...

Winner of the National Book Award in 1985, Don DeLillo's novel about an ultramodern family bound by love and remarriage, shopping and television, is a postmodern masterpiece. The Viking Critical Library edition of White Noise contains the complete text of the novel along with extensive critical and contextual material including a critical introduction by DeLillo scholar Mark Osteen; published interviews with DeLillo on White Noise, including a Paris...