The Glass Cell

by Patricia Highsmith

Overview

At last back in print, one of Patricia Highsmith's most disturbing works.

Rife with overtones of Dostoyevsky, The Glass Cell, first published forty years ago, combines a quintessential Highsmith mystery with a penetrating critique of the psychological devastation wrought by the prison system. Falsely convicted of fraud, the easygoing but naive Philip Carter is sentenced to six lonely, drug-ravaged years in prison. Upon his release, Carter is a more suspicious and violent man. For those around him, earning back his trust can mean the difference between life and death. The Glass Cell's bleak and compelling portrait of daily prison life—and the consequences for those who live it—is, sadly, as relevant today as it was when the book was first published in 1964.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780393345681
Publisher:	Norton, W. W. & Company, Inc.
Publication date:	05/28/2012
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	252
Sales rank:	413,046
File size:	531 KB

About the Author

Patricia Highsmith (1921–1995) was the author of more than twenty novels, including Strangers on a Train, The Price of Salt and The Talented Mr. Ripley, as well as numerous short stories.

Date of Birth:

January 19, 1921

Date of Death:

February 4, 1995

Place of Birth:

Fort Worth, Texas

Place of Death:

Locarno, Switzerland

Education:

B.A., Barnard College, 1942

Editorial Reviews

In Highsmith's 1964 novel, an innocent, harmless man emerges after six years in prison a violent, drug-abusing thug who is a stranger to his loving family and friends. The plot stems from Highsmith's own correspondence with a convict. Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

"The book is well made, well told."

Times Literary Supplement

"There's a certain harsh power here that is compelling."

New York Times

"[E]minently devourable.…the propulsive snap of Highsmith’s cool, unforgiving intellect is on almost every page."

Leah Greenblatt

"Patricia Highsmith's novels are peerlessly disturbing...bad dreams that keep us thrashing for the rest of the night."

The New Yorker

[E]minently devourable....the propulsive snap of Highsmith's cool, unforgiving intellect is on almost every page.--Leah Greenblatt "New York Times Book Review"

There's a certain harsh power here that is compelling.-- "New York Times"

Patricia Highsmith's novels are peerlessly disturbing...bad dreams that keep us thrashing for the rest of the night.-- "The New Yorker"

The book is well made, well told.-- "Times Literary Supplement"

From the Publisher

"There's a certain harsh power here that is compelling."

New York Times Book Review