09/04/2023

Memoirist Taylor (Here We Are) examines in this solid critical biography the ideas and passions that animated the life and work of novelist Willa Cather (1873–1947). Taylor emphasizes the importance of place to Cather and contends that her family’s move to Red Cloud, Nebr., from Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley when she was nine proved “profoundly” formative, inspiring the setting for several of her novels and exposing her to a diverse array of immigrants who led her to view America “as a gathering of peoples from elsewhere.” Taylor offers a matter-of-fact overview of Cather’s career, noting that The Song of the Lark (1915) fictionalized the life of singer Oliver Fremstad while dramatizing Cather’s own artistic aspirations and that A Lost Lady (1923) marked the maturation of the novelist’s style, defined by psychological depth and “meanings evoked but not belabored.” Taylor demonstrates a willingness to take Cather to task for her antisemitism and astutely contextualizes Cather among her contemporaries, arguing that she stands out among the era’s modernists, who wrote skeptically about the “deceptiveness of ideals,” because of her “unguarded admiration” for the “antique virtues: valor, loyalty, fulfillment of some high destiny.” It’s a strong overview of Cather’s bibliography that’s as concise as her best novels. (Nov.)

[Taylor's] swift account turns Cather’s conservative side to the light, stressing her idealism and moral backbone, and paying rare attention to the Anglican faith that sustained her in later life. He writes from 'a debt of love' and admires Cather enough to lay bare her flaws…It takes real confidence, as well as real depth of knowledge, to see clearly the territory of such a complex life and mass of work.” —The New York Times

“Chasing Bright Medusas should appeal to anyone — novice or expert — ready to explore Cather’s life and work in the company of a critic so alert to the shimmering subtlety of her style and the hard years of effort that went into crystallizing it.”—The Washington Post

"This succinct biography is a terrific introduction to the life and work of the Pulitzer 
Prize winner...Taylor reminds you of what you loved of her work while encouraging you to pick up the books you may not have read." —The Boston Globe

"This slim homage to one of the great American writers is an absorbing introduction...After finishing the book, yes, I finally started reading Cather." —The Minneapolis Star Tribune

“. . . [A] solid critical biography . . . It’s a strong overview of Cather’s bibliography that’s as concise as her best novels.” —Publishers Weekly

"Taylor’s deep reading and extensive knowledge of Cather’s work, from her poetry, letters, and stories to her classic novels, allows him to fluidly and expertly use quotations from Cather’s writings to illuminate her experiences and evolution. ... Taylor’s stunning achievement should similarly renew enthusiasm for Cather.” —Booklist (Starred Review)

"...[Cather's] words seem to have truly inspired Taylor. His interpretations of the interplay of memory and description in Cather’s work are some of the most lyrical and moving passages in this highly polished and heartfelt book." —Bookpage (Starred Review)

“Taylor’s book succinctly captures the milieu of the author’s youth and the 'years of frenzy' that followed. . . . there’s something touching about the quaintness of Taylor’s devotion to Cather.” —Bookforum

“...Taylor provides a remarkably revealing account of the life and creative output of Willa Cather...Taylor’s connection of Cather’s personal life and her literary inventions is consistently astute, and the exuberant force of her imagination emerges vividly...the author presents a rewarding and perceptive portrait, providing a valuable assessment of Cather’s intriguing character and the enduring importance of her oeuvre. Keen, insightful commentary on a literary master.” —Kirkus Reviews

"Mr Taylor approaches Cather’s work in a spirit of appreciation. A shelf of studies of the author already exists, he says, so instead he aims for a personal response to her work. That means his view is unabashedly partisan. At one point Mr Taylor defends Cather against criticism from Ernest Hemingway, who had privately mocked her for writing about war without ever having seen a battle. 'With all due respect to Hemingway,' Mr Taylor writes, her interest was in the nature of grief, not munitions.” —The Economist

"Chasing Bright Medusas is an appreciation, a fan’s notes, a life démeublé. Taylor’s love of Cather’s sublime prose is evident and endearing." —The American Scholar

“Willa Cather ‘was her own raw material,’ Benjamin Taylor tells us in his sober, elegant, and compact life of his heroine. Taylor’s graceful insight and wit, alive in every sentence, pay tribute to Cather’s style and to the truthfulness of her vision. Chasing Bright Medusas is a love letter from one writer to another, offering an intimate, inside view of the living art." —Rosanna Warren, author of Max Jacob: A Life in Art and Letters

“Chasing Bright Medusas is a loving appreciation of Willa Cather's belated genius, her sense of who she was, and the writer she was destined to be—strong in execution, simple, and sure. This book is a graceful portrait of an unusual woman, a passionate humanist who bucked the trends of the times." —Brenda Wineapple, author of The Impeachers: The Trial of Andrew Johnson and the Dream of a Just Nation

"From what he calls ‘a debt of love,’ Benjamin Taylor has produced a swift, sure-footed, immensely pleasurable biography. His Cather is at once an adamant antimodernist and an intrepid experimenter, an idealist of America and a chronicler of its darknesses. His passionate readings make clear that she is, above all, one of our greatest writers." —Garth Greenwell, author of Cleanness

"Willa Cather was a great American writer. She was also a formidable and complicated woman. Benjamin Taylor knows just when to assert, when to question, and when to suggest. His elegant biography cuts away the clutter. He brings a storyteller’s breadth and a critic’s precision to Cather’s life and art." —Margo Jefferson, author of Constructing a Nervous System: A Memoir

10/01/2023

Taylor's (Here We Are: My Friendship with Philip Roth) intention with this biography of Willa Cather (1873–1947) is to demonstrate how her temperament grows, changes, and consequently influences her work. Arranged in chronological order by her works, the chapters each follow the same format: a mention of what Cather is working on, a bit about where she is in her life at that time, specifics about the work itself, and details on how it was received. Particulars about her life are scattered throughout. Cather's entire early writing career is covered, as well as her major works (O Pioneers!; My Ántonia; Death Comes for the Archbishop). Throughout, it is evident that Taylor has a reverence for Cather's writing. However, there are several shortcomings. Cather's two major personal relationships—with Isabelle McClung and then Edith Lewis—are examined only intermittently and Taylor's observations about sexuality, unhappy marriages, and Cather's dislike of the patriarchy appear without substantial context, which may make some readers wonder if they were Cather's ideas or Taylor's. Although each chapter seems to be leading towards an epiphany about Cather, that moment never actually arrives. VERDICT For ardent Cather fans only.—Tina Panik

Benjamin Taylor delivers a plainspoken performance of this audiobook; little fanfare or theatrical nuance is added to the work. This style may suit the subject matter well; after all, Cather is often associated with the simple majesty of the American plains, and simplicity governs this work--despite the intriguing energy of its title. Taylor's workmanlike narration echoes the structure of the audiobook as a whole. His steady pace and consistent tone lead the listener into a pattern of narrative, excerpts from letters and reviews, plot synopses, and author insights starting with Cather's youth and ending with her death. There are few surprises with either content or artistry, but this is a fine glimpse of the life of one of America's most notable authors. L.B.F. © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine

2023-08-17
A study of the intellectual and spiritual coordinates of a great American author.

In 13 short chapters, Taylor, the author of Here We Are: My Friendship With Philip Roth and The Hue and Cry at Our House, provides a remarkably revealing account of the life and creative output of Willa Cather (1873-1947). The author argues for Cather’s essentially religious sensibility in a skeptical age, focusing on her “antagonism to the times in which she lived” and affirmation of “the antique virtues: valor, loyalty, fulfillment of some high destiny.” Taylor pairs informed appraisals of his subject’s upbringing, the conditions of her ascent to literary stardom, and the intellectual milieu in which she lived with subtle, edifying analyses of major works, including The Song of the Lark and My Ántonia. The author also elegantly summarizes Cather’s understanding of the nation’s enduring possibilities for self-invention. Taylor’s connection of Cather’s personal life and her literary inventions is consistently astute, and the exuberant force of her imagination emerges vividly. Also satisfying is the author’s examination of Cather’s descriptive genius, illustrated by a generous selection of quotations. Ultimately, we gain a clear sense of how Cather’s artistic sensibility took shape, including how her copious journalistic work generated for her “a lasting frame of reference.” Other peculiarities in her attitudes, from her distaste for modern technology to her oscillation between antisemitism and philosemitism, are placed in useful relation to her fiction. In a work as brief as this, readers may wish for extended analyses of key topics. For example, Taylor may have profitably elaborated on his insights regarding Cather’s complex sexual and gender identity and its relevance to her fictive worlds, her fascination with forms of self-violence, or her relationships with literary contemporaries. Nevertheless, the author presents a rewarding and perceptive portrait, providing a valuable assessment of Cather’s intriguing character and the enduring importance of her oeuvre.

Keen, insightful commentary on a literary master.