House of Wits An Intimate Portrait of the James Family [Paperback]

A sweeping biography . . . [Fisher] gives fair and sympathetic time to everyone, and provides a lively and detailed social history of the period. ???The New York Times

The James family, a true American dynasty, gave the world three famous children: Henry, a novelist of genius; William, an influential philosopher; and Alice, an invalid who became a feminist icon, despite her sheltered life and struggles with mental illness.

Paul Fisher's masterly biography provides a captivating account of the conflicts???bitter struggles with depression, alcoholism, jealousy, and panic disorders???that shaped the members of this brilliant family, including the two other brothers, Wilkie and Bob, whose achievements were constantly overshadowed by those of their siblings. Their mother, Mary, lent the family some stability, while the mercurial Henry James Sr. nurtured, inspired, and emotionally wounded his children, setting the stage for their intense rivalries and extraordinary achievements.House of Witsis a revealing cultural history that completes our understanding of its remarkable protagonists and the changing world in which they came of age.

Paul Fisher, the author ofArtful Itineraries: European Art and American Careers in High Culture, 1865???1920, has had a long professional fascination with the James family. He grew up in Wyoming, was educated at Harvard and Trinity College, Cambridge, and received his Ph.D. from Yale. He teaches American literature at Wellesley College and lives in Boston, Massachusetts.

???Paul Fisher's portraits of the famous members of the James household are brilliant; our fascination grows exponentially as he enlarges the frame to include the others. He appreciates the web of characters, the dynamics of influence. Dramatic, richly detailed,House of Witsis a prime contribution to our understanding of this prodigious family.??? ???Daniel Mark Epstein, author of The Lincolns: Portrail#µ