Bernard Shaw: The One-Volume Definitive Edition

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When Michael Holroyd's multivolume life of Bernard Shaw was published, it was acclaimed as a masterpiece, with William Golding predicting its place "among the great biographies." Now available in an engaging abridgment, this work distills the essence of Shaw. The narrative showcases a new energy, revealing the complexities of Shaw's world as Holroyd contrasts the private and public aspects of Shaw's life with remarkable insight. A playwright, wit, socialist, polemicist, vegetarian, and charmer, Shaw was a controversial figure, challenging Victorian values and middle-class norms. Born in Dublin in 1856, he grew up in a troubled household, prompting his move to London to reinvent himself as the legendary G.B.S. His early life included passionate affairs and flirtations, culminating in marriage in 1898. By the turn of the century, Shaw was a theatrical impresario, known for his impactful plays like Man and Superman and Pygmalion, using humor to critique British society. An international icon by the 1920s, he remained provocative throughout his life, receiving a Nobel Prize and an Academy Award. In his later years, Shaw continued to produce powerful works, revealing himself as a conjurer and visionary. Covering nearly a century, this biography presents a vivid portrait of both Shaw and the era he influenced.