How to Be Alone

From the National Book Award-winning author of "The Corrections," a collection of essays that reveal him to be one of our sharpest, toughest, and most entertaining social critics While the essays in this collection range in subject matter from the sex-advice industry to the way a supermax prison works, each one wrestles with the essential themes of Franzen's writing: the erosion of civil life and private dignity; and the hidden persistence of loneliness in postmodern, imperial America. Reprinted here for the first time is Franzen's controversial l996 investigation of the fate of the American novel in what became known as "the Harper's essay," as well as his award-winning narrative of his father's struggle with Alzheimer's disease, and a rueful account of his brief tenure as an Oprah Winfrey author.

From the National Book Award-winning author of "The Corrections," a collection of essays that reveal him to be one of our sharpest, toughest, and most entertaining social critics While the essays in this collection range in subject matter from the sex-advice industry to the way a supermax prison works, each one wrestles with the essential themes of Franzen's writing: the erosion of civil life and private dignity; and the hidden persistence of loneliness in postmodern, imperial America. Reprinted here for the first time is Franzen's controversial l996 investigation of the fate of the American novel in what became known as "the Harper's essay," as well as his award-winning narrative of his father's struggle with Alzheimer's disease, and a rueful account of his brief tenure as an Oprah Winfrey author.

乔纳森•弗兰岑（Jonathan Franzen）：

美国著名小说家、随笔作家。以抨击现代传媒、书写普通民众著称，作品具有强烈的时代性。以作家身份登上《时代》封面，并被誉为“伟大的美国小说家”。曾获美国国家图书奖。

1959年生于伊利诺伊州，1981年毕业于斯沃思莫学院德文专业。1996年在《哈泼氏》杂志上发表了长篇随笔《偶尔 做 梦》，从此受到广泛关注。迄今为止，出版有小说《第二十七座城市》（1988）、《强震》（1992）、《纠正》（2001）、《自由》（2010），随笔集《如何独处》（2002），以及回忆录《不舒适地带：个人史》（2006）。