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Oscar Wilde Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) was born in Dublin and educated there and at Oxford University where he achieved early celebrity - and notoriety - through his flamboyant aesthetic style. A much-publicized lecture tour of America firmly established his reputation, which grew steadily in the 1890s with the publication of his "scandalous" only novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray [Add To Basket] , which was followed by a string of enormously successful plays, including Lady Windermere's Fan [Add To Basket] and especially The Importance of Being Earnest [Add To Basket].
Lauded and admired, mocked and satirized in equal measure, the creator of cuttingly witty epigrams that became legendary, his years of triumph ended dramatically when his intimate association with Lord Alfred Douglas led to his trial on charges of homosexuality (then illegal in Britain) and a term of imprisonment that broke his spirit and health. Humiliated and vilified by the Victorian public that once applauded his works, Wilde spent his last years in exile in France, where he died at the age of 46.
About Oscar Wilde: Two Biographies
Oscar Wilde by Frank Harris
(paperback; 8.90 IRP / 13.40 USD) [Add To Basket]This book documents Wilde's triumphant rise and downfall as recounted by one of his closest friends. Literary editor and author Frank Harris played the perfect Boswell to Wilde's Johson in the London literary scene; he was alos one of the few who remained loyal to Wilde after his conviction in 1895 and his release from jail two years later. Colourful, opinionated, sympathetic, and always frank, Harris's provocative biography vividly re-creates the celebrated wit and controversationalist as no other has.
Oscar Wilde by Richard Ellman
(paperback; 11.00 IRP / 16.50 USD) [Add To Basket]The much-acclaimed biography by the renowned scholar and author of biographies of James Joyce and William Butler Yeats. This book exhibits "an exquisite critical sense, a wide and deep learning, and profound humanity - a great subject and a great book," according to Anthony Burgess.
The Dramatic Life and Fascinating Times of Oscar Wilde by Martin Fido
(hardback; 14.50 IRP / 21.75 USD) [Add To Basket]Oscar Wilde was one of the most arresting personalities of his time, and his time was as fascinating as the man himself. The story of this brilliant Irishman is inseparable from the world of arts and high society in the 1880s and 90s and this book deals with both. The world of Wilde was the world of Swinburne, Verlaine, Whistler, Aubrey Beardsley, Max Beerbohm, Toulouse-Lautrec, Sarah Bernhardt; it was also a world of enormous wealth and privilege that existed beside one of grinding poverty and squalid vice. This book contains a wealth of illustrations which illuminate the many facets of the world of Oscar Wilde.
The Wilde Album by Merlin Holland
(hardback; 14.45 IRP / 21.70 USD) [Add To Basket]Oscar Wilde was one of the first and unquestionably one of the greatest self-publicists ever. This book publishes images from his childhood in Dublin, his early days at Oxford, his tour of America, his return to England - many of the photographs previously unpublished - from the family archive. There are also some rare snapshots of Oscar in his later years in Italy. The book is compiled by Wilde's only grandson who has also written the text that accompanies this unprecedented collection.
Oscar Wilde's Writings:
Oscar Wilde's works are suffused with his aestheticism, brilliant craftsmanship, legendary wit and, ultimately, his tragic muse. He wrote tender fairy stories for children employing all his grace, artistry and wit, of which the best-known is The Happy Prince [Add To Basket] . Counterpoints to this were his novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray [Add To Basket] , which shocked and outraged many readers of his day, and his stories for adults which exhibited his fascination with the relations between serene art and decadent life.
Wilde took London by storm with his plays, particularly his masterpiece The Importance of Being Earnest [Add To Basket] . His essays - in particular De Profundis [Add To Basket] - and his Ballad of Reading Gaol [Add To Basket] , both written after his release from prison, strikingly break the bounds of his usual expressive range.
The Collected Works of Oscar Wilde
(paperback; 4.99 IRP / 7.50 USD) [Add To Basket]This book contains the complete plays, poems and stories, including The Picture of Dorian Gray [Add To Basket] and De Profundis. His other essays, short stories, children's fairy tales and poems are all included in this comprehensive collection.
Nothing - Except My Genius: A Celebration of his Wit and Wisdom by Oscar Wilde
(paperback; 3.30 IRP / 4.95 USD) [Add To Basket]This new selection is drawn from Wilde's stories, plays, lectures, reviews and letters and provides an invaluable introduciton and reference to Wilde the artist and the man. The full extent of his wit is on display in this book together with the profound, reflective and oftern melancholy side to his character.
Wilde Anthology selected by Merlin Holland
(paperback; 3.50 IRP / 5.25 USD) [Add To Basket]A pocket-sized anthology, which contains a wide range of his wit and wisdom drawn from his plays, stories, poems, essays and letters. It also includes a chronological table of his life and works.
Great Writers: Oscar Wilde: An Illustrated Anthology
(hardback; 1.99 IRP / 3.50 USD) [Add To Basket]An attractively-produced and concise gift-book that presents a vivid selection of his writings accompanied by portriats and colour illustrations and biographical material.
The Picture of Dorian Gray
(hardback; 2.99 IRP / 4.50 USD) [Add To Basket]This is Wilde's only novel is a story of moral corruption. The book attracted outraged reviews on its initial publication. Crafted in brilliant prose, the book is of lasting importance as a singlur example of Wilde's brilliance applied to the novel.
An evocative portrayal of London life and a powerful blast against the hypocrisies of Victorian politie society, it has become on of Wilde's most celebrated works.
Also available in paperback (1.99 IRP / 3.00 USD) [Add To Basket]
Complete Poetry
(paperback; 4.40 IRP / 6.60 USD) [Add To Basket]This book contains the complete poetic output of Oscar Wilde. It follows as closely as possible the chronological order of composition, highlighting autobiographical elements including the young Wilde's conflicting attitudes to Greece and Rome, pagan and Christian, and his fluctuating attraction to Roman Catholicism. The appendix shows Wilde's original ordering, constructed with great care around a 'musical' arrangement of themes. The poems reveal unexpected aspects of a literary chameleon usually identified with sparkling wit and social comedy.
The Ballad of Reading Gaol
(hardback; 9.90 IRP / 16.00 USD) [Add To Basket]This is a fully-illustrated editon of Wilde's classic poetic account of his imprisonment. Written in 1898, it is one of the great works of prison literature. Wilde's poetry is filled with power and dignity, rich in human sympathy and infused with his suffering. The poet's moving text is here accompanied by a stunning selection of woodcut illustrations by Brian Lalor, further enhancing the power of Wilde's images and the poignancy of his personal plight.
Also available in paperback: (1.20 IRP / 1.80 USD) [Add To Basket] - with other poems but no illustrations.
The Happy Prince and other Stories
(paperback; 1.50 IRP / 2.25 USD) [Add To Basket]A collection of delightful fairytales for children.
Lord Arthur Savile's Crime and other stories
(paperback; 1.50 IRP / 2.25 USD) [Add To Basket]A collection of adult stories in which Wilde indulges in brillain tongue-in-cheek prose of a heabily melodramatic kind while unfolding a witty social parady.
Collected Plays
(paperback; 4.99 IRP / 7.50 USD) [Add To Basket]Contains: Lady Windermere's Fan, A Woman of No Importance, Salome, An Ideal Husband and The Importance of Being Earnest in one volume, edited and with an introduction by Peter Raby.
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