London: John Murray, 2009. Hardback. Very Good — in Very Good Dust Wrapper. Superficial markings to the boards. A little age-toning to the edges of the text block. The contents complete, clean and tight.. Hardback in dust wrapper (green boards with gilt titling to the spine) Physically 9½” x 6¼” (1.4 kg); 614pp; Index; Bibliography; 3rd impression, first published the same year. Includes: Black & white photographs on individual leaves; ISBN: 978-0-7195-6554-0 || The book is on my shelves and will be carefully packed and posted from the pastoral paradise of Peasedown St. John, Bath, by a real bookseller in a real book shop - with my personal guarantee and my beady eye on the Consumer Contracts Regulations. REMEMBER! Buying my copy means the bookshop Jack Russells get their supper! My Book #199223|| Condition:

Synopsis

He was a brilliant teller of tales, one of the most widely read authors of the twentieth century, and at one time the most famous writer in the world, yet W. Somerset Maugham's own true story has never been fully told. At last, the fascinating truth is revealed in a landmark biography by the award-winning writer Selina Hastings. Granted unprecedented access to Maugham's personal correspondence and to newly uncovered interviews with his only child, Hastings portrays the secret loves, betrayals, integrity, and passion that inspired Maugham to create such classics as The Razor's Edge and Of Human Bondage.Hastings vividly presents Maugham's lonely childhood spent with unloving relatives after the death of his parents, a trauma that resulted in shyness, a stammer, and for the rest of his life an urgent need for physical tenderness. Here, too, are his adult triumphs on the stage and page, works that allowed him a glittering social life in which he befriended and sometimes fell out with such luminaries as Dorothy Parker, Charlie Chaplin, D. H. Lawrence, and Winston Churchill.The Secret Lives of Somerset Maugham portrays in full for the first time Maugham's disastrous marriage to Syrie Wellcome, a manipulative society woman of dubious morality who trapped Maugham with a pregnancy and an attempted suicide. Hastings also explores Maugham's many affairs with men, including his great love, Gerald Haxton, an alcoholic charmer and a cad. Maugham's courageous work in secret intelligence during two world wars is described in fascinating detail--experiences that provided the inspiration for the groundbreaking Ashenden stories. From the West End to Broadway, from China to the South Pacific, Maugham's restless and remarkably productive life is thrillingly recounted as Hastings uncovers the real stories behind such classics as "Rain," The Painted Veil, Cakes & Ale, and other well-known tales.An epic biography of a hugely talented and hugely conflicted man, The Secret Lives of Somerset Maugham is the definitive account of Maugham's extraordinary life.From the Hardcover edition.

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Details

Bookseller: BookLovers of Bath (GB)
Bookseller's Inventory #: 199223
Title: The Secret Lives of Somerset Maugham
Author: Selina Hastings
Format/Binding: Hardback
Book Condition: Used - Very Good — in Very Good Dust Wrapper. Superficial markings to the boards. A little age-toning to the edges of the text blo
Quantity Available: 1
Binding: Hardcover
ISBN 10: 0719565545
ISBN 13: 9780719565540
Publisher: London: John Murray
Place of Publication: London
Date Published: 2009
Keywords: henry solomon, british authors, english authors, 20th century authors, authors biography, authors life story, authors memoirs, authors biographies, british playwrights, british homosexuals, syrie wellcome, gerald haxton, british intelligence, london theat

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BookLovers of Bath

As a distance seller based in England, I am required to abide by the terms of the "Distance Selling Act", details of which are freely available. This ensures that you have the highest degree of protection when purchasing from me. Alongside that, I prefer to treat my customers in the manner that I expect to be treated; my guarantee is complete satisfaction or your money back - I aim to please, not just for the one book sale but to ensure that should you require another book, another time that my name against it means it gets your consideration.

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BookLovers of Bath

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Peasedown St. John, Somerset

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About BookLovers of Bath

BookLovers of Bath is set in the pastoral idyll of Peasedown St. John in Somerset (God's Own Country) in the south west of England. My wife and I owned the village Post Office until the modern world caught up with us in 2014. At that point I converted the premises to a small book shop, Fact or Fable, with a stock of around 4,000 titles in stock. I've been selling books worldwide since 1997 and rather hope to get the hang of it shortly…

Glossary

Glossary

Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:

Text Block: Most simply the inside pages of a book. More precisely, the block of paper formed by the cut and stacked pages of a book....
Edges: The collective of the top, fore and bottom edges of the text block of the book, being that part of the edges of the pages of a...
Gilt: The decorative application of gold or gold coloring to a portion of a book on the spine, edges of the text block, or an inlay in...
Tight: Used to mean that the binding of a book has not been overly loosened by frequent use.