Dorothy L. Sayers

by Barbara Reynolds

Overview

Mystery writer Dorothy Sayers is loved and remembered, most notably, for the creation of sleuths Lord Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane. As this biography attests, Sayers was also one of the first women to be awarded a degree from Oxford, a playwright, and an essayist--but also a woman with personal joys and tragedies. Here, Reynolds, a close friend of Sayers, presents a convincing and balanced portrait of one of the 20th century's most brilliant, creative women. 30 b&w photos.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780312153533
Publisher:	St. Martin's Press
Publication date:	03/01/1997
Edition description:	First St. Martin's Griffin Edition
Pages:	398
Sales rank:	599,510
Product dimensions:	6.06(w) x 9.04(h) x 1.02(d)

Editorial Reviews

Sayers, The Passionate Intellect of Reynolds's earlier book, is revealed as a more exciting person in this biography, published in observance of the centenary of the writer's birth. As the author of sophisticated mysteries featuring Lord Peter Wimsey, aristocratic detective, and feminist Harriet Vane, Sayers gained fame during the l920s; she was also among the first women to earn a degree from Oxford, and when she died in l957 at the age of 64 she was involved in translating Dante's Divine Comedy . She was religious as well as scholarly and expressed her Christian beliefs in stage and radio dramas. Sayers had a sense of humor and countless interests, from music to motorcycling. But she also suffered from failed love affairs and from secretly bearing a son out of wedlock in the intolerant moral climate of her day. Excerpts from her correspondence and publications illuminate Reynolds's discerning depiction of this intriguing woman. Photos. ( Oct. )

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Remembered above all as the detective writer who created Lord Peter Wimsey, Sayers was also a scholar and one of the first women to be awarded a degree from Oxford University. Reynolds, who completed the translation of Dante's Divine Comedy that Sayers left unfinished when she died and who is chairman of the Dorothy L. Sayers Society, profiles the famous writer on the 100th anniversary of her birth. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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