Sailor and Fiddler: Reflections of a 100-Year-Old Author
Written by Herman Wouk
Narrated by Arthur Morey
4/5
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About this audiobook
In this remarkable memoir “full of adventure, wit, color, and detail” (Jewish Journal), Herman Wouk finally reflects on the life experiences that inspired his most enduring novels. With a tone that is “generous and warm” (The Boston Globe), he tells of his days writing for comedian Fred Allen’s radio show, one of the most popular shows in the history of the medium; enlisting in the US Navy during World War II; falling in love with Betty Sarah Brown, the woman who would become his wife (and literary agent) for sixty-three years; writing his Pulitzer Prize–winning novel, The Caine Mutiny; as well as a big hit Broadway play and an equally big Broadway flop; and the surprising inspirations and people behind such masterpieces as The Winds of War, War and Remembrance, Marjorie Morningstar, and Youngblood Hawke.
Written with the wisdom of a “trailblazing centenarian charmer” (Buffalo News) and the wit of someone who began his career as professional comedy writer, Sailor and Fiddler is an unprecedented reflection on writing and faith—“a lovely coda to the career of a man who made American literature a kinder, smarter, better place” (NPR).
Herman Wouk
Herman Wouk was the author of such classics as The Caine Mutiny (1951), Marjorie Morningstar (1955), Youngblood Hawke (1961), Don’t Stop the Carnival (1965), The Winds of War (1971), War and Remembrance (1978), and Inside, Outside (1985). His later works include The Hope (1993), The Glory (1994), A Hole in Texas (2004) and The Lawgiver (2012). Among Mr. Wouk’s laurels are the 1952 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for The Caine Mutiny; the cover of Time magazine for Marjorie Morningstar, the bestselling novel of that year; and the cultural phenomenon of The Winds of War and War and Remembrance, which he wrote over a fourteen-year period and which went on to become two of the most popular novels and TV miniseries events of the 1970s and 1980s. In 1998, he received the Guardian of Zion Award for support of Israel. In 2008, Mr. Wouk was honored with the first Library of Congress Lifetime Achievement for the Writing of Fiction. He died in 2019 at the age of 103.
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Reviews for Sailor and Fiddler
32 ratings4 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Great fun. I was hoping for more information on Caine Mutiny, which is the main work I know him from, but a great read. And it led to more titles.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The author turned 100 on May 27, 201, and so I suppose this is the only book I have ever read by a person over 100 years old. It is a memoir of his life, telling of growing up in New York City, attending Columbia, working as a gag witer for Fred Allen, serving in the Navy during World War II, and writing such successful novels as The Caine Mutiny (which I read 31 Jan 1954), Marjoie Morningstar (read 10 Aug 1956), The Winds of War (read 24 Nov 1974), and War and Remembrance (read 8 Jan 1980). As I read this very well written memoir I wished I had read his other work as well--and I may do so now. I did not find a dull page in this little book (only 137 pages) and found myself admiring the author and his felicitous prose more and more,
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I’m very excited about the release of this book by Herman Wouk on January 5th. Books such as “Marjorie Morningstar”, “Youngblood Hawke”, “Winds of War” and “War and Remembrance” will always have a special place in my heart. I count them among the books that cemented my love of reading in my youth. So to see a memoir, even such a short one, written by Mr. Wouk at the age of 100 is truly a joy.Mr. Wouk starts off the book telling about his days as a writer for Fred Allen for radio programs where his humor was put to great use. That was back in the day when radio was at its height of popularity. He talks about being influenced by the work of Mark Twain and Dumas, as well as his lost chance to do “Aurora Dawn” with Kurt Weil on Broadway. He also details the writing of each of his books and it was fascinating to watch the development of such well-known characters and how the books came about. He only touches here and there on his personal life and he says that bits of his life can be seen in his novels. He mentions diaries that he has written over the years but they are to remain private. This book is mostly about his work and his faith.Even if you’re not familiar with Herman Wouk’s work, I think this book would appeal to those who enjoy reading about the publishing world and authors’ struggles. I do also recommend that you become acquainted with this author’s highly regarded masterpieces if you aren’t already. You won’t regret a minute spent in the company of the literary world created by Herman Wouk.This book was given to me by the publisher through NetGalley and Edelweiss in return for an honest review.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Chutzpah and luckIt takes some nerve to sum up a 100 year life in less than a hundred pages. It reads like fastforwarding a DVD or tape: blurry images and sudden stops to inch forward in detail, followed by another blur. For a public interested in glimpses of the real man and the real story, it works. That’s the chutzpah part.The luck part is his life. Wouk acknowledges it throughout: meeting the right people at the right time, getting boosts when needed, and of course the freedom of financial success. His wife (and agent and muse) lived until he was 96. The Sailor of the title is his time in navy, which led to breakthroughs in publishing after the war. The Fiddler is the Jewish portion of his life, with Israel and Jewish-focused books and all the relationships he built in Israel in the 60s and 70s. He tells us the inspiration or real names of the characters in his books, which he freely admits are taken from his own life. The more experiences he had, the books he could write. Now at 100, he says he has fulfilled all commitments and written all he intends.It is a whirlwind, written breezily. One would expect no less from Herman Wouk.David Wineberg