The Two Worlds of William March

"Described by Jose Garcia Villa as America's 'greatest short story writer, ' by Alistair Cooke as the 'the unrecognized genius of our time, ' and by his biographer as 'one of the most remarkable, talented, and shamefully neglected writers that America has pro- duced, ' William March (1893-1954) is remembered, if at all, for The Bad Seed, which March ironically regarded as his worst work. The emphasis in The Two Worlds of William March is on the literary career, and we get a fairly full picture of a hardworking, oversensitive, compassionate bachelor, who suffered a tragic breakdown late in life . . . [and] whose best long works, Company K and The Looking-Glass, as well as March himself are almost forgotten. . . . Simmonds's comprehensive, scholarly, and sympathetic study may redress this unwarranted neglect." --CHOICE