SYLVIA

Leonard, a young writer drifting through the city, meets Sylvia by chance at a friends shabby Greenwich Village apartment. Hes instantly besotted with her striking beauty and quiet disdain, and the question of what to do with his life is resolved. In this remarkable semi-autobiographical novel, we are drawn into the world of a beatnik couple living in Manhattan in the early 1960s, and their demi-monde of jazz, poetry, late nights and early mornings. But when Sylvias depression emerges and her disturbances take hold, their fights become increasingly violent and their relationship hurtles towards self-destruction. Written with extraordinary clarity and precision, this is a compelling portrait of the mad intensity, exquisite pain and destructive power of young love. Every page reveals the mark of an extraordinarily original and gifted talent. - William Styron The writing isnt merely stylish; its vital . . . the ending is as shocking as that of any thriller. - Sarah Manguso A novel that has the power and the rawness of memoir. - New York Times