Add this copy of Lost in America / Isaac Bashevis Singer; Paintings and to cart. $49.00, like new condition, Sold by MW Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Galway, G, IRELAND, published 1981 by Garden City, N. Y. : Doubleday.
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Seller's Description:
Fine cloth copy in a near fine, very slightly edge-nicked and dust-dulled dw, now mylar sleeved. Remains particularly and surprisingly well-preserved; tight, bright, clean and sharp-cornered.; 8vo 8"-9" tall; 259 pages; Description: viii, 259 p., [8] p. Of plates: ill. (some col. ); 24 cm. Subjects: Singer, Isaac Bashevis, 1904-1991. Authors, Yiddish--Biography. Jews--Biography.
Add this copy of Lost in America to cart. $9.64, fair condition, Sold by Your Online Bookstore rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Houston, TX, UNITED STATES, published 1981 by Doubleday.
Add this copy of Lost in America to cart. $9.83, good condition, Sold by Open Books Ltd rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Chicago, IL, UNITED STATES, published 1981 by Doubleday.
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Good. Edge wear, age wear. Open Books is a nonprofit social venture that provides literacy experiences for thousands of readers each year through inspiring programs and creative capitalization of books.
Add this copy of Lost in America to cart. $12.53, good condition, Sold by Wonder Book - Member ABAA/ILAB rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Frederick, MD, UNITED STATES, published 1981 by Doubleday Books.
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Good. Good condition. Good dust jacket. A copy that has been read but remains intact. May contain markings such as bookplates, stamps, limited notes and highlighting, or a few light stains.
Add this copy of Lost in America to cart. $24.97, very good condition, Sold by Wonder Book - Member ABAA/ILAB rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Frederick, MD, UNITED STATES, published 1981 by Doubleday Books.
Add this copy of Lost in America to cart. $26.50, like new condition, Sold by Between the Covers-Rare Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Gloucester City, NJ, UNITED STATES, published 1981 by Doubleday & Company, Inc.
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Fine in Good jacket. Second edition. Second Printing. Lightly browned and worn cover edges, worn spine ends, owners inscription on back of front fly, else fine in a good price clipped dust jacket with some tearing and chipping on edges, lightly browned with some staining.
Add this copy of Lost in America to cart. $27.00, very good condition, Sold by Grendel Books, ABAA/ILAB rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Springfield, MA, UNITED STATES, published 1981 by Doubleday & Company,.
Add this copy of Lost in America to cart. $27.00, very good condition, Sold by Southampton Sag Harbor Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Southampton, NY, UNITED STATES, published 1981 by Doubleday.
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Very Good. First Edition, 3rd Printing. Not price-clipped. Published by Doubleday, 1981. Octavo. Hardcover. Book is very good with purple publisher spray on bottom page ends. Dust jacket is very good with shelf/edgewear, nicks.100% positive feedback. 30 day money back guarantee. NEXT DAY SHIPPING! Excellent customer service. Please email with any questions. All books packed carefully and ship with free delivery confirmation/tracking. All books come with free bookmarks. Ships from Sag Harbor, New York.
Add this copy of Lost in America to cart. $27.00, very good condition, Sold by Between the Covers-Rare Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Gloucester City, NJ, UNITED STATES, published 1981 by Doubleday.
Add this copy of Lost in America to cart. $28.50, very good condition, Sold by JOHN LUTSCHAK BOOKS rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from BURLINGTON, WI, UNITED STATES, published 1981 by DOUBLEDAY & CO. INC..
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VERY GOOD+ IN A VERY GOOD+ D.J. PAINTINGS AND DRAWINGS BY RAPHAEL SOYER. BOOK IS VERY GOOD WITHOUT ANY MARKS TO THE BINDING OR THE TEXT OTHER THAN MODEST BUMPS TO CORNERS. D.J. HAS A TRACE OF FOXING AT THE TOP OF THE FRONT PANEL, A SHORT TEAR AT THE TOP OF THE REAR PANEL, AND IS NOT PRICE-CLIPPED. A VERY NICE CLEAN, BRIGHT, UNFADED COPY WITH NO REMAINDER MARK.
"Lost in America" is the third part of I.B. Singer's memoir of his early life following "A Little Boy in Search of God" and "A Young Man in Search of Love". In 1986, Singer combined the three parts into a new book, "Love and Exile: An Autobiographical Trilogy." I have the good fortune of owning the three original books, two of which I received as gifts from someone who knew me well. The books are keepsakes, beautifully printed, and with drawings and illustrations. Raphael Soyer's illustrations to "Lost in America" are sufficient to make the book precious.
"Lost in America" begins in 1935 in Warsaw under the shadow of Nazism. Singer, 28, is about to receive documents allowing him to travel to America where his older brother, the novelist I.J. Singer, works in New York City. The memoir describes Singer's last few weeks in Warsaw, his passage by train through Nazi Germany and by ship to America, and the first few years of his difficult life in a new country.
The memoir is introspective with its portrayal of Singer's loneliness, his sense of failure and almost suicidal depression, and his reflections on philosophy and on the existence of God and of the pervasive character of suffering and evil. Singer also reflects on sexuality as the constant theme of his writing, describing more than once the theme of his writing as the never-ending variety of relationships between men and women. Early in the memoir, Singer writes: "My number-one passion was the adventure of love, the endless varieties and tensions peculiar to the relationship between the sexes."
The memoir is also descriptive of Singer's life and his surroundings. The strongest depictions occur early in the book of the life in Warsaw that Singer is leaving behind, including his contacts with other Yiddish writers and the lively political discussions of the day. The focus, however, is on the three women with whom Singer was carrying on affairs at the time. The train journey through Germany and the ocean crossing are described in detail showing Singer's loneliness and depression. In the final section of the book, Singer discusses his life in America where it appeared he would be doomed to failure as a result of writer's block and disorientation in what would become his adopted country. Singer quickly becomes involved in new love relationships while being haunted by those of his past. The book offers portrayals of downtown Manhattan, Greenwich Village, Coney Island and other places as seen from the perspective of a new immigrant who, even with the threat of Nazism, has been unable to move on fully from his earlier life.
Readers find in books passages that speak immediately to them. While Singer is on the ship to the United States, he reads Henri Bergson's book "Creative Evolution" which at the time was highly popular. I have read "Creative Evolution" before and am currently re-reading it in a study group. I was taken with Singer's comment on his shipboard reading:
"I was so engrossed in Bergson's work that for a while I forgot about my spiritual crisis. One didn't have to be a professional philosopher to recognize that Bergson was a talented writer, a Schongeist, [aesthete], not a philosopher, This was an elegant book, interestingly written, but lacking any new concepts. "Elan vital" is a pretty phrase but Bergson didn't even try to explain how it came to be a creative power. I had already grown accustomed to works that evoke a sensation of originality at the beginning only to find that when the reader reaches the last page, he is just as wise as he had been at the first."
The book on the whole is sad with the author's many misadventures and shyness and self-centeredness. The future Nobel Prize recipient reflects at the memoir's conclusion: "I am lost in America. Lost forever." Yet there is a sense of humor, of liveliness, and of moving forward in the telling. I could understand the author not only for his reading of Bergson but broadly through his religious, mystical questioning combined with his search for sexuality and love. It was a moving experience to revisit again with Singer through this book and its two companion volumes.
