Joe Gould’s Secret
Joe Gould’s Secret by Joseph Mitchell, published by Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group on December 7, 1999, is a first edition work that spans 208 pages. This book delves into the life of Joe Gould, a figure emblematic of the Greenwich Village bohemian lifestyle. Mitchell, a renowned New Yorker writer, explores Gould’s journey from his privileged background to a life of poverty, where he dedicated himself to writing “An Oral History of Our Time,” a manuscript that mysteriously vanished upon Gould’s death in 1957.
Readers will find a rich narrative that intertwines biography and history, focusing on the unique cultural landscape of New York. The book presents a detailed account of Gould’s eccentric life and his aspirations, reflecting on themes of literary ambition and the complexities of identity. Through Mitchell’s lens, Joe Gould’s Secret offers insights into the literary figures and historical context of the United States, particularly within the Middle Atlantic region.
Official synopsis Publisher
Joseph Mitchell was a legendary New Yorker writer and the author of the national bestseller Up in the Old Hotel, in which these two pieces appeared. What Joseph Mitchell wrote about, principally, was New York. In Joe Gould, Mitchell found the perfect subject. And Joe Gould’s Secret has become a legendary piece of New York history.
Joe Gould may have been the quintessential Greenwich Village bohemian. In 1916, he left behind patrician roots for a scrappy, hand-to-mouth existence: he wore ragtag clothes, slept in Bowery flophouses, and mooched food, drinks, and money off of friends and strangers. Thus he was able to devote his energies to writing “An Oral History of Our Time,” which Gould said would constitute “the informal history of the shirt-sleeved multitude.” But when Joe Gould died in 1957, the manuscript could not be found. Where had he hidden it? This is Joe Gould’s Secret.
“[Mitchell is] one of our finest journalists.”–Dawn Powell, The Washington Post
“What people say is history–Joe Gould was right about that–and history, when recorded by Mitchell, is literature.”–The New Criterion
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