The Art of William Golding

"William Golding has written some of the most exciting fiction of the postwar period. This resourceful study of his novels examines them from the perspective of an original thesis: that each represents a response to a specific book by an earlier writer, transformed by Golding's artistry into a wholly new work bearing his unmistakable imprint. By exploring the origins of Golding's novels, the authors redefine the total creative process and clearly show the particular force and relevance of each work. Any serious reader of fiction will be interested in this original exposition of the Golding canon from Lord of the Flies, Golding's reaction to a Victorian boys' book, to The Spire, his Ibsenite novel"--Back cover.