Thomas Boyd

Mentored by F. Scott Fitzgerald and Sinclair Lewis and published under the renowned Scribner editor Maxwell Perkins, Thomas Boyd attained only modest success as a novelist and biographer. He is known most widely for his World War I novel Through the Wheat, which critics, praising its realistic depiction of war and battle, compared to the Red Badge of Courage. How does a writer like Boyd, with his prominent literary friends, political ideals, professional aspirations, complicated personal life, and early death, fall so easily into obscurity? In this first full biography of Thomas Boyd, Brian Bruce explores the events of Boyd's life and rescues him from the realm of insignificance. The 1920s were a magical and very attractive time for critics and historians of American literature. Hollywood and the radio would soon end the careers enjoyed by many writers, like Boyd, and the nature of the book market would change forever in ways that mark the novel's descent from a privileged position of cultural importance or influence. Richly based on correspondence, this book not only illuminates a forgotten writer, but also captures the publishing world at a mercurial peak.