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Novels 1956–1964: Seize the Day / Henderson the Rain King / Herzog
Passionate, insightful, often funny, and exhibiting a linguistic richness few writers have equaled, the novels of Saul Bellow are among the defining achievements of postwar American literature. The Library of America volume Novels 1956–1964 opens with Seize the Day, a tightly wrought novella that, unfolding over the course of a single devastating day, explores the desperate predicament of the failed actor and salesman Tommy Wilhelm. The austere psychological portraiture of Seize the Day is followed by an altogether different book, Henderson the Rain King, the ebullient tale of the irresistible eccentric Eugene Henderson, best characterized by his primal mantra “I want! I want!” Beneath the novel’s comic surface lies an affecting parable of one man’s quest to know himself and come to terms with morality; like Don Quixote, Henderson is, as Bellow later described him, “an absurd seeker of high qualities.”
Henderson’s irrepressible vitality is matched by that of Moses Herzog, the eponymous hero of Bellow’s best-selling 1964 novel. His wife having abandoned him for his best friend, Herzog is on the verge of mental collapse and has embarked on a furious letter-writing campaign as an outlet for his all-consuming rage. Bellow’s bravura performance in Herzog launched a new phase of his career, as literary acclaim was now joined by a receptive mass audience in America.
Henderson’s irrepressible vitality is matched by that of Moses Herzog, the eponymous hero of Bellow’s best-selling 1964 novel. His wife having abandoned him for his best friend, Herzog is on the verge of mental collapse and has embarked on a furious letter-writing campaign as an outlet for his all-consuming rage. Bellow’s bravura performance in Herzog launched a new phase of his career, as literary acclaim was now joined by a receptive mass audience in America.
800 pages, Hardcover
First published January 11, 2007
6 people are currently reading
234 people want to read
About the author
Saul Bellow
252 books1,959 followersNovels of Saul Bellow, Canadian-American writer, include
Dangling Man
in 1944 and
Humboldt's Gift
in 1975 and often concern an alienated individual within an indifferent society; he won the Nobel Prize of 1976 for literature.
People widely regard one most important Saul Bellow of the 20th century. Known for his rich prose, intellectual depth, and incisive character studies, Bellow explored themes of identity and the complexities of modern life with a distinct voice that fused philosophical insight and streetwise humor. Herzog , The Adventures of Augie March , and Mister Sammler’s Planet , his major works, earned critical acclaim and a lasting legacy.
Born in Lachine, Quebec, to Russian-Jewish immigrants, Saul Bellow at a young age moved with his family to Chicago, a city that shaped much worldview and a frequent backdrop in his fiction. He studied anthropology at the University of Chicago and later Northwestern, and his intellectual interests deeply informed him. Bellow briefly pursued graduate studies in anthropology, quickly turned, and first published.
Breakthrough of Saul Bellow came with The Adventures of Augie March , a sprawling, exuberance that in 1953 marked the national book award and a new direction in fiction. With energetic language and episodic structure, it introduced readers to a new kind of unapologetically intellectual yet deeply grounded hero in the realities of urban life. Over the following decades, Bellow produced a series of acclaimed that further cemented his reputation. In Herzog , considered his masterpiece in 1964, a psychological portrait of inner turmoil of a troubled academic unfolds through a series of unsent letters, while a semi-autobiographical reflection on art and fame gained the Pulitzer Prize.
In 1976, people awarded human understanding and subtle analysis of contemporary culture of Saul Bellow. He only thrice gained the national book award for fiction and also received the medal of arts and the lifetime achievement of the library of Congress.
Beyond fiction, Saul Bellow, a passionate essayist, taught. He held academic positions at institutions, such as the University of Minnesota, Princeton, and Boston University, and people knew his sharp intellect and lively classroom presence. Despite his stature, Bellow cared about ordinary people and infused his work with humor, moral reflection, and a deep appreciation of contradictions of life.
People can see influence of Saul Bellow in the work of countless followers. His uniquely and universally resonant voice ably combined the comic, the profound, the intellectual, and the visceral. He continued into his later years to publish his final Ravelstein in 2000.
People continue to read work of Saul Bellow and to celebrate its wisdom, vitality, and fearless examination of humanity in a chaotic world.
People widely regard one most important Saul Bellow of the 20th century. Known for his rich prose, intellectual depth, and incisive character studies, Bellow explored themes of identity and the complexities of modern life with a distinct voice that fused philosophical insight and streetwise humor. Herzog , The Adventures of Augie March , and Mister Sammler’s Planet , his major works, earned critical acclaim and a lasting legacy.
Born in Lachine, Quebec, to Russian-Jewish immigrants, Saul Bellow at a young age moved with his family to Chicago, a city that shaped much worldview and a frequent backdrop in his fiction. He studied anthropology at the University of Chicago and later Northwestern, and his intellectual interests deeply informed him. Bellow briefly pursued graduate studies in anthropology, quickly turned, and first published.
Breakthrough of Saul Bellow came with The Adventures of Augie March , a sprawling, exuberance that in 1953 marked the national book award and a new direction in fiction. With energetic language and episodic structure, it introduced readers to a new kind of unapologetically intellectual yet deeply grounded hero in the realities of urban life. Over the following decades, Bellow produced a series of acclaimed that further cemented his reputation. In Herzog , considered his masterpiece in 1964, a psychological portrait of inner turmoil of a troubled academic unfolds through a series of unsent letters, while a semi-autobiographical reflection on art and fame gained the Pulitzer Prize.
In 1976, people awarded human understanding and subtle analysis of contemporary culture of Saul Bellow. He only thrice gained the national book award for fiction and also received the medal of arts and the lifetime achievement of the library of Congress.
Beyond fiction, Saul Bellow, a passionate essayist, taught. He held academic positions at institutions, such as the University of Minnesota, Princeton, and Boston University, and people knew his sharp intellect and lively classroom presence. Despite his stature, Bellow cared about ordinary people and infused his work with humor, moral reflection, and a deep appreciation of contradictions of life.
People can see influence of Saul Bellow in the work of countless followers. His uniquely and universally resonant voice ably combined the comic, the profound, the intellectual, and the visceral. He continued into his later years to publish his final Ravelstein in 2000.
People continue to read work of Saul Bellow and to celebrate its wisdom, vitality, and fearless examination of humanity in a chaotic world.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
October 3, 2020
Taken together as a single story, this is a brilliant publication. I recommend reading them in order since this is one story. I read "Herzog" before "Henderson". (Why? Because sometimes I just don't like to know when a novel is going to end, so by reading Henderson last after setting this volume aside for a month or so, I didn't know when I was about to turn the last page.) There is just one main character - Tommy (from "Seize the Day)/Henderson/Herzog - taking us on a singular journey. These three novels remind me of Updike's Rabbit character and the four novels all published together as "Rabbit Angstrom". I've been looking for the reason Bellow has won a Pulitzer. And that explanation is indeed right here.
March 3, 2025
After finishing the novella Seize the Day, I find that it is probably the most celebrated of Saul Bellow’s stories. It’s short but decidedly NOT sweet. Unflinching in its honest portrayal of the fear and heartache for the protagonist as he tries to navigate a day in the life of New York City’s Upper West Side.
April 27, 2014
Can I compare a book to a sandwich? That's the only way I can currently think about this story, some ill-tasting bread with a palatable filling. Henderson, the main character, is about as egotistical and meglo-maniacal as they come and I waited and waited, hear Henderson's "I want, I want...", so long for his development and redemption. When it began, and deepened with King Dafu, I was enchanted [(King Dafu put me in mind of "Sophie's World" and conversations with philosophers) the filling, finally], but I was saddened when it was cut short by the unrelated, tidy, comical ending: Henderson in corderoy, with a Persian-speaking child asleep on his lap, the stewardess feeding the lion cub in baggage, while Henderson in fast-rewind seemed to come to some understanding about his past. I stuck it out, not entirely unhappy. Perhaps I missed something vital, elemental, essential.
March 21, 2015
I have such mixed feelings about Bellow. I find him a moving stylist and compelling writer, even though there are many features of his novels I find difficult. Most of his protagonists are troubled egotists. It may be about my own intellectual insecurities, but I am uncomfortable with the way he parades his considerable learning in ways that sometimes interfere (for me at least) with his novels. I should not expect any different, perhaps, but the mostly cavalier attitudes towards women his male protagonists display is disturbing and his stereotypes about Africa and Africans in Henderson, The Rain King, made me squirm at times.
Read
March 28, 2009Wow. Little books (127 pages in my edition from the 50s) can certainly pack some punch and this is one of the hardest hitting. It s not an uplifting read by any means but, having read it, I m surprised it was removed from the 2008 revised edition of the 1001 list.[return][return]It centres around a man named Wilhelm and a day in his life. I use the word centres purposefully. It s more of...[return][return]More of what?! Head over to Arukiyomi and read the rest of the review...
December 5, 2010
I only read Henderson the Rain King. While it grew on me, it hasn't inspired me to read more Bellow in the near future. The title character, Eugene Henderson, is quite self-involved. He's not mean-spirited and is actually rather largehearted towards others (altho petty to certain individuals), but he sees everything thru the lens of its impact on him and is rather an egomaniac in his sense of self. I enjoyed the description of the small African villages he visited and the people he encountered there (even while wondering how much of their depiction was based on fact).
August 12, 2007
رمان های مشهور سال بلو که توسط انتشارات ملی و به پاس نویسنده ای که برنده ی نوبل بوده است، تجدید چاپ شده است.
این طرف ها چاپ های بعدی یک اثر معمولن تغییراتی ولو اندک دارند، که وسوسه ای ست برای دوباره خواندنشان
این طرف ها چاپ های بعدی یک اثر معمولن تغییراتی ولو اندک دارند، که وسوسه ای ست برای دوباره خواندنشان
April 16, 2010
just really depressing. I only read Seize the Day. I have this edition and am planning to read the other novels at a later date.
July 15, 2011
Seize the Day: *****
Henderson the Rain King: *****
Herzog: ****
Henderson the Rain King: *****
Herzog: ****
February 28, 2016
Seize the Day - 2/5
Henderson the Rain King - 3/5
Herzog - 5/5
Henderson the Rain King - 3/5
Herzog - 5/5
November 20, 2017
5 for Herzog. 4 for the other two.
Want to read
July 3, 2022Seize the Day**** 2-3 July 2022
June 5, 2025
"Seize the Day" 5⭐
"Henderson the Rain King" 4⭐
"Herzog" 4⭐
"Henderson the Rain King" 4⭐
"Herzog" 4⭐
November 27, 2025
Can't remember if I already reviewed this. "Seize The Day" is brutal and a bummer, there is something so sad about it. It's pathetic, yes, but the pitiless eye Bellow puts on what unfolds is hard to take. It's a harsh, glaring light, the characters appear to be in a prizefight ring, clearly illumned, cuts showing, guts (or lack of guts) moving up and down - all while the cold father waits with the corner stool to push his son back out there with...nothing. A real downer of a book.
"Henderson the Rain King", on the other hand, is so zestful, so funny, so crazy - so far removed from that tightly drawn novella "Seize The Day" that it's hard to imagine they share the same author. "Henderson" has pitch-perfect stretches in terms of how the star would think, talk, act. It has wonderful images, such as when he peers at the side of a man who has been swiped by a lion's claw and it looks “like a grate of fire.” When describing Africans he spends considerable time with, Bellow notices how the skin of their palms is a paler tone, "as if they had played catch with the light and some of it had come off." Those are the images that remain with me with "Henderson" - BIG. Terrific novel; highly recommended.
"Henderson the Rain King", on the other hand, is so zestful, so funny, so crazy - so far removed from that tightly drawn novella "Seize The Day" that it's hard to imagine they share the same author. "Henderson" has pitch-perfect stretches in terms of how the star would think, talk, act. It has wonderful images, such as when he peers at the side of a man who has been swiped by a lion's claw and it looks “like a grate of fire.” When describing Africans he spends considerable time with, Bellow notices how the skin of their palms is a paler tone, "as if they had played catch with the light and some of it had come off." Those are the images that remain with me with "Henderson" - BIG. Terrific novel; highly recommended.
October 9, 2013
Henderson the Rain King is my favorite of the three. It's more lighthearted & funny.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews