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Willie Morris Books in Memoir and Biography
In Faulkner's Shadow: A Memoir
What happens when you marry into a family that includes a Nobel Prize winner who is arguably the finest American writer of the twentieth century? Lawrence Wells, author of In Faulkner’s A Memoir , fills this lively tale with stories that answer just that. In 1972, Wells married Dean Faulkner, the only niece of William Faulkner, and slowly found himself lost in the Faulkner mystique. While attempting to rebel against the overwhelming influence of his in-laws, Wells had a front-row seat to the various rivalries that sprouted between his wife and the members of her family, each of whom dealt in different ways with the challenges and expectations of carrying on a literary tradition.
Beyond the family stories, Wells recounts the blossoming of a literary renaissance in Oxford, Mississippi, after William Faulkner’s death. Both the town of Oxford and the larger literary world were at a loss as to who would be Faulkner’s successor. During these uncertain times, Wells and his wife established Yoknapatawpha Press and the quarterly literary journal the Faulkner Newsletter and Yoknapatawpha Review . In his dual role as publisher and author, Wells encountered and befriended Larry Brown, Barry Hannah, Willie Morris, and many other writers. He became both participant and observer to the deeds and misdeeds of a rowdy collection of talented authors living in Faulkner’s shadow.
Full of personal insights, this memoir features unforgettable characters and exciting behind-the-scene moments that reveal much about modern American letters and the southern literary tradition. It is also a love story about a courtship and marriage, and an ode to Dean Faulkner Wells and her family.
Beyond the family stories, Wells recounts the blossoming of a literary renaissance in Oxford, Mississippi, after William Faulkner’s death. Both the town of Oxford and the larger literary world were at a loss as to who would be Faulkner’s successor. During these uncertain times, Wells and his wife established Yoknapatawpha Press and the quarterly literary journal the Faulkner Newsletter and Yoknapatawpha Review . In his dual role as publisher and author, Wells encountered and befriended Larry Brown, Barry Hannah, Willie Morris, and many other writers. He became both participant and observer to the deeds and misdeeds of a rowdy collection of talented authors living in Faulkner’s shadow.
Full of personal insights, this memoir features unforgettable characters and exciting behind-the-scene moments that reveal much about modern American letters and the southern literary tradition. It is also a love story about a courtship and marriage, and an ode to Dean Faulkner Wells and her family.
272 pages, Hardcover
Published August 10, 2020
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
October 26, 2020
Years ago, I was rushing in a cab to LaGuardia
Airport and looked down at my tickets and panicked reading Memphis as the destination. I was flying to meet at potential journal editor who was on the faculty at The University of Mississippi in Oxford. How could our corporate travel agent have booked me on a flight to Tennessee?! A couple of calls later, I realized you have to fly to Memphis and drive to Oxford. And so began a memorable trip to the home town of Ole Miss, William Faulkner and what was to become one of my favorite bookstores in the world, Square Books. This trip also introduced me to the strange and wonderful universe of literature of the American South and writers Larry Brown, Barry Hannah, William Gay and the current generation that includes Ron Rash, Taylor Brown, Ace Atkins, Michael Farris Smith, Wiley Cash and Silas House.
I just spent the last two weekends enjoying the wonderful memoir, In Faulkner’s Shadow by Lawrence Wells and an essential guide to Southern writers, South Toward Home: Travels in Southern Literature by Margaret Eby.
Wells, a publisher and chronicler of many encounters with the Oxford literati, was married to Faulkner’s niece Dean and shares some of the most amazing stories of the Faulkner family and Barry Hannah and Willie Morris. The stories are deeply personal and rich in history and drama. Reading this book gives you insights available to a very few and Wells puts you right in the midst of the reality of greatness.
Airport and looked down at my tickets and panicked reading Memphis as the destination. I was flying to meet at potential journal editor who was on the faculty at The University of Mississippi in Oxford. How could our corporate travel agent have booked me on a flight to Tennessee?! A couple of calls later, I realized you have to fly to Memphis and drive to Oxford. And so began a memorable trip to the home town of Ole Miss, William Faulkner and what was to become one of my favorite bookstores in the world, Square Books. This trip also introduced me to the strange and wonderful universe of literature of the American South and writers Larry Brown, Barry Hannah, William Gay and the current generation that includes Ron Rash, Taylor Brown, Ace Atkins, Michael Farris Smith, Wiley Cash and Silas House.
I just spent the last two weekends enjoying the wonderful memoir, In Faulkner’s Shadow by Lawrence Wells and an essential guide to Southern writers, South Toward Home: Travels in Southern Literature by Margaret Eby.
Wells, a publisher and chronicler of many encounters with the Oxford literati, was married to Faulkner’s niece Dean and shares some of the most amazing stories of the Faulkner family and Barry Hannah and Willie Morris. The stories are deeply personal and rich in history and drama. Reading this book gives you insights available to a very few and Wells puts you right in the midst of the reality of greatness.
February 8, 2021
The last time I'd seen Larry Wells, he and wife Dean were signing copies of her memoir, which had come out early 2011. We were at Turn Row bookstore in downtown Greenwood, Miss., and I'd learned they would be there. Deanie -- a winsome human being and very talented in her own right -- and I had lived in that special culture of Oxford back in the 1970s. I'd just joined the staff of the Oxford Eagle with the title of news editor; I had double majored in English (Jack Crocker, who rated at least one mention in Larry's memoir, was my creative writing instructor at then MSCW) and journalism. I wrote and took pics for our student newspaper and the Meh Lady, and my big prof, Ray Furr, directed me to the Eagle as an employer after I graduated from the W in 1970. So, while there until 1978, plus about another year on my own in Oxford, my elbows touched many others', including many of the other characters in Larry's memoir. I'll have to confess that I did not sleep well after finishing Larrys book -- just too emotionally wrought! Here's a blessing on our old times in Lafayette County and beyond. A kiss heaven sent to Dean and to "Col." Cofield and many others.
January 12, 2024
The writing is solid, and the descriptions of Oxford and that area are interesting and make it a readable piece. I enjoyed reading some stories and dialogue.
It was evident early in the book, by my own estimation, that the author is someone who viewed writers as more than simple human beings with talent. I’d be willing to say, despite his claims to the contrary, that’s why he married Faulkner’s niece. The fact that he allowed her to be assaulted in the backseat of a car by another writer and continued to look up to the man is nuts. That really threw me. I can appreciate him including that story if it really happened, but it’s clear that he sees that as just another funny, quirky story, when he legitimately allowed the man to assault his wife. That man went on to have a long career in academia at Ole Miss, and it’s because this author saw writers as being above humanity and consequences.
It was evident early in the book, by my own estimation, that the author is someone who viewed writers as more than simple human beings with talent. I’d be willing to say, despite his claims to the contrary, that’s why he married Faulkner’s niece. The fact that he allowed her to be assaulted in the backseat of a car by another writer and continued to look up to the man is nuts. That really threw me. I can appreciate him including that story if it really happened, but it’s clear that he sees that as just another funny, quirky story, when he legitimately allowed the man to assault his wife. That man went on to have a long career in academia at Ole Miss, and it’s because this author saw writers as being above humanity and consequences.
March 18, 2021
I just finished In Faulkner's Shadow, and it's one of those memoirs that sticks with you.
Larry Wells was a dear friend of my father's. He married William Faulkner's niece in the 1970s and was plunged into a strange, loyal, and dysfunctional family surrounded by the Faulkner legacy, for better and for worse.
His story is fascinating. The book features insights into Southern culture, uncanny experiences with the supernatural, run-ins with quite literary celebrities, and haunting reflections on death.
Recommend to anyone who is a fan of Southern literature!
Larry Wells was a dear friend of my father's. He married William Faulkner's niece in the 1970s and was plunged into a strange, loyal, and dysfunctional family surrounded by the Faulkner legacy, for better and for worse.
His story is fascinating. The book features insights into Southern culture, uncanny experiences with the supernatural, run-ins with quite literary celebrities, and haunting reflections on death.
Recommend to anyone who is a fan of Southern literature!
January 15, 2022
What a beautiful, hilarious, sad, and jubilant memoir of the South, literature, and, as the title indicates, living in the shadow of William Faulkner. I absolutely loved it. It *almost* makes me want to move back to the South. Well...Who knows???
October 19, 2020
An excellent time book - southern families - oh mygoodness😂
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews