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The Life She Wished to Live: A Biography of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, author of The Yearling
A comprehensive and engaging biography of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of the beloved classic The Yearling.
Washington, DC, born and Wisconsin educated, Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings was an unlikely author of a coming-of-age novel about a poor central Florida child and his pet fawn—much less one that has become synonymous with Florida literature writ large.
Rawlings was a tough, ambitious, and independent woman who refused the conventions of her early-twentieth-century upbringing. Determined to forge a literary career beyond those limitations, she found her voice in the remote, hardscrabble life of Cross Creek, Florida. There, Rawlings purchased a commercial orange grove and discovered a fascinating world out of which to write—and a dialect of the poor, swampland community that the literary world had yet to hear. She employed her sensitive eye, sharp ear for dialogue, and philosophical spirit to bring to life this unknown corner of America in vivid, tender detail, a feat that earned her the Pulitzer Prize in 1938. Her accomplishments came at a a failed first marriage, financial instability, a contentious libel suit, alcoholism, and physical and emotional upheaval.
With intimate access to Rawlings’s correspondence and revealing early writings, Ann McCutchan uncovers a larger-than-life woman who writes passionately and with verve, whose emotions change on a dime, and who drinks to excess, smokes, swears, and even occasionally joins in on an alligator hunt. The Life She Wished to Live paints a lively portrait of Rawlings, her contemporaries—including her legendary editor, Maxwell Perkins, and friends Zora Neale Hurston, Ernest Hemingway, and F. Scott Fitzgerald—and the Florida landscape and people that inspired her.
Washington, DC, born and Wisconsin educated, Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings was an unlikely author of a coming-of-age novel about a poor central Florida child and his pet fawn—much less one that has become synonymous with Florida literature writ large.
Rawlings was a tough, ambitious, and independent woman who refused the conventions of her early-twentieth-century upbringing. Determined to forge a literary career beyond those limitations, she found her voice in the remote, hardscrabble life of Cross Creek, Florida. There, Rawlings purchased a commercial orange grove and discovered a fascinating world out of which to write—and a dialect of the poor, swampland community that the literary world had yet to hear. She employed her sensitive eye, sharp ear for dialogue, and philosophical spirit to bring to life this unknown corner of America in vivid, tender detail, a feat that earned her the Pulitzer Prize in 1938. Her accomplishments came at a a failed first marriage, financial instability, a contentious libel suit, alcoholism, and physical and emotional upheaval.
With intimate access to Rawlings’s correspondence and revealing early writings, Ann McCutchan uncovers a larger-than-life woman who writes passionately and with verve, whose emotions change on a dime, and who drinks to excess, smokes, swears, and even occasionally joins in on an alligator hunt. The Life She Wished to Live paints a lively portrait of Rawlings, her contemporaries—including her legendary editor, Maxwell Perkins, and friends Zora Neale Hurston, Ernest Hemingway, and F. Scott Fitzgerald—and the Florida landscape and people that inspired her.
436 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 11, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
December 22, 2020
I went into this biography only somewhat familiar with Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings--mostly from the movie version of The Yearling and the movie Cross Creek based on her life. As I read, my interest was held and then I was riveted. By the end, I was moved and a fan.
Rawlings was one of the 1930s writers whose career was benefited by Max Perkins of Scribner, the legendary editor who worked with F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, and Thomas Wolfe. I had read the biography Max Perkins by A. Scott Berg--forty-plus years ago!--but did not recall Rawlings.
I spent my teen years reading 20th c writers, including those Perkins mentored, but I don't remember finding women writers listed on the 'greats.' Where was Rawlings? Likely, relegated to the children's section, represented by The Yearling.
Rawlings's mother had hoped for more from life. She determined her daughter would achieve what she had not. When no musical ability was displayed, but Marjorie won a prize for a story, her mother supported (and pushed) her into writing.
After college, Rawlings became a hack writer and journalist until she felt ready to assume her life's real work as a writer.
She and her husband, also a writer, purchased a Florida orange grove in a backwater community, setting up in a ramshackle house without electricity or plumbing.
Running a business took much of their energy and time and money, but the Cracker and African American neighbors also gave her material for her work.
Rawlings’s research brought her to live with neighbors to experience their lives, and she went on crocodile and snake hunts.
Rawling's life held many disappointments and challenges. Her first marriage failed, her husband jealous of her success. She struggled with alcohol use and continual health concerns. Her personal relationships were tested, including an extended lawsuit. She suffered from doubt. She also achieved the Pulitzer Prize and a second marriage with a supporting and loving husband.
I had moments of discomfort with Rawling's language of white supremacy, referencing her African American friends and servants by what we today would consider derogatory terms, but which represented typical white mores at that time.
McCutchan takes readers on a journey into Rawling's transformation from accepting her inherited values to becoming friends with fellow writer Zora Neale Hurston and raising her voice for equal rights.
Rawlings also became involved with environmental groups.
A study in contrasts, Rawlings could tap into her society background, was friends with writers and publisher's daughters, or be bawdy and rowdy, toting a gun on a hunt. She even went into the scrub wearing a silk nightgown to rescue an animal. I loved her esteem for Thomas Wolfe and her heartbreak over his early loss before he could reach his artistic maturity. Like so many writers who came out of the 1920s, she struggled with alcohol dependency.
This is terrific biography.
I received a free egalley from the publisher through NetGalley. My review is fair and unbiased.
Rawlings was one of the 1930s writers whose career was benefited by Max Perkins of Scribner, the legendary editor who worked with F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, and Thomas Wolfe. I had read the biography Max Perkins by A. Scott Berg--forty-plus years ago!--but did not recall Rawlings.
I spent my teen years reading 20th c writers, including those Perkins mentored, but I don't remember finding women writers listed on the 'greats.' Where was Rawlings? Likely, relegated to the children's section, represented by The Yearling.
Rawlings's mother had hoped for more from life. She determined her daughter would achieve what she had not. When no musical ability was displayed, but Marjorie won a prize for a story, her mother supported (and pushed) her into writing.
After college, Rawlings became a hack writer and journalist until she felt ready to assume her life's real work as a writer.
She and her husband, also a writer, purchased a Florida orange grove in a backwater community, setting up in a ramshackle house without electricity or plumbing.
Running a business took much of their energy and time and money, but the Cracker and African American neighbors also gave her material for her work.
Rawlings’s research brought her to live with neighbors to experience their lives, and she went on crocodile and snake hunts.
Rawling's life held many disappointments and challenges. Her first marriage failed, her husband jealous of her success. She struggled with alcohol use and continual health concerns. Her personal relationships were tested, including an extended lawsuit. She suffered from doubt. She also achieved the Pulitzer Prize and a second marriage with a supporting and loving husband.
I had moments of discomfort with Rawling's language of white supremacy, referencing her African American friends and servants by what we today would consider derogatory terms, but which represented typical white mores at that time.
McCutchan takes readers on a journey into Rawling's transformation from accepting her inherited values to becoming friends with fellow writer Zora Neale Hurston and raising her voice for equal rights.
Rawlings also became involved with environmental groups.
A study in contrasts, Rawlings could tap into her society background, was friends with writers and publisher's daughters, or be bawdy and rowdy, toting a gun on a hunt. She even went into the scrub wearing a silk nightgown to rescue an animal. I loved her esteem for Thomas Wolfe and her heartbreak over his early loss before he could reach his artistic maturity. Like so many writers who came out of the 1920s, she struggled with alcohol dependency.
This is terrific biography.
I received a free egalley from the publisher through NetGalley. My review is fair and unbiased.
March 2, 2023
I learned so much about one of my favorite writers, plus this book cleared up my confusion about the racism in her work. I learned that she herself was changing as she was writing, and at the end of her life she thought very differently than she did at the start of her writing career. Thank you, Ann McCutchan, for excellent research & a fabulous biography.
July 26, 2021
My take on Marjorie K Rawlings is that she LIVED HER LIFE - not someone else's. When she was trying to write a book - she wrote what she saw and what she heard from the old-timers. She didn't hold back.
Marjorie K Rawlings would not have been disappointed with what was written about her adventurous life. I believe she would have been pleased with Ann McCutchan on what she uncovered and verified the facts of her life. AND what a life it was. She was ahead of her time on civil rights and her sensitive feelings on how people looked at the black culture.
This is a BIOGRAPHY that should be read.
Marjorie K Rawlings would not have been disappointed with what was written about her adventurous life. I believe she would have been pleased with Ann McCutchan on what she uncovered and verified the facts of her life. AND what a life it was. She was ahead of her time on civil rights and her sensitive feelings on how people looked at the black culture.
This is a BIOGRAPHY that should be read.
January 7, 2021
I have a penchant for reading biographies of authors, but not necessarily reading their writings. I have heard of the Yearling but have never read it. This is a well written and researched and an informative biography. I learned a lot about the life of Marjorie Rawlings and her work. I enjoyed her family background the most. Thanks to W. W. Norton and Edelweiss for the advance read.
December 21, 2021
I read this to find out more about how she´d written The Yearling and got just what I´d wanted...and more. The book is more biography than literary criticism, but what a life! Any woman who can make devoted friends of Sigrid Undset, Zora Neale Hurston, and Ellen Glasgow had to have been remarkable, and McCutchan shows you just how special she was.
August 4, 2021
Very well written and researched biography. I became more interested in the author of The Yearling after I visited her home at Cross Creek in Florida last spring.
April 2, 2021
Marjorie Kinnan Rowlings is the author of the Pulitzer Prize winning The Yearling. That book and her others are mostly based in the northern Florida scrub and swamps in which she made her home. Her life and work was centered around her adopted home and much of this book discusses her time there. She was an entertaining correspondent and this biography relies heavily on her letters to family, friends, other authors and especially her editor, the renowned, Max Perkins of Scribner. This is a comprehensive biography that does a good job of grappling with the more unsavory parts of her personality, fueled by a reliance on alcohol, as well as her evolving yet still problematic, depictions of her Black neighbors and employees. It's been a long time since I have read her seminal novel, but I still really enjoyed this extensive glimpse of her life. I received a digital ARC of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
May 3, 2021
This is a wonderful book about Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings. It is a biography which is my favorite genre to read. I have heard of the Yearling but have never read it. She wrote in the 1930,s which is before I was born. She was a very educated lady but she was very independent and ahead of her time because she refused the conventions of her time. So she moved to the remote Cross Creek, Florida where she bought an orange grove. She then started to write about the things she saw there. She was a larger than life woman which I admire.
May 25, 2021
I received this book via Goodreads Giveaway. It took a very long time but it finally came. I very mush enjoyed this biography, Ms McCutchan was thorough and enlightening. I read The Yearling ages ago but never read any other books by Ms Rawlings. After this bio I realize I've missed some important stories. Not every biographer can present their subject so well that the reader wants to find more books by the subject. The author is a real wordsmith and it was fun and informative and I will be watching for more books from Ms McCutchan.
August 29, 2021
Absolutely, one of the best books I’ve read all year or actually in a long time. This is a very comprehensive biography and fascinating. It has spun me off into the world of The Yearling and several other authors that influenced Marjorie. I highly recommend this book.
June 8, 2021
I enjoyed finding out more about MKR’s life in this extensively researched book. If you are a fan of Rawlings you need to add it to your list!
April 9, 2025
This is an interesting and informative biography of Majorie Rawlings. It is a well researched and offers a very detailed account of Rawlings life. Her two marriages, her works, her life at Cross Creek, her foray into the civil rights movement, her friendships with Hemingway, F. Scott, Zora Hurston and Max Perkings are all discussed. However, a significant portion of the book deals with the mundane occurrences of her everyday life --- her dinner parties complete with menus, her conversations with neighbors, alligator hunts, the plants in her garden, the amount of cream her cow produced, etc. All this information was overwhelming and did little to advance my understanding of Rawlings and her works.
The book is well written. However, the author is prone to lengthy, overwrought sentences. They are frequently punctuated with dashes that separate asides from the main sentence. These asides, while often interesting, disrupted the flow of the sentence and muddied its meaning.
This is a very charitable biography. While Rawlings heavy drinking, her divorce from her first husband and her unorthodox marriage to her second, her frothy and frosty relationship with her mother, her mood swings, and the ups and downs of her many friendships are discussed, they are done so in the kindest manner.
While many aspects of Rawling life are well documented, some areas were under explored. Much is written about how Rawling's wrote, but there is little analysis of what she wrote. Her divorce is discussed, but I never felt I truly understood why the marriage failed or why Rawlings felt the need to marry Chuck. The author delves into her friendship with Zora Hurston and that it awakens an interest in the civil rights movement. I would have liked to have heard more about Rawlings involvement in the movement. Aside from a few letters and an acknowledgment of her prejudices, what else did she do? The author also references several times in the book Rawling's cosmic world philosophy, this is never defined or analyzed in any substantive manner. It is telling that neither of these topics is even mentioned in McCutcheon's last chapter titled, "Legacy".
The book is well written. However, the author is prone to lengthy, overwrought sentences. They are frequently punctuated with dashes that separate asides from the main sentence. These asides, while often interesting, disrupted the flow of the sentence and muddied its meaning.
This is a very charitable biography. While Rawlings heavy drinking, her divorce from her first husband and her unorthodox marriage to her second, her frothy and frosty relationship with her mother, her mood swings, and the ups and downs of her many friendships are discussed, they are done so in the kindest manner.
While many aspects of Rawling life are well documented, some areas were under explored. Much is written about how Rawling's wrote, but there is little analysis of what she wrote. Her divorce is discussed, but I never felt I truly understood why the marriage failed or why Rawlings felt the need to marry Chuck. The author delves into her friendship with Zora Hurston and that it awakens an interest in the civil rights movement. I would have liked to have heard more about Rawlings involvement in the movement. Aside from a few letters and an acknowledgment of her prejudices, what else did she do? The author also references several times in the book Rawling's cosmic world philosophy, this is never defined or analyzed in any substantive manner. It is telling that neither of these topics is even mentioned in McCutcheon's last chapter titled, "Legacy".
January 3, 2023
Wow. The author notes that this biography was six years in the making. Perhaps she took up her subject’s habit of dedication to a work in progress until its excellence satisfied her. Howsoever, the story is masterfully told. And with so much direct quotation from Marjorie’s own letters, I trust its accuracy.
Still, the “life she wished to live” was a sad one. Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Baskin endowed her readers with at least two classic works of artistry (The Yearling and Cross Creek) and several other books of worthy value. When her earliest writing efforts were mediocre, she doubled down on her determination to do better, and we are all the beneficiaries of her lifelong effort to think through the purpose of her stories and master the language in which to tell them. But the cost to her own life seems almost Shakespearean tragedy as described here. Ms. McCutchan reminds us along the way that other great novelists, especially of Marjorie’s own time, were also self-destructive, as also were close members of her own family. Reflecting, we know of other types of artists afflicted with similar personal weaknesses. It does not seem fair to have to pay such a price for creative genius. But perhaps it is unfair of myself to dwell upon this facet of her life. Her goal to make great literature was certainly achieved.
In spite of the unhappy revelations of background about a woman we have loved only for the special books she left to us, I feel enriched to have read this biography. And I recommend it. Call it a “learning school.”
Still, the “life she wished to live” was a sad one. Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Baskin endowed her readers with at least two classic works of artistry (The Yearling and Cross Creek) and several other books of worthy value. When her earliest writing efforts were mediocre, she doubled down on her determination to do better, and we are all the beneficiaries of her lifelong effort to think through the purpose of her stories and master the language in which to tell them. But the cost to her own life seems almost Shakespearean tragedy as described here. Ms. McCutchan reminds us along the way that other great novelists, especially of Marjorie’s own time, were also self-destructive, as also were close members of her own family. Reflecting, we know of other types of artists afflicted with similar personal weaknesses. It does not seem fair to have to pay such a price for creative genius. But perhaps it is unfair of myself to dwell upon this facet of her life. Her goal to make great literature was certainly achieved.
In spite of the unhappy revelations of background about a woman we have loved only for the special books she left to us, I feel enriched to have read this biography. And I recommend it. Call it a “learning school.”
Read
October 20, 2021"Her reaction [to the work of Henry James] this time proved how much the reception of a book depends on one's state of mind."
Edwin Way Teale, the naturalist, and his wife were invited to Marjorie's. She wasn't up yet when they arrived, and on a picnic outing, they found her to be "generous, but not gracious or thoughtful."
Well, I've visited Cross Creek many times and thoroughly enjoyed reading Rawlings' books. I'm probably a rather smitten fan who knew about her ego and her drinking. However this book was a sad disappointment to me. The writing was uneven and sometimes dry and almost pedantic.
Frequently the tone of the author reveals the mixed emotions she had about Rawlings. Sometimes it seemed as if she really disliked Rawlings, and it was really too bad not to offer more about dinner guests and overnight guests at the farm. There are some tremendous stories there!
Perhaps I was just wishing for a full-hearted tribute!!...
Edwin Way Teale, the naturalist, and his wife were invited to Marjorie's. She wasn't up yet when they arrived, and on a picnic outing, they found her to be "generous, but not gracious or thoughtful."
Well, I've visited Cross Creek many times and thoroughly enjoyed reading Rawlings' books. I'm probably a rather smitten fan who knew about her ego and her drinking. However this book was a sad disappointment to me. The writing was uneven and sometimes dry and almost pedantic.
Frequently the tone of the author reveals the mixed emotions she had about Rawlings. Sometimes it seemed as if she really disliked Rawlings, and it was really too bad not to offer more about dinner guests and overnight guests at the farm. There are some tremendous stories there!
Perhaps I was just wishing for a full-hearted tribute!!...
August 6, 2021
"She was really three people at least, and you never knew which one it was going to be," said her husband, Norton Baskin, "One was as prim as a New England schoolteacher, she was just that straight-laced and prim; and then again she was an absolute bawd, just like a French girl; and--the hard-working, struggling writer and artist."
Inspirational and entertaining story of this hard-working, hard-drinking activist author of The Yearling and Cross Creek, among other titles. Well written and thoroughly researched story of another talented early 20th C. author edited by Max Perkins.
Inspirational and entertaining story of this hard-working, hard-drinking activist author of The Yearling and Cross Creek, among other titles. Well written and thoroughly researched story of another talented early 20th C. author edited by Max Perkins.
November 14, 2021
I went back and forth between three and four stars. Decided on four because the biography will introduce more people to Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings and her works. I was already familiar with Rawlings. I learned a bit more about her, although I'd hoped to gain more insight into her personality. She definitely carved her own path. The biography helped me realize how much Rawlings used people. She was also noted for generously helping people. The two behaviors are paradoxical, like so much about Rawlings. That inner tension is one thing I'd hoped to learn more about.
I'm glad McCutchan didn't dance around the fact that Rawlings had a serious drinking problem. It affected her life and probably her work. All in all, I'm glad to see a new biography on Rawlings and I hope it introduces new readers to her and to my personal favorite of her novels, "South Moon Under."
I'm glad McCutchan didn't dance around the fact that Rawlings had a serious drinking problem. It affected her life and probably her work. All in all, I'm glad to see a new biography on Rawlings and I hope it introduces new readers to her and to my personal favorite of her novels, "South Moon Under."
May 25, 2023
After two borrowing sessions from the library, I finished reading this detailed biography of M.K. Rawlings. Here is a chronological exploration of her life, including years spent on a Florida orange grove in the palmetto scrub of Alachua County, near Gainesville. The book illustrates her courage, her doubts and flaws, her illnesses and car-wrecks, her two marriages and the deep friendships she formed over her lifetime, some with African-American writers and workers. She became an early advocate of equal rights. She had great success with "The Yearling," which brought her fame and financial security. She was an accomplished cook and penned a cookbook. Rawlings traveled to Universities around the country to give talks about her work and writing life. Here is a fine literary offering by Ann McCutchan.
July 16, 2022
Finally, a fully-researched and comprehensive biography of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings. McCutchan traveled far and wide to meet experts on Rawlings from across the country and delve into archives that gave significant details that have not before been included in this beautiful narrative of her life and writings. I loved the focus that McCutchan placed on Rawlings's cosmic consciousness - an idea present in the seasons of the Yearling, the lunar focus of South Moon Under, and the astronomical observations of the Sojourner. This biography is a treasure for those who love Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings.
April 28, 2022
I was interested in this book because I love Southern literature and have an interest in learning about the authors and what they found intriguing about the Southern way of life. I enjoyed this book and learning more about Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings and the times in which she was living and writing. I found that there was quite a bit of documented facts in the book, to the point that I found it a little overwhelming, down to the smallest conversation or observation. That would be my only objection, otherwise I loved learning more about this author.
May 11, 2022
More complex and Floridian than expected
I had received Cross Creek as a gift, putting it aside because it appeared to be a silly pastel cover type woman’s light reading book…took it on a camping holiday to read while swinging in a hammock…and lost myself in the anthropology and historical detail…graduated then to this biography and literally could not put it down. Ah, Florida!!!
I had received Cross Creek as a gift, putting it aside because it appeared to be a silly pastel cover type woman’s light reading book…took it on a camping holiday to read while swinging in a hammock…and lost myself in the anthropology and historical detail…graduated then to this biography and literally could not put it down. Ah, Florida!!!
September 22, 2022
I moved this to my "read" shelf because I'm not going to finish the last 80 pages. Actually, if the author had compressed the first 80 pages to about 10, which is all that really was needed, then the book would have been a better read. The first part sounded like a dissertation when a much lighter touch on the younger years and a much sooner dive into the Cross Creek years would have made for a better book.
April 13, 2025
My admiration for the author’s book Cross Creek began many years ago. It was only magnified after enjoying the film by the same name several years ago. When I finally visited Cross Creek State Park and toured Marjorie Rawlins home and land last week, it was so enlightening. I purchased this book and found it filled in many of the details I had questioned.
January 1, 2026
This book was very well researched and written.
My only suggestion would be that I found the numerous references to Norton and Norman somewhat confusing at times.
My enjoyment of the book would have been enhanced, should the author have referred to Marjorie’s husband as Norton and Norman Berg as Berg or Norman Berg consistently throughout the book.
My only suggestion would be that I found the numerous references to Norton and Norman somewhat confusing at times.
My enjoyment of the book would have been enhanced, should the author have referred to Marjorie’s husband as Norton and Norman Berg as Berg or Norman Berg consistently throughout the book.
July 2, 2021
A Fabulous Book
Marjorie’s story, to me, is an inspiration. As an author myself, I both agonized and celebrated with her. Ann McCutchan made Marjorie come alive , allowing we readers to live “life” with her — good and bad.
Marjorie’s story, to me, is an inspiration. As an author myself, I both agonized and celebrated with her. Ann McCutchan made Marjorie come alive , allowing we readers to live “life” with her — good and bad.
July 27, 2021
It was hard for me to connect to this book (for reasons not entirely related to the writing or subject matter). The writing was nice, however, I think I just wasn't as interested in a complete, detailed account of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings as I thought I was when I bought this book.
February 13, 2025
A real slog. I don’t know much about this author and had not read The Yearling. The compilation of letters to and from Rawlings was not engrossing. I’m not sure where all her angst came from in the end. Book really didn’t give any answers.
August 24, 2025
What a fascinating woman, life, and writer. Lots of detail and excerpts from her numerous letters. Went to a lecture by the author about what went into getting the book written. Now I'll have to go up to her place near Gainesville.
June 21, 2021
A thorough biography for anyone who enjoys Rawlings or Florida’s natural areas.
June 21, 2021
DNF - maybe this would have intrigued me more if I had read the Yearling. I did not and just could not care enough.
August 3, 2021
not at all what i expected. They can't all be 5 stars!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews