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Fire Ant Books
The Constant Circle: H. L. Mencken and His Friends
A warm and intimate account of a complex, contradictory man seen through the eyes of a long-standing friend and confidante.
Recognized until his death in 1956 as the outstanding literary critic of his generation, H. L. Mencken also excelled as a journalist, editor, and author. Characterized as the enfant terrible of American letters, he was famous for his vitriolic attacks on the hypocrisy and bigotry he saw in much of American life. Yet Mencken was surrounded by a circle of devoted friends and was known to be a gentle, loving, and compassionate husband.
Because of her lifelong friendship with his wife, Sara Haardt, Sara Mayfield was not only part of Mencken's circle but also a trusted confidante of the literary lion himself. Drawing on letters, diaries, notes, and private conversations, The Constant Circle captures the essence of a man who left an indelible mark on American intellectual life and letters. Great and near-great figures of the era move through Mayfield’s candid and unpretentious account: Hemingway, Dreiser, George Jean Nathan, O’Neill, Faulkner, Zelda and Scott Fitzgerald, Tallulah Bankhead, Sinclair Lewis, Rebecca West, Willa Cather, Ellen Glasgow, Thomas Wolfe, and presidents from Wilson to Truman. Richard Freedman notes that "with a minimum of pious hoopla about the Algonquin Wits, Miss Mayfield brings the whole gracefully doomed era of the American literary 20’s to life."
When The Constant Circle was first published in 1968, the New Yorker printed a review by Edmund Wilson titled "The Aftermath of Mencken." That review appears in its entirety as the introduction to this paperback edition.
- GenresNonfiction
320 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1968
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
November 2, 2021
This biography of H.L. Mencken is perhaps one of the most engaging, absorbing and enthralling takes on the life of the Sage of Baltimore. With the style of a gossip columnist and research skills of a FBI agent, Sara Mayfield gives us a look at Mencken that is many things, but most importantly it is humanizing.
Every work of non-fiction has four parts: prose, angle, organization, and opinion. In Mayfield's book, the prose is clear and eloquent, but a masterclass in displaying wit. At no point does the reader feel confusion. While some references are of her time, and she throws in a good few French words, I see it more like putting salad dressing on lettuce; it makes it delicious.
Her angle is that of a lover of literature whose admiration of Mencken has little to do with politics or with a preference for his writing style. She is in love with the literary movement that Mencken midwifed; from Fitzgerald to Dreiser to Sinclair and more, Mayfield reveals just how they all related to Mencken, and how Mencken was quite the loyal friend, but a stern and effective critic of literature. Her angle is sharpened, a bit, by her claim to the truth about Mencken; while telling anecdotes and relating her own experiences, she goes ahead and sets the record straight on a variety of rumors, stories, and slanders against Mencken.
Her organization is interesting; it follows her lived experience, from when she was first introduced to Mencken by a mutual friend, to Mencken long courtship of Sara Haardt, her friend, to Mencken's later years and death. One finds themselves in her shoes, sitting with Mencken at a dinner, hearing about all of these stories, which make you laugh, cry, or put your head on your hand in contented interest. You only later realize that all of this spanned the whole life of an American Literary movement.
Finally, her opinion of Mencken and his litterati are admiring and sympathetic, but with that edge for truth. Mencken is sometimes seen through a distorted lens; her claims, at various times, to Mencken being some sort of 'Confederate' or Southern gentleman seems to be a projection, but one she insists on. Outside of this, however, she never shies away from telling Mencken's life as it was, even offering her own criticisms of him from time to time.
In the end, Mayfield's book is one that, if one wishes to know Mencken the man, you should be encouraged to read. Not only is Mencken, in my estimation, an important aspect of the history of American literature, but Mayfield's perspective of Mencken is something that is more often than not overlooked. Whether in Terry Teachout's combative and ultimately mean, distorted biography "The Skeptic", or Marion Elizabeth Rodger's heavily researched, long, informative "Mencken: The American Iconoclast" or William Manchester's highly personal and interesting "Disturber of the Peace", the Mencken of the pen, of the polemic, and of the critic par excellence, outshines the man who toils with sickness and hypochondria, warring desires between writing polemics and something that lasts, and with signs of depression and sensitivity. In Mayfield's account, we do not see H.L. Mencken, we see Henry, Menck, or Hen. We see a person.
Every work of non-fiction has four parts: prose, angle, organization, and opinion. In Mayfield's book, the prose is clear and eloquent, but a masterclass in displaying wit. At no point does the reader feel confusion. While some references are of her time, and she throws in a good few French words, I see it more like putting salad dressing on lettuce; it makes it delicious.
Her angle is that of a lover of literature whose admiration of Mencken has little to do with politics or with a preference for his writing style. She is in love with the literary movement that Mencken midwifed; from Fitzgerald to Dreiser to Sinclair and more, Mayfield reveals just how they all related to Mencken, and how Mencken was quite the loyal friend, but a stern and effective critic of literature. Her angle is sharpened, a bit, by her claim to the truth about Mencken; while telling anecdotes and relating her own experiences, she goes ahead and sets the record straight on a variety of rumors, stories, and slanders against Mencken.
Her organization is interesting; it follows her lived experience, from when she was first introduced to Mencken by a mutual friend, to Mencken long courtship of Sara Haardt, her friend, to Mencken's later years and death. One finds themselves in her shoes, sitting with Mencken at a dinner, hearing about all of these stories, which make you laugh, cry, or put your head on your hand in contented interest. You only later realize that all of this spanned the whole life of an American Literary movement.
Finally, her opinion of Mencken and his litterati are admiring and sympathetic, but with that edge for truth. Mencken is sometimes seen through a distorted lens; her claims, at various times, to Mencken being some sort of 'Confederate' or Southern gentleman seems to be a projection, but one she insists on. Outside of this, however, she never shies away from telling Mencken's life as it was, even offering her own criticisms of him from time to time.
In the end, Mayfield's book is one that, if one wishes to know Mencken the man, you should be encouraged to read. Not only is Mencken, in my estimation, an important aspect of the history of American literature, but Mayfield's perspective of Mencken is something that is more often than not overlooked. Whether in Terry Teachout's combative and ultimately mean, distorted biography "The Skeptic", or Marion Elizabeth Rodger's heavily researched, long, informative "Mencken: The American Iconoclast" or William Manchester's highly personal and interesting "Disturber of the Peace", the Mencken of the pen, of the polemic, and of the critic par excellence, outshines the man who toils with sickness and hypochondria, warring desires between writing polemics and something that lasts, and with signs of depression and sensitivity. In Mayfield's account, we do not see H.L. Mencken, we see Henry, Menck, or Hen. We see a person.
July 11, 2013
I really loved this book. After I'd finished, I tried to find more biographies written by Sara Mayfield but unfortunately, she was rather unknown to google and even more so to any of my libraries.
This book presents another side of H.L.Mencken. The reader discovers the man behind the controversial journalist. He is a very provocative writer and one might think he is possibly disliked by his peers and antisocial. However, it is quite the opposite! He was charismatic, popular and brilliant. His relationship with Sara Haardt showed a softer and more caring side of this argumentative character and I found it very touching to read about his home life, his friends and his humble interests.
This book presents another side of H.L.Mencken. The reader discovers the man behind the controversial journalist. He is a very provocative writer and one might think he is possibly disliked by his peers and antisocial. However, it is quite the opposite! He was charismatic, popular and brilliant. His relationship with Sara Haardt showed a softer and more caring side of this argumentative character and I found it very touching to read about his home life, his friends and his humble interests.
March 3, 2010
This book is a great introduction to the life of one of our most important American literary giants, H L Mencken.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews