I am Lazarus

Description

The tortured life of Anna Kavan brought her some reward in terms of great pieces of art. Her drug addiction bore fruit in the Julia & The Bazooka collection of stories - this companion volume recalls her experiences of life in the asylum or the sanitorium. Her legendary story, I Am Lazarus is one of fourteen included here and not seen in print since the forties. These are powerful, haunting works: what can be harrowing at times is offset by the richness of human sympathy in Kavan's approach and her unique skill as a writer.

Anna Kavan (1901-1968) was a novelist, short story writer, and painter. Her works include Asylum Piece, Ice, and Sleep Has His House. She has been often compared to Djuna Barnes, Franz Kafka, Anais Nin, and Virginia Woolf. She was a long-term heroin addict and suffered periodic bouts of mental illness, and these facets of her life feature prominently in her novels and short stories.

Anna Kavan explored the nocturnal worlds of our dreams, fantasies, imagination, and nonreason . . . Such an exploration takes greater courage and skill in expression. --Anais Nin The best introduction to Kavan. - Harper's Magazine