The criminally underappreciated Richard Yates is finally gaining some mainstream popularity after the film adaptation of his first novel Revolutionary Road. This hardcover anthology collects three of his novels: The Easter Parade, Eleven Kinds of Loneliness and of course, his masterwork, Revolutionary Road.

Yates is a writer’s writer. His bleak view of mid-century American life probably explains his select readership.

The characters populating his novels are desperately lonely and isolated, bitter with the recognition of the sham of the American Dream. You probably don’t want to read all three at once. But no doubt Yates’ stunning prose and incisive psychological insight will bring you back for more.

Grade: A



Richard Yates is currently available.