Thornton Wilder – författare

Spanning his entire life, The Selected Letters of Thornton Wilder is a comprehensive and fascinating collection of the great American writer’s correspondence.

The author of such classics as Our Town and The Bridge of San Luis Rey, Thornton Wilder was a born storyteller and dramatist—rare talents on glorious display in this volume of more than three hundred letters he penned to a vast array of famous friends and beloved relatives. Through Wilder''s correspondence, readers can eavesdrop on his conversations with Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Gertrude Stein, Noël Coward, Gene Tunney, Laurence Olivier, Aaron Copland, Paul Hindemith, Leonard Bernstein, Edward Albee, and Mia Farrow. Equally absorbing are Wilder''s intimate letters to his family.

Wilder tells of roller-skating with Walt Disney, remembers an inaugural reception for FDR at the White House, describes his life as a soldier in two World Wars, and recalls dining out with Montgomery Clift and Elizabeth Taylor. In these pages, Thornton Wilder speaks for himself in his own unique, enduring voice—informing, encouraging, instructing, and entertaining with his characteristic wit, heart, and exuberance.

Thornton Wilder’s renowned 1967 National Book Award–winning novel features a foreword by John Updike and an afterword by Tappan Wilder, who draws on such unique sources as Wilder’s unpublished letters, handwritten annotations in the margins of the book, and other illuminating documentary material.

In 1962 and 1963, Thornton Wilder spent twenty months in hibernation, away from family and friends, in the town of Douglas, Arizona. While there, he launched The Eighth Day, a tale set in a mining town in southern Illinois about two families blasted apart by the apparent murder of one father by the other. The miraculous escape of the accused killer, John Ashley, on the eve of his execution and his flight to freedom triggers a powerful story tracing the fate of his and the victim’s wife and children.

At once a murder mystery and a philosophical story, The Eighth Day is a “suspenseful and deeply moving” (New York Times) work of classic stature that has been hailed as a great American epic.

“Loud, slap dash and uproarious...extraordinarily original and funny."—New York Times

Now, for the first time in a standalone edition, Thornton Wilder''s brilliant, hilarious play which was adapted into the hit Broadway musical Hello, Dolly with an afterword by Wilder''s nephew, Tappan Wilder.

Horace Vandergelder, a wealthy old merchant residing in Yonkers has decided it’s time to take a wife and hires a matchmaker. But Dolly Gallagher Levi is no ordinary matchmaker. She’s a force of nature, with a plan of her own. Levi soon becomes involved in the affairs of the hearts of all those around her—including Vandergelder’s niece, his store clerks, assorted young and lovely ladies, and the headwaiter at an expensive restaurant, where this swift farce inevitably runs headlong into hilarious complications. Indeed, after a series of slapstick situations involving mistaken identities, a secret rendezvous behind carefully placed screens, separated lovers, and a trip to night court—everyone involved eventually finds themselves paired with a perfect match.

A delightful, deliciously funny classic by Thornton Wilder, The Matchmaker is astonishingly modern and is sure to resonate with audiences and readers today.

“An extremely entertaining array of American life in a bygone era.” — New Yorker

The last of Thornton Wilder’s works published during his lifetime, Theophilus North is part autobiographical and part the imagined adventures of Wilder’s twin brother who died at birth. This edition features an updated afterword from Wilder’s nephew, Tappan Wilder, with illuminating material about the novelist, story and setting.

Setting out to see the world in the summer of 1926, Theophilus North gets as far as Newport, Rhode Island, before his car breaks down. To support himself, Theophilus takes jobs in the elegant mansions along Ocean Drive, just as Wilder himself did in the same decade. Soon the young man finds himself playing the roles of tutor, tennis coach, spy, confidant, lover, friend and enemy as he becomes entangled in adventure and intrigue in Newport’s fabulous addresses, as well as in its local boarding houses, restaurants, dives and military barracks.

Narrated by the elderly North from a distance of fifty years, Theophilus North is a fascinating commentary on youth and education from the vantage point of age, and deftly displays Wilder’s trademark wit juxtaposed with his lively and timeless ruminations on what really matters, at the end of the day, about life, love, and work.

“If John Steinbeck’s mighty Grapes of Wrath is the tragic novel of the Great Depression, then Heaven’s My Destination is its comic masterpiece. —J.D. McClatchy

A hilarious tale about goodness in a fallen world, Heaven’s My Destination introduces George Marvin Brush, one of Thornton Wilder's most memorable characters. Brush, a traveling textbook salesman, is a fervent religious convert who is determined to lead a good life. With sad and sometimes hilarious consequences, his travels take him through smoking cars, bawdy houses, banks, and campgrounds from Texas to Illinois—and into the soul of Depression-era America itself.

This special edition includes an updated afterword by Wilder’s nephew, Tappan Wilder, with illuminating material about the author and book.

From celebrated Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Thornton Wilder, three of the greatest plays in American literature together in one volume.

This omnibus edition brings together Wilder’s three best-known plays: Our Town, The Skin of Our Teeth, and The Matchmaker. Includes a preface by the author, as well as a foreword by playwright John Guare.

Our Town, Wilder''s timeless Pulitzer Prize-winning look at love, death, and destiny, opened on Broadway in 1938 and continues to be celebrated and performed around the world.

The Skin of our Teeth, Wilder''s 1942 romp about human follies and human endurance starring the Antrobus family of Excelsior, New Jersey, earned Wilder his third Pulitzer Prize.

The Matchmaker, Wilder''s brilliant 1954 farce about money and love starring that irrepressible busybody Dolly Gallagher Levi. This play inspired the Broadway musical Hello, Dolly!

“[Our Town] leaves us with a sense of blessing, and the unspoken but palpable command to achieve gratitude in what remains of our days on earth.” — The New Yorker

Thornton Wilder’s Pulitzer Prize-winning drama of life in the mythical village of Grover’s Corners, New Hampshire—an allegorical representation of all life—is an American classic. It is the simple story of a love affair that asks timeless questions about the meaning of love, life, and death.

Our Town explores the relationship between two young neighbors, George Gibbs and Emily Webb, whose childhood friendship blossoms into romance, and then culminates in marriage. When Emily loses her life during childbirth, the circle of life portrayed in each of the three acts—childhood, adulthood, and death—is fully realized.

Widely considered one of the greatest American plays of all time, Our Town debuted on Broadway in 1938 and continues to be performed daily on stages around the world. This special edition includes an afterword by Wilder''s nephew, Tappan Wilder, with illuminating documentary material about the playwright and his most famous drama.

The classic Thornton Wilder novel that recreates the dazzling ancient Roman empire of Julius Caesar—now with a new introduction by Jeremy McCarter, author of Young Radicals and co-author (with Lin-Manuel Miranda) of the #1 New York Times bestseller Hamilton: The Revolution.  

First published in 1948, The Ides of March is a brilliant epistolary novel of the Rome of Julius Caesar. Through imaginary letters and documents, Wilder brings to life a dramatic period of world history and one of its magnetic personalities. 

In this novel, the Caesar of history becomes Caesar the human being as he appeared to his family, his legions, his Rome, and his empire in the months just before his death. In Wilder’s inventive narrative, all Rome comes crowding through his pages: Romans of the slums, of the villas, of the palaces, brawling youths and noble ladies and prostitutes, and the spies and assassins stalking Caesar in his Rome. 

Vivid, compelling, and engaging, The Ides of March showcases Thornton Wilder’s unique storytelling genius. This special edition also includes an afterword by Wilder''s nephew, Tappan Wilder, with illuminating documentary material about the novelist and story.

“If John Steinbeck’s mighty Grapes of Wrath is the tragic novel of the Great Depression, then Heaven’s My Destination is its comic masterpiece. —J.D. McClatchy

A hilarious tale about goodness in a fallen world, Heaven’s My Destination introduces George Marvin Brush, one of Thornton Wilder''s most memorable characters. Brush, a traveling textbook salesman, is a fervent religious convert who is determined to lead a good life. With sad and sometimes hilarious consequences, his travels take him through smoking cars, bawdy houses, banks, and campgrounds from Texas to Illinois—and into the soul of Depression-era America itself.

This special edition includes an updated afterword by Wilder’s nephew, Tappan Wilder, with illuminating material about the author and book.

“For much of the twentieth century, these remarkable early novels were hidden in the great shadow of The Bridge of San Luis Rey. Now we can examine them in the spotlight for the gifts that they are—memorable monuments to style and keys to understanding Wilder’s genius.” – Penelope Niven, Thornton Wilder Biographer

Featuring a foreword by Penelope Niven and a revealing afterword by the author's nephew, Tappan Wilder, this gorgeous reissue reacquaints readers with Thornton Wilder’s first novel, The Cabala, along with The Woman of Andros, one of the inspirations for his Pulitzer Prize-winning play Our Town.

The Cabala tells the story of a young American student who spends a year in the exotic world of post-World War I Rome. While there, he experiences firsthand the waning days of a secret community (a "cabala") of decaying royalty, a great cardinal of the Roman Church, and an assortment of memorable American ex-pats. A semiautobiographical novel of unforgettable characters and human passions, The Cabala launched Wilder's career as a celebrated storyteller and dramatist.

The Woman of Andros, set on the obscure Greek island of Brynos before the birth of Christ, explores universal questions of what is precious about life and how we live, love, and die. Eight years later, Wilder would pose these same questions on the stage in a play titled Our Town, also set in an obscure location, this time a village in New Hampshire. The Woman of Andros is celebrated for some of the most beautiful writing in American literature.

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize

"Our Town leaves us with a sense of blessing, and the unspoken but palpable command to achieve gratitude in what remains of our days on earth." - The New Yorker

In celebration of the 250th anniversary of the United States, HarperCollins is proud to present this library of American classics drawn from our storied catalog. Thornton Wilder's Pulitzer Prize-winning drama of life in the mythical village of Grover's Corners, New Hampshire has been a beloved American classic for nearly a century. It is the story of a love affair that asks timeless questions about love, life, and death.

It explores the relationship between young neighbors George Gibbs and Emily Webb, whose childhood friendship blossoms into romance, then marriage. With poignancy and loving irony, this landmark of world drama, hailed by everyone from Edward Albee to Albert Einstein, shows what it means to appreciate life while we're living it, and considers what awaits us after that.

Widely considered one of the greatest American plays of all time, Our Town debuted on Broadway in 1938 and continues to be performed on stages around the world.