If literature, as Oscar Wilde once claimed, is not read at all, then either his work is not literature or Ruth Robbins has proved him wrong in this wonderfully original and provocative, deeply insightful critical account and appreciation of the text of Wilde. More than merely introductorythough Robbins' study is the single most indispensable inauguration to the Wildean oeuvre I've had the fortune to readhere is a radically challenging, beautifully written, and intimately perceptive reading of Wilde. Robbins' Oscar Wilde will, I have no doubt, set the agenda for thinking about Wilde again and, what is more to the point, astutely and intelligently. As Ruth Robbins demonstrates on every page with perceptive insight, wit and aplomb, the truth is rarely pure and never simple, but, in readings such as this, as rare as they are necessary, it is the truththe truth of Wilde and the truth that only the literary and reading can effectwhich appears everywhere. As Henry David Thoreau might have observed had he had the chance to read Oscar Wilde, read the best books first, or you may not have a chance to read them at all. Oscar Wilde is one of those books.' -- Julian Wolfreys, Professor of Modern Literature and Culture, Loughborough University, author of Literature, in Theory "Ostensibly intended as a primer on Wilde's life and works, the present beautifully written book will be invaluable to all Wilde scholars because Robbins presents Wilde as a human being with a soul and not as a cartoon character...The author is insightful in identifying exactly where, how, and why Wilde scholars have gone wrong in the depictions of the man and his writings..." Awarded an Essential rating from Choice magaine -- Choice * Choice *
