Monday, March 26th
5:30-7PM
The saga of John Kennedy Toole is oneof the greatest stories of American literary history. After writingA Confederacy of Dunces, Toole corresponded with RobertGottlieb of Simon & Schuster for two years. Exhausted fromGottlieb's suggested revisions, Toole declared the publication of themanuscript hopeless and stored it in a box. Years later he suffered amental breakdown, took a two-month journey across the United States,and finally committed suicide on an inconspicuous road outside ofBiloxi. Following the funeral, Toole's mother discovered themanuscript. After many rejections, she cornered Walker Percy, whofound it a brilliant novel and spearheaded its publication. In 1981,twelve years after the author's death, A Confederacy of Dunces won the Pulitzer Prize.
In Butterfly in theTypewriter, Cory MacLauchlin draws on scores of new interviewswith friends, family, and colleagues as well as full access to theextensive Toole archive at Tulane University, capturing hisupbringing in New Orleans, his years in New York City, his frenzy ofwriting in Puerto Rico, his return to his beloved city, and hisdescent into paranoia and depression.
Cory MacLauchlinis discussing and signing his book, Butterfly in the Typewriter: The Tragic Life of John Kennedy Toole and the Remarkable Story of A Confederacy of Dunces.
Ifyou are unable to attend, you must call the book shop to order signedbooks.