{"product_id":"the-key-to-everything-may-swenson-a-writers-life-hardcover","title":"The Key to Everything: May Swenson, a Writer's Life - Hardcover","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eMargaret a. Brucia\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAn intimate portrait of the twentieth-century American poet\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eMay Swenson (1913-1989) was one of the most important and original poets of the twentieth century. \u003ci\u003eThe Key to Everything \u003c\/i\u003eis a biography of this experimental American modernist that draws directly from her unpublished diaries and her letters to friends, family, and colleagues, most notably Elizabeth Bishop. In 1952, Swenson wrote in her diary, \"I want to confirm my life in a narrative--my Lesbianism, the hereditary background of my parents, grandparents, origins in the 'old country.'\" Taking up Swenson's uncompleted autobiographical plan, Margaret Brucia tells Swenson's story as much as possible through her own words. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWhile chronicling the whole of Swenson's life, this book focuses on the period from 1936 to 1959, when she came of age artistically and personally in New York City. Against the backdrop of the Great Depression, the Federal Writers' Project, Greenwich Village, and the emergence of gay culture, Swenson's diaries lay bare her aspirations, fears, joys, and disappointments. Readers see the poet and person emerge, inextricably entwined, as Swenson describes her struggles with poverty, anonymity, and predatory men; her romantic relationships; and the people she met, the books she read, and the work she produced. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThe most detailed and intimate biography of Swenson to date, \u003ci\u003eThe Key to Everything \u003c\/i\u003eis a unique portrait of a poet who resisted labels throughout her life.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eMargaret A. Brucia\u003c\/b\u003e is a Fulbright scholar, the recipient of a fellowship from the National Endowment for the Humanities, and a Fellow of the American Academy in Rome. Trained as a classicist, she has a special interest in women's diaries and letters. \u003cb\u003ePaul Crumbley\u003c\/b\u003e is professor emeritus of English at Utah State University and coeditor of \u003ci\u003eBody My House: May Swenson's Work and Life\u003c\/i\u003e. \u003cb\u003eDavid Hoak\u003c\/b\u003e is an independent scholar whose work focuses on letters between poets, including May Swenson and Elizabeth Bishop.\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 288\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1 x 9.2 x 6.4 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e July 08, 2025\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44807429259366,"sku":"9780691247236","price":38.15,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0599\/7255\/0758\/files\/0pdVXWx9yr9780691247236.webp?v=1771473291","url":"https:\/\/infinitylightwa.com\/products\/the-key-to-everything-may-swenson-a-writers-life-hardcover","provider":"Infinity Light","version":"1.0","type":"link"}