{"product_id":"a-time-to-be-born-paperback","title":"A Time to Be Born - Paperback","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\u003eDawn Powell\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA gorgeous new paperback of Dawn Powell's razor-sharp comedy of manners, following a glittering tale of ambition and betrayal in prewar New York City. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Few books have so bitingly and energetically captured the hunger for status and success that animate the city and enrage so many.\" \u003ci\u003e-- The New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eDeemed \"wittier than Dorothy Parker, [and able to] dissect the rich better than F. Scott Fitzgerald\" (\u003ci\u003eThe New York Times Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e), Dawn Powell earns her place as one of America's great novelists with this biting satire of a wealthy, self-involved publisher and his scheming novelist wife. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAmanda Keeler has clawed her way out of the backwaters of Ohio and into the affections of Julien Evans, New York's most powerful newspaper tycoon. With his ex-wife vanquished, Amanda reigns over their Fifth Avenue mansion, publishing wildly successful (ghostwritten) novels, charming guests at martini-soaked parties and furiously fending off Julien's pesky advances. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThat's until the past comes knocking in the form of Vicky Haven, a timid school friend desperate for reinvention. Ever the strategist, Amanda lands Vicky a job in listings and a studio apartment--perfect for Amanda's daytime trysts with old flame, Ken Saunders. But matters of the heart rarely follow orders. When Vicky begins to wise up to her scheme, and sets her own sights on Ken, she ignites a love triangle that threatens to topple Amanda's carefully constructed empire. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eScathingly funny and irresistibly glamorous\u003ci\u003e, A Time to be Born\u003c\/i\u003e is a timeless portrait of social climbing, set in a 1940s Manhattan rife with backstabbing charm, brittle friendships and women who always land on their feet - heels first. Reissued in a stunning new package, it is the perfect introduction to Dawn Powell's wicked wit and unsparing eye, guaranteed to delight both established fans and new readers alike.\u003ch3\u003eFront Jacket\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eSet against an atmospheric backdrop of New York City in the months just before America's entry into World War II, A Time To Be Born is a scathing and hilarious study of cynical New Yorkers stalking each other for various selfish ends. At the center of the story are a wealthy, self-involved newspaper publisher and his scheming, novelist wife, Amanda Keeler. Powell always denied that Amanda Keeler was based upon the real-life Clare Boothe Luce, until years later when she discovered a memo she'd written to herself in 1939 that said, \"Why not do a novel on Clare Luce?\" Which prompted Powell to write in her diary \"Who can I believe? Me or myself?\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eDawn Powell \u003c\/b\u003e(1896-1965) was a novelist and playwright known for her satires of New York's cultural and literary circles. Born in Mount Gilead, Ohio, she endured a tumultuous childhood before running away at thirteen to live with an aunt who encouraged her writing aspirations. After graduating from Lake Erie College, Powell moved to New York City, immersing herself in the bohemian atmosphere of Greenwich Village. She gained early recognition for her witty pieces in \u003ci\u003eThe New Yorker \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eEsquire\u003c\/i\u003e, and in 1939 became a Scribner author, sharing the legendary editor Maxwell Perkins with Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald. Although Powell enjoyed a devoted circle of admirers, her work drifted into obscurity after her death. Interest in her novels was later revived by the tireless work of Pulitzer Prize-winning critic Tim Page, executor of her estate, and also through Gore Vidal's influential appraisal in\u003ci\u003e The New York Review of Books\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 336\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1.01 x 7.75 x 5.16 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e June 02, 2026\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43443007619161,"sku":"9781805333265","price":24.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0736\/6465\/9545\/files\/x4_eOwdvbe9781805333265.webp?v=1781765735","url":"https:\/\/warrenssanctuaryofthemind.myshopify.com\/products\/a-time-to-be-born-paperback","provider":"Warren's sanctuary of the mind","version":"1.0","type":"link"}