Huxley's biography of the original eminence grise, a Capuchin monk who became Cardinal Richelieu's right-hand man and a powerful policitian, whilst remaining 'a man of God'
Aldous Huxley (Author)
Aldous Huxley was born on 26 July 1894 near Godalming, Surrey. He
began writing poetry and short stories in his early 20s, but it was
his first novel, Crome Yellow (1921), which established his
literary reputation. This was swiftly followed by Antic Hay (1923),
Those Barren Leaves (1925) and Point Counter Point (1928) - bright,
brilliant satires in which Huxley wittily but ruthlessly passed
judgement on the shortcomings of contemporary society. For most of
the 1920s Huxley lived in Italy and an account of his experiences
there can be found in Along the Road (1925). The great novels of
ideas, including his most famous work Brave New World (published in
1932, this warned against the dehumanising aspects of scientific
and material 'progress') and the pacifist novel Eyeless in Gaza
(1936) were accompanied by a series of wise and brilliant essays,
collected in volume form under titles such as Music at Night (1931)
and Ends and Means (1937). In 1937, at the height of his fame,
Huxley left Europe to live in California, working for a time as a
screenwriter in Hollywood. As the West braced itself for war,
Huxley came increasingly to believe that the key to solving the
world's problems lay in changing the individual through mystical
enlightenment. The exploration of the inner life through mysticism
and hallucinogenic drugs was to dominate his work for the rest of
his life. His beliefs found expression in both fiction (Time Must
Have a Stop,1944, and Island, 1962) and non-fiction (The Perennial
Philosophy, 1945; Grey Eminence, 1941; and the account of his first
mescaline experience, The Doors of Perception, 1954). Huxley died
in California on 22 November 1963.
Penetrating and vivid... This biography will rank amongst Huxley's
best books. He never wrote better; he never hit upon a more
interesting theme
*Sunday Times*
A remarkable biography
*Observer*
Grey Eminence is lucid, scholarly and thoughtful. Huxley has used
all his ingenuity to explain this extraordinary character
*New Statesman*
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