With Friends Possessed - A Life of Edward FitzGerald (Paperback, Main)

' Edward] FitzGerald (1809-1883) won a small piece of immortality with his translation-adaptation of "The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam.".. but in every other way he seems to have successfully avoided fulfilment. A godless Epicurean, he lived in permanent virginity, never pressing his homosexual desires beyond a number of sentimental crushes... The son of a fabulously rich heiress, he rarely travelled... Though he had many friends he also had a perverse penchant for alienating them... Robert Bernard] Martin argues that FitzGerald's greatest achievement, outside the "Rubaiyat," is his letters, which certainly have grace and a wistful charm.' "Kirkus Review"

'There is ] something sad about the life of this loving and never quite satisfied man... Mr. Martin's biography is splendid reading, and it is a real credit to it that he makes us feel the sadness.' "New York Times"