The Secret Lives of Somerset Maugham：A Biography

Hewasabrillianttelleroftales,oneofthemostwidelyreadauthorsofthetwentiethcentury,andatonetimethemostfamouswriterintheworld,yetW.SomersetMaugham’sowntruestoryhasneverbeenfullytold.Atlast,thefascinatingtruthisrevealedinalandmarkbiographybytheaward-winningwriterSelinaHastings.GrantedunprecedentedaccesstoMaugham’spersonalcorrespondenceandtonewlyuncoveredinterviewswithhisonlychild,Hastingsportraysthesecretloves,betrayals,integrity,andpassionthatinspiredMaughamtocreatesuchclassicsasTheRazor’sEdgeandOfHumanBondage.HastingsvividlypresentsMaugham’slonelychildhoodspentwithunlovingrelativesafterthedeathofhisparents,atraumathatresultedinshyness,astammer,andfortherestofhislifeanurgentneedforphysicaltenderness.Here,too,arehisadulttriumphsonthestageandpage,worksthatallowedhimaglitteringsociallifeinwhichhebefriendedandsometimesfelloutwithsuchluminariesasDorothyParker,CharlieChaplin,D.H.Lawrence,andWinstonChurchill.TheSecretLivesofSomersetMaughamportraysinfullforthefirsttimeMaugham’sdisastrousmarriagetoSyrieWellcome,amanipulativesocietywomanofdubiousmoralitywhotrappedMaughamwithapregnancyandanattemptedsuicide.HastingsalsoexploresMaugham’smanyaffairswithmen,includinghisgreatlove,GeraldHaxton,analcoholiccharmerandacad.Maugham’scourageousworkinsecretintelligenceduringtwoworldwarsisdescribedinfascinatingdetail—experiencesthatprovidedtheinspirationforthegroundbreakingAshendenstories.FromtheWestEndtoBroadway,fromChinatotheSouthPacific,Maugham’srestlessandremarkablyproductivelifeisthrillinglyrecountedasHastingsuncoverstherealstoriesbehindsuchclassicsas“Rain,”ThePaintedVeil,Cakes&Ale,andotherwell-knowntales.Anepicbiographyofahugelytalentedandhugelyconflictedman,TheSecretLivesofSomersetMaughamisthedefinitiveaccountofMaugham’sextraordinarylife.