 Cover of the first edition | |
| Author | Tom Wolfe |
|---|---|
| Cover artist | Fred Marcellino |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Social criticism |
| Publisher | Farrar Straus Giroux |
Publication date | October 1987 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 690 |
| ISBN | 0-312-42757-3 |
| OCLC | 213470814 |
| Followed by | A Man in Full |
The Bonfire of the Vanities is a 1987 novel by Tom Wolfe. The story is a drama about ambition, racism, social class, politics, and greed in 1980s New York City, and centers on three main characters: WASP bond trader Sherman McCoy, Jewish assistant district attorney Larry Kramer, and British expatriate journalist Peter Fallow.
The novel was originally conceived as a serial in the style of Charles Dickens' writings: it ran in 27 installments in Rolling Stone starting in 1984. Wolfe heavily revised it before it was published in book form. The novel was a bestseller and a commercial success, even in comparison with Wolfe's other books. It has often been called the quintessential novel of the 1980s,[1] and in 1990 was adapted into a critically maligned film of the same name by Brian De Palma.[2]
- ^ Hoby, Hermione (10 January 2010). "The Bonfire of the Vanities by Tom Wolfe". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 October 2014.
- ^ TCM Announces Lucille Ball and The Bonfire of the Vanities for New Seasons of Hit Podcast The Plot Thickens|Pressroom