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  • The Bonfire of the Vanities by Tom Wolfe book cover
  • The Bonfire of the Vanities by Tom Wolfe book cover
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The Bonfire of the Vanities

by Tom Wolfe

Power and social tensions in 1980s New York

$20.81 USD
$34.69 USD $20.81 USD
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Awards & Recognition

  • Critical praise

    Praised by The National Review for its portrayal of New York society

    Critical praise for the book’s portrayal of New York society

AlbakiReads Editorial

Power and social tensions in 1980s New York

Set in the high-stakes world of 1980s New York City, Tom Wolfe’s novel examines the people who hold power and those who seek it. Its panoramic portrait connects the city’s visible wealth and glamour with racial tensions beneath the surface, making social hierarchy and urban conflict central to the book’s concerns. This paperback reissue includes an introduction by Taffy Brodesser-Akner and cover art by Seymour Chwast.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • For readers interested in literary fiction centered on New York City.
  • For readers exploring power, wealth, and social hierarchy.
  • For readers interested in fiction addressing racial tensions in an urban setting.

Themes

Power and ambitionWealth and social hierarchyRace and urban tension1980s New York City

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

Reissued for today's reader with a cover by the renowned artist Seymour Chwast and an introduction by the critically acclaimed author Taffy Brodesser-Akner, The Bonfire of the Vanities is vintage Tom Wolfe at his best.

"No one has portrayed New York Society this accurately and devastatingly since Edith Wharton." --The National Review

"A page-turner . . . Brilliant high comedy." --The New Republic

The Bonfire of the Vanities, Tom Wolfe's panoramic novel of the go-go New York City of the 1980s, has lost none of its furious luster. Its portrait of power (those who have it and those who want it) and the book's dissection of racial tensions simmering below the city's gleaming veneer have only grown more pointed with time. Wolfe is unblinking, lavish, gleeful, and damning in this larger-than-life vision of the '80s, reinforcing his reputation as an unmatched chronicler of the twisted, contradictory, and glamorous abodes of power
and wealth.

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