Disenchantment

Cultural critic George Steiner fled from the Nazis as a child in 1940 and became a naturalized US citizen in 1944. Through his writing, he has played a major role in introducing the works of prominent European writers and thinkers to readers in North America and Great Britain. This intellectual biography focuses on Steiner's neglected writings on the Holocaust and anti-semitism. Chatterley, founding director of the Canadian Institute for the Study of Anti-Semitism, connects Steiner's evolving conception of the Holocaust and his theoretical understanding of anti-semitism to his larger analysis of Western culture, tracing the evolution of Steiner's ideas from the 1950s to the present. The book includes a chronology of Steiner's life and a complete list of his works. Chatterley teaches modern European and Jewish history at the University of Manitoba. Annotation c2011 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)