Historical Fiction · ThoughtfulA Polish stage star plans a utopian colony in America in 1876, based on the real actress Helena Modjeska
In America
by Susan Sontag
A Polish actress and her followers come to America to build a new community
Maryna Zalewska is a Polish actress, based on the real Helena Modjeska, who arrives in California in 1876 with a group of followers, mostly men. She plans to found a utopian commune in America. She leaves the commune to return to the theater and rises to stardom, touring the United States and meeting a range of eccentric people along the way.
More about this book
Who
Maryna Zalewska, a Polish actress, and the entourage that comes with her.
World
The United States, beginning in California in 1876.
What makes it different
The novel is based on the true story of Helena Modjeska. After publication, a reader accused Sontag of using passages from other books about Modjeska without credit. Sontag replied that she had transformed her sources and that literature is made of references and allusions.
Feel
Historical and theatrical. It won the 2000 National Book Award for Fiction.
Page count and cover shown for: Selected edition
Further reading
- In AmericaWikipedia