Emma Who Saved My Life - by Wilton Barnhardt (Paperback)

About the Book

First published in 1989, the first novel from the author of Gospel. Gil Freeman dreams of leaving the Midwest, going to New York, and becoming a famous actor. "Full of sharp, often acid, character sketches, memorable scenes, alternately touching and uproariously funny, that linger in the memory".--Publishers Weekly.

Book Synopsis

A big, funny, engaging, unsentimental and sometimes even wise book...Delightful."--New York Post

Author of Lookaway, Lookaway

Wilton Barnhardt's novel of coming of age in New York City brims with energy, surprise, irresistible humor, and the heady rush of youth. Its hero, Gil Freeman, a midwestern aspiring actor, comes to the city in search of stardom--but instead encounters the perils of Alphabet City, the desperation of off-off-off-Broadway theater...and the exhilarating, exasperating, absolutely unique Emma, around whom his life comes to turn. Charming and engaging, quintessentially American, Emma Who Saved My Life is one of the extraordinary fiction debuts of our time.

Review Quotes

"With a polished assurance rare in a first novel...Wilton Barnhardt unreels flashy scene after scene in convincing detail and sharp, snappy dialogue...the kind of shooting star that will make readers watch the skies eagerly for Barnhardt's next one." --Susan Allen Toth, The Washingtion Post Book World

"This is an immensely winning book." --Los Angeles Times Book Review

"Heir to Holden Caulfield...An affecting first novel, full of feeling without being sentimental." --Financial Times (London)

"New novelists are plentiful. New novelists who create memorable characters, an insightful story, and thoughtful wit are rare. Wilton Barnhardt is one of the rare ones." --Rebecca Warburton Boylan, Newsday

"Emma is a winner--a book of enormous charm....One of the most promising fictional debuts in many years." --Publishers Weekly

"Big, funny, engaging, unsentimental...delightful." --New York Post

About the Author

Wilton Barnhardt is the author of three other novels: Gospel, Show World, and Lookaway, Lookaway. A native of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, he teaches fiction in the master of fine arts in creative writing program at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, where he lives.