Going to the Sun - Softcover

Born May 18, 1936, in Hollywood, California, eldest son of a prominent family (his grandfather was a founder of General Mills, then Western Airlines, his uncle the creator of Wheaties, Breakfast of Champions and financier of movies in the 1920's and 1930's) passed a childhood marked by social attention and privilege, educated at Choate, wrote his first complete novel at age 14, was soon a published short story writer, reporter, syndicated columnist, international correspondent and by age 19 the youngest newspaper editor in California, hired by Cecil B. DeMille, published first book of poetry, produced verse play and independent film series, then witnessed the fall of his family and loss of both parents which lead to legislation granting no-fault civil divorce; went to Paris in 1961 where The Olympia Press published Stradella - the novel which became a bestseller in France, England and around the world outside America, an integral part of what became known as the sexual revolution and the defeat of First Amendment censorship in the USA. This prose poet wrote some 30 unrevealed novels in the next decades, in 1964 creating a style known as word jazz which became widely imitated, but remained outside New York publishing circles, contributing numerous celebrated works through other authors without personal recognition, even when earning a National Book Award in 1970. In 1997 founded Opus Books to publish good writing, evidence that authors write from their own experience, a record of their times. Jaz has served publishing literature for more than 50 years.

This is a staggering epic of family dysfunction. --Michael J. Ryan