Exile's Return A Literary Odyssey of the 1920s

Exile’s Return: A Literary Odyssey of the 1920s by Malcolm Cowley is a classic work of literary history and criticism that explores the lives, ideas, and experiences of American writers who came of age after World War I.

Cowley examines the generation of writers who became associated with the Lost Generation, many of whom traveled to Europe during the 1920s and became part of the vibrant literary culture of the period. The book discusses figures such as Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, John Dos Passos, and other influential writers, while exploring their relationships, artistic ambitions, and changing views of American society.

Blending literary criticism, cultural history, and personal recollection, Exile’s Return captures the atmosphere of the Jazz Age and the literary world of the 1920s. It explores themes of exile, artistic freedom, cultural change, disillusionment, identity, and the search for a new American literary voice, making it an insightful guide to one of the most influential periods in modern American literature.