“He demanded of himself a continuous performance with phallus, fists, skis, sailboats, booze, drugs, child-rearing, sustained ass-in-chair writing sessions. He paid ‘a hard price’ in damage to himself and occasionally to other people, but the effort was heroic nonetheless.”
— David Denby
Reflections: Norman Mailer at 100 gathers dozens of first-person tributes edited by Gerald R. Lucas and Maggie McKinley, produced for the Norman Mailer Society’s twentieth annual conference in 2023. Contributors—including family members, close friends, collaborators, editors, filmmakers, and scholars—revisit the ways Mailer shaped their creative lives and friendships, offering an intimate portrait of his centennial legacy.
From the Cover
Norman Kingsley Mailer was born on January 31, 1923—one hundred years ago this year. Published to coincide with the 20th annual conference of the Norman Mailer Society, this volume marks Mailer’s centennial year. Norman Mailer impacted the lives of many, and these collected remembrances from friends, family, fellow writers, editors, filmmakers, and academics highlight his ongoing importance to those whose personal lives he touched.
Read It
The print run is sold out, but Reflections is now an ebook. The 2026 EPUB edition includes every contribution and Judith Aronson’s photographs, corrects a few errors in the print text, and is set for comfortable reading on any device. Every purchase supports the Society.
EPUB Edition
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The full text is also online in Norman Mailer: Works and Days, with the volume’s publication history and a note on how it was made.