Joseph Hergesheimer: 25 books

Joseph Hergesheimer (February 15, 1880 – April 25, 1954) was a prominent American writer of the early 20th century known for his naturalistic novels of decadent life amongst the very wealthy. Other notable film adaptations include Java Head (1923), The Bright Shawl (1923),Wild Oranges (1924), and...

Joseph Hergesheimer (February 15, 1880 – April 25, 1954) was a prominent American writer of the early 20th century known for his naturalistic novels of decadent life amongst the very wealthy. Hergesheimer's reputation fluctuated wildly in his own lifetime, from a peak of acclaim and popularity in...

The Best Works of Joseph Hergesheimer   Cytherea Java Head Linda Condon Mountain Blood The Bright Shawl The Happy End The Three Black Pennys Wild Oranges  

This 1915 novel, set in the mountains of West Virginia, tells the story of the life and death of a mountain stage driver.  The writing is notable for passages of lush description in the florid style that was Hergesheimer's trademark.   

In Hergesheimer’s first novel (1914), a young innocent, Anthony, finds his idealism no match for the blind workings of society and fate. Touching on themes and creating language that would make its author one of the major novelists of the 1920s, the book mixes romanticism with shrewd observations.

This collection of seven short stories, published in 1919, includes one of Hergesheimer’s most famous tales, “Tol’able David,” about a young West Virginia mountain boy’s conflict with a difficult Kentucky family. The story was made into an acclaimed silent film in 1921.

After an extended trip abroad, the son of a Bristol shipping magnate arrives home with a Chinese bride in this 1919 novel of love and betrayal. Told from several different points of view and in a vivid, highly visual style, Java Head is generally considered Hergesheimer’s best novel; it became the basis of two acclaimed films.

THERE are certain cities, strange to the first view, nearer the heart than home. But it might be better to acknowledge that, perhaps, the word home has a wider and deeper significance than any mere geographical and family setting. Many men are alien in houses built from the traditions of their blood;...

Fascinating novel about a man who sails his yacht into a remote Georgia bay where he discovers a crumbling Civil War mansion populated by a beautiful young woman, her erratic father and a hulking, mentally disturbed employee. Compellingly written, this tale builds interest and suspense with each page, and races to a blood-pounding conclusion. Highly recommend.

This 1922 novel features Jason Burrage, a murderer who strikes gold in California.  Upon returning home to New England, he is greeted with suspicion . . . until he meets the beautiful Honora Canderay.  The New York Times called the novel  "a piece of literary artistry of which almost any author might well be proud."

Published in 1918, Gold and Iron collects three of the author's finest novellas: Wild Oranges, a gripping hybrid of adventure and romance, about a man's attempt to escape the stultifying confines of civilization; Tubal Cain, a short novel which features the title character's struggle from poverty to...