with the fictive impulse that kept him writing. And all of it is used to further explore the
complicated history of the complex individual who rose to such prominence.
Ramet as a result not only provides us with another way to inspect the value of Follett’s
body of work and to understand the man, but also gives us a view of how books are written
and how the real world shapes a writer and his fiction in general. By giving a view comprised of
the political world that engages Follett’s interests, a discussion of the publishing world in
Follet’s day, and an analysis of how popularity in one venue can alter how novels and their
creators are perceived, Ramet succeeds in crafting a biography of Follett in which the writing
process is examined as well via the life of a literary success story.
Kim Idol, University of Nevada, Las Vegas
122