Scope and Contents
The Jonathan Lethem Papers, which span from 1938 to 2016, contain writings including novels, short stories, and non-fiction. His most well-known works are Motherless Brooklyn and Fortress of Solitude. The papers also contain correspondence, clippings, ephemera, audiovisual materials, and electronic media related to Lethem's life and work.
Dates
- 1938 - 2016
Creator
Conditions Governing Access
The materials are open for research.
Boxes 71, 73 (born digital): Restricted fragile material. Access copies of digital files may be requested. Consult Access Services for further information.
Box 72 (microcassettes): Restricted fragile material. Consult Access Services for further information.
Box 74: Restricted until 2027. For further information consult the appropriate curator.
Conditions Governing Use
The Jonathan Lethem Papers is the physical property of the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University. Literary rights, including copyright, belong to the authors or their legal heirs and assigns. For further information, consult the appropriate curator.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Purchased from Glenn Horowitz Bookseller, Inc. on the Sinclair Lewis Fund, 2016.
Arrangement
Organized into five series: I. Writings, 1938-2013. II. Writings by Others, 2000-2009. III. Personal Papers, 1957-2016. IV. Business Papers, 1964-2015. V. Restricted Papers.
Extent
33.33 Linear Feet (74 boxes)
Language of Materials
English
Catalog Record
A record for this collection is available in Orbis, the Yale University Library catalog
Persistent URL
Abstract
The Jonathan Lethem Papers, which span from 1938 to 2016, contain writings in the form of drafts, galley proofs, research, notes related to his novels, short stories, and non-fiction including his most well-known works, Motherless Brooklyn and Fortress of Solitude. The papers also contain correspondence, clippings, ephemera, audiovisual materials, and electronic media related to Lethem's life and work.
Jonathan Lethem
Jonathan Lethem (1964-) is an American novelist and essayist born in Brooklyn, New York. Lethem attended Bennington College in Vermont, worked as a book store clerk in California, and has written over ten novels and short story collections, in addition to numerous essays. His most well-known works are Motherless Brooklyn and Fortress of Solitude. Lethem received the National Book Critics Circle Award for fiction in 1999 and a MacArthur Fellowship in 2005.
Processing Information
Collections are processed to a variety of levels, depending on the work necessary to make them usable, their perceived research value, the availability of staff, competing priorities, and whether or not further accruals are expected. The library attempts to provide a basic level of preservation and access for all collections as they are acquired, and does more extensive processing of higher priority collections as time and resources permit.
This collection received a basic level of processing, including rehousing and minimal organization.
Information included in the Description of Papers note and Collection Contents section is drawn from information supplied with the collection and from an initial survey of the contents. Folder titles appearing in the contents list below are often based on those provided by the creator or previous custodian. Titles have not been verified against the contents of the folders in all cases. Otherwise, folder titles are supplied by staff during initial processing.
This finding aid may be updated periodically to account for new acquisitions to the collection and/or revisions in arrangement and description.
- Title
- Guide to the Jonathan Lethem Papers
- Author
- by Rosemary K. J. Davis
- Date
- June 2018
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English.
Part of the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library Repository
Location
121 Wall Street
New Haven, CT 06511
Opening Hours
Access Information
The Beinecke Library is open to all Yale University students and faculty, and visiting researchers whose work requires use of its special collections. You will need to bring appropriate photo ID the first time you register. Beinecke is a non-circulating, closed stack library. Paging is done by library staff during business hours. You can request collection material online at least two business days in advance of your visit, using the request links in Archives at Yale. For more information, please see Planning Your Research Visit and consult the Reading Room Policies prior to visiting the library.