I am an admirer of Tom Wolfe. There used to be many of us. Fewer now, less vocal. I am more vocal than most. I gave a brief introduction to his career, with a special look at his novels, in Law & Liberty. I reviewed his last published work, an essay on the superiority of language to evolution when it comes to understanding our humanity, for the University Bookman. I tried to introduce his concern for prudence in his account of the men who risked their lives as astronauts in the space programs in The Right Stuff. I wrote a long essay about his unusually daring attack on mid-century liberalism for Modern Age.
I’ve a new Wolfe essay — a review of the first docu made about the charming man in the white suit, for my friends at Acton. I’ll start you off, but read the review:
Conservatism doesn’t really produce or nurture writers nowadays. The notable exception is Tom Wolfe, who died in 2018. Wolfe was universally beloved. He sold millions of copies of his various writings. Wolfe had a distinctive Southern-gentleman look; a distinctive reportorial style of writing that borrowed from the wild and flamboyant habits of his subjects; & an ironic view of liberal pieties, which liberals couldn’t help but admire.
Another thing I recommend, Wolfe interviewed on Firing Line: