Tom Reiss
Encyclopedia
Tom Reiss is an American author and journalist who lives in New York City. He has written for The New Yorker
, The Wall Street Journal
, and The New York Times
. Reiss is best known as the author of The Orientalist: Solving the Mystery of a Strange and Dangerous Life."
, an area of New York City populated then by mostly German-speaking immigrant families. He grew up in Texas and Massachusetts, and graduated from Harvard College
. Before becoming a journalist had various jobs including bartender, security guard, actor in Japanese gangster movies, elementary school teacher and producer of industrial videos.
. Written with Ingo Hasselbach
, it was the first inside exposé of the European neo-Nazi movement. It first appeared as a 21,000 word excerpt in The New Yorker.
But Lev’s life grew wilder than his wildest stories. He married an international heiress who had no idea of his true identity–until she divorced him in a tabloid scandal. His closest friend in New York, George Sylvester Viereck
– also a friend of Sigmund Freud
and Albert Einstein
– was arrested as the leading Nazi agent in the United States. Lev was invited to be Benito Mussolini
’s official biographer–until the Fascists discovered his true origins. Under house arrest in the Amalfi cliff town of Positano
, Lev wrote his last book–scrawled in tiny print in half a dozen notebooks never before read by anyone–helped by a mysterious half-German salon hostess, an Algerian weapons-smuggler, and the poet Ezra Pound
.
Reiss, himself Jewish, was drawn to write The Orientalist, partially based on his own family's experiences in Europe during the 1920s and 1930s in Europe. To research the book he traveled to 10 countries, from Baku
to Berlin
to Hollywood. He spent five years tracking down secret police records, love letters, diaries, and the deathbed notebooks. Beginning with a yearlong investigation for The New Yorker, Reiss’s quest for the truth buffets him from one weird character to the next: from the last heir of the Ottoman throne to a highly educated baroness living in an Austrian castle who was translating the lyrics of a rock opera from German to French, to an aging starlet in a Hollywood bungalow full of cats and turtles. (Reiss published further details about the bizarre Freudian Nazi, George Sylvester Viereck, in a 2005 "New Yorker" profile of his son, Peter Viereck
, who had a rivalry with William F. Buckley over the future of American conservatism.)
The Orientalist appeared on many "top ten" of the year lists and was shortlisted for the 2006 Samuel Johnson Prize
for best nonfiction book in the English language. It has been published in 18 other languages and is still appearing in others. It has been declared one of the best books of the year in various countries where it appears.
, the mixed-race son of a Norman
marquis
and an Haitian slave, who became a swashbuckling swordsman in Paris and then a military hero of the French Revolutionary Wars
, remaining the highest-ranking black military figure in a Western army until Gen. Colin Powell 200 years later. His rivalry with Napoleon landed him in a dungeon and led to his early death, but his life inspired his identically named son to write books like “The Count of Monte Cristo
” and “The Three Musketeers
.”
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
, The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....
, and The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
. Reiss is best known as the author of The Orientalist: Solving the Mystery of a Strange and Dangerous Life."
Early life
Reiss was born in 1964 and lived as a very young boy lived in Washington HeightsWashington Heights, Manhattan
Washington Heights is a New York City neighborhood in the northern reaches of the borough of Manhattan. It is named for Fort Washington, a fortification constructed at the highest point on Manhattan island by Continental Army troops during the American Revolutionary War, to defend the area from the...
, an area of New York City populated then by mostly German-speaking immigrant families. He grew up in Texas and Massachusetts, and graduated from Harvard College
Harvard College
Harvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...
. Before becoming a journalist had various jobs including bartender, security guard, actor in Japanese gangster movies, elementary school teacher and producer of industrial videos.
Führer-Ex
Reiss' first major book, was Führer-Ex; Memoirs of a Former Neo-Nazi, published in 1996 by Random HouseRandom House
Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
. Written with Ingo Hasselbach
Ingo Hasselbach
Ingo Hasselbach is a German well known for being a former neo-Nazi. He is the author of the book Führer Ex: Memoirs of a Former Neo-Nazi , which has been translated into several languages...
, it was the first inside exposé of the European neo-Nazi movement. It first appeared as a 21,000 word excerpt in The New Yorker.
The Orientalist
Reiss is best known as the author of The Orientalist, a biography of Lev Nussimbaum, a Jew who pretended to be a Muslim while living in Germany during the years leading up to the Holocaust. Part history, part cultural biography, and part literary mystery, it tells the story of how Lev Nussimbaum escaped the Russian Revolution in a camel caravan and, as "Essad Bey" and "Kurban Said," became a celebrated adventurer and author of the enduring novel Ali and Nino-–a story of love across ethnic and religious boundaries, published on the eve of the Holocaust–is still in print today.But Lev’s life grew wilder than his wildest stories. He married an international heiress who had no idea of his true identity–until she divorced him in a tabloid scandal. His closest friend in New York, George Sylvester Viereck
George Sylvester Viereck
George Sylvester Viereck was a German-American poet, writer, and propagandist.-Biography:...
– also a friend of Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud , born Sigismund Schlomo Freud , was an Austrian neurologist who founded the discipline of psychoanalysis...
and Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein was a German-born theoretical physicist who developed the theory of general relativity, effecting a revolution in physics. For this achievement, Einstein is often regarded as the father of modern physics and one of the most prolific intellects in human history...
– was arrested as the leading Nazi agent in the United States. Lev was invited to be Benito Mussolini
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
’s official biographer–until the Fascists discovered his true origins. Under house arrest in the Amalfi cliff town of Positano
Positano
Positano is a village and comune on the Amalfi Coast , in Campania, Italy. The main part of the city sits in an enclave in the hills leading down to the coast.-History:...
, Lev wrote his last book–scrawled in tiny print in half a dozen notebooks never before read by anyone–helped by a mysterious half-German salon hostess, an Algerian weapons-smuggler, and the poet Ezra Pound
Ezra Pound
Ezra Weston Loomis Pound was an American expatriate poet and critic and a major figure in the early modernist movement in poetry...
.
Reiss, himself Jewish, was drawn to write The Orientalist, partially based on his own family's experiences in Europe during the 1920s and 1930s in Europe. To research the book he traveled to 10 countries, from Baku
Baku
Baku , sometimes spelled as Baki or Bakou, is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. It is located on the southern shore of the Absheron Peninsula, which projects into the Caspian Sea. The city consists of two principal...
to Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
to Hollywood. He spent five years tracking down secret police records, love letters, diaries, and the deathbed notebooks. Beginning with a yearlong investigation for The New Yorker, Reiss’s quest for the truth buffets him from one weird character to the next: from the last heir of the Ottoman throne to a highly educated baroness living in an Austrian castle who was translating the lyrics of a rock opera from German to French, to an aging starlet in a Hollywood bungalow full of cats and turtles. (Reiss published further details about the bizarre Freudian Nazi, George Sylvester Viereck, in a 2005 "New Yorker" profile of his son, Peter Viereck
Peter Viereck
Peter Robert Edwin Viereck , was an American poet and political thinker, as well as a professor of history at Mount Holyoke College for five decades.-Background:...
, who had a rivalry with William F. Buckley over the future of American conservatism.)
The Orientalist appeared on many "top ten" of the year lists and was shortlisted for the 2006 Samuel Johnson Prize
Samuel Johnson Prize
The Samuel Johnson Prize for Non-Fiction is one of the most prestigious prizes for non-fiction writing. It was founded in 1999 following the demise of the NCR Book Award and based on an anonymous donation. The prize is named after Samuel Johnson...
for best nonfiction book in the English language. It has been published in 18 other languages and is still appearing in others. It has been declared one of the best books of the year in various countries where it appears.
Dumas biography
Reiss is writing a biography of General Thomas-Alexandre DumasThomas-Alexandre Dumas
Thomas-Alexandre Davy de la Pailleterie, was a hero of the French Revolution and General in Napoleon's army. He is better known as Thomas-Alexandre Dumas, General of the French Revolution and the father of author Alexandre Dumas, père, and grandfather of author Alexandre Dumas, fils...
, the mixed-race son of a Norman
Normandy
Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
marquis
Marquis
Marquis is a French and Scottish title of nobility. The English equivalent is Marquess, while in German, it is Markgraf.It may also refer to:Persons:...
and an Haitian slave, who became a swashbuckling swordsman in Paris and then a military hero of the French Revolutionary Wars
French Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars were a series of major conflicts, from 1792 until 1802, fought between the French Revolutionary government and several European states...
, remaining the highest-ranking black military figure in a Western army until Gen. Colin Powell 200 years later. His rivalry with Napoleon landed him in a dungeon and led to his early death, but his life inspired his identically named son to write books like “The Count of Monte Cristo
The Count of Monte Cristo
The Count of Monte Cristo is an adventure novel by Alexandre Dumas. It is often considered to be, along with The Three Musketeers, Dumas's most popular work. He completed the work in 1844...
” and “The Three Musketeers
The Three Musketeers
The Three Musketeers is a novel by Alexandre Dumas, first serialized in March–July 1844. Set in the 17th century, it recounts the adventures of a young man named d'Artagnan after he leaves home to travel to Paris, to join the Musketeers of the Guard...
.”
External links
- Website for Tom Reiss's book The Orientalist
- Review of "The Orientalist" by the New York Times
- Review of "L'Orientaliste" by the French newspaper Liberation
- Review of "Der Orientalist" by the German news magazine Der Spiegel"
- Review of "L'Orientalista" by Italian newspaper La Republicca
- Article about Tom Reiss in the Norwegian newspaper Der Aftenposten
- "The Story of a Writer who Rewrote his Own Identity" in the Chicago Tribune
- "Was Essad Bey Too Prolific? Did He Really Write All Those Books Published Under His Name? 16 Books in 8 Years," in Azerbaijan International
- "The Vanishing Fascination of Truly Anonymous Authors" in The Guardian
- "Frequently Asked Questions about the Authorship of Ali and Nino" (158 questions, 543 Endnotes), in "The Business of Literature, Who Wrote Azerbaijan's Most Famous Novel: Ali and Nino," in Azerbaijan International, Vol. 15:2-4 (2011).
