E. L. (EDGAR LAWRENCE) DOCTOROW - TYPED LETTER SIGNED 09/01/1976 - HFSID 86863

E.L. DOCTOROW
Writes a letter to a young man encouraging him to read and write, saying "when I was your age --- in fact I preferred reading to almost anything else. I read everything I could get my hands on, good books, and bad books --- it didn't seem to matter"
Typed Letter Signed: "E.L. Doctorow", 1 page, 6x9. No place, 1976 September 1. To Martin Davis, Long Island City, N.Y. In full: "Your grandmother tells me that you are interested in reading and perhaps might someday be a writer. I read a good deal too when I was your age --- in fact I preferred reading to almost anything else. I read everything I could get my hands on, good books, and bad books --- it didn't seem to matter. And now that I am a writer of books I'm always very happy to learn about a young person who is as interested in reading as I was. It is a fine day today and one that makes me think we shall have a beautiful autumn. Good luck to you, Martin, and best regards to your grandmother, Mrs. Davis." Edgar Lawrence Doctorow (1931-2015) was a novelist known for his creative manipulation of traditional genres. His Welcome to Hard Times (1960) was a "philosophical western," while Big as Life (1966) was a take-off on science fiction. World's Fair won the National Book Award (1986). Billy Bathgate (1989) and The March (2005) won PEN/Faulkner awards. Other noteworthy Doctorow's novels include The Book of Daniel (1971), the story of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg; and Ragtime, his most commercially successful work, written the year before Doctorow signed this letter, and which inspired a successful film and play.  Horizontal fold just touches the top of the "D". Otherwise, fine condition.