"In this introduction to Byron's life and work, Martin Garrett examines Byron's poetry in the context of his short, eventful life. His work was sensational from the start - and the public association of the author with the hero of poems such as Don Juan and Childe Harold helped to make them the bestsellers of their day." "However, Byron's position as the toast of society was eclipsed by public disgrace, not helped by the scandal of the breakdown of his marriage, the birth of a daughter to his half-sister Augusta, and Lady Caroline Lamb who spread rumours of his 'unnatural practices'. He spent most of the last ten years of his life travelling in Europe, and when he died in 1824 aged thirty-six, his memoirs were burnt by friends who wished to protect his reputation from more scandal." "Fortunately, his personal and poetic legacy survives to challenge, outrage and delight posterity, and in this new biography Garrett brings to life one of the most infamous literary figures of the nineteenth century."--BOOK JACKET
