e writer's conception of it as nearly as perfectly as possible"(298). Max said at best he was a "handmaiden" to an author: he helped in literally any way he could, but he wasn't the creator. Neither was he egotistical about what he did, even when he helped scale Wolfe's three-thousand-plus page manuscript, Time and a River, down to a readable novel. Throughout his life, Perkins discovered, nurtured, inspired and encouraged some of the greatest writers. He even humbly offered up successful ideas for plot-lines, titles, and the like-- but he may never have known the huge impact he had not only in the world of editing and publishing but in the world of literature. The day Maxwell Perkins died, he woke up and began to ready himself for work despite his terrible coughing and the pain in his lungs. Up to the end, books were a priority. And Berg, in clear and interesting language, conveys the "real thing" in Max Perkins: Editor of Genius. ...
