Henry Roth (born February 8, 1906 in Galicia, Austro-Hungary - died October 13, 1995, Albuquerque, New Mexico, U.S.A.) was a Jewish-American novelist and short story writer. His first published novel Call It Sleep (originally published in 1934) has achieved some cult popularity since its re-publication and critical re-appraisal in the 1960s when it was hailed by some as an overlooked Depression-era masterpiece and classic novel of immigration. February 8 is the 39th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1906 (MCMVI) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... It has been suggested that Galicia and Ludomaria be merged into this article or section. ... Austria-Hungary, also known as the Dual monarchy (or: the k. ... October 13 is the 286th day of the year (287th in leap years). ... 1995 (MCMXCV in Roman) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the largest city of New Mexico. ... Official language(s) None, English and Spanish de facto Capital Santa Fe Largest city Albuquerque Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 5th 315,194 km² 550 km 595 km 0. ... For other uses, see United States (disambiguation) and US (disambiguation). ... A Jewish American (also commonly American Jew) is an American (a citizen of the United States) of Jewish descent or religion who maintains a connection to the Jewish community, either through actively practicing Judaism or through cultural and historical affiliation. ... A novel is an extended work of written, narrative, prose fiction, usually in story form; the writer of a novel is a novelist. ... This article is in need of attention. ... Call It Sleep is a 1934 novel by Henry Roth. ... 1934 (MCMXXXIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... Dorothea Langes Migrant Mother depicts destitute pea pickers in California, centering on Florence Owens Thompson, a mother of seven children, age thirty-two, in Nipomo, California, March 1936. ...

After the book's publication, Roth began and abandoned a second novel and wrote several short stories. In the early '40s, however, he abandoned writing, and moved from New York to Maine and later New Mexico, and worked as a firefighter, laborer and teacher, among other occupations, before retiring to a trailer park in Albuquerque. Official language(s) None, English de facto Capital Albany Largest city New York City Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 27th 141,205 km² 455 km 530 km 13. ... Official language(s) None Capital Augusta Largest city Portland Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 39th 86,542 km² 305 km 515 km 13. ... Official language(s) None, English and Spanish de facto Capital Santa Fe Largest city Albuquerque Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 5th 315,194 km² 550 km 595 km 0. ...

In the mid-1960s, "Call It Sleep" was republished, became a best-seller and was recognized as a classic, but Roth originally didn't welcome his new-found success, valuing his privacy. Soon, however, he began to write again, at first short stories.

At the age of 73, he began work on a series of novels that grew to six volumes, with final editing completed shortly before his death. The first four of these were published (two of them posthumously) as a cycle called Mercy of a Rude Stream while the last two manuscript volumes remain unpublished.

Roth failed to garner the acclaim some say he deserves, perhaps due to the fact that he failed to produce another novel for sixty years. His massive writer's block after the publication of Call it Sleep is often attributed to Roth's personal problems, such as depression, political conflicts, or his unwillingness to confront events in his past that haunted him, such as having incestuous relationships with both his sister and cousin, which are written about in the later work. Look up depression in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Incest is sexual activity between close family members. ...

References

• Kellman, Steven G., Redemption: The Life of Henry Roth (W.W. Norton, 2005).
• New Yorker Magazine, August, 2005