Facts about The Secret History
- 05
Bret Easton Ellis, Tartt's classmate at Bennington, was among the first readers of The Secret History and encouraged her to pursue its publication.
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The novel's setting at Hampden College was inspired by Tartt's experiences at Bennington College in Vermont during the 1980s, where she studied classics and creative writing.
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Tartt's 1992 debut novel sold over 3 million copies worldwide and remained on the New York Times bestseller list for 16 weeks following its publication.
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Richard Papen's unreliable narration in The Secret History creates a 320-page retrospective account where the protagonist knows the murder victim from the novel's opening pages.
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Donna Tartt spent ten years writing The Secret History before its 1992 publication, crafting the novel while working various jobs in New York City.