Some of our most illustrious writers have tried their best to sink their fellow authors, using all the weapons at their command - wit, humour, sarcasm, and invective. In these eight profiles of quarrels between famous scribes, readers will find both wonderful literary gossip and insight into our social and intellectual history. Included are such lively literary barbs as: - Mary McCarthy on Lillian Hellman - "Every word she writes is a lie, including "and" and "the" - Gore Vidal on Truman Capote - "It is inhumane to attack Capote. You are attacking an elf." Also included are the quarrels of Tom Wolfe and John Updike; Sinclair Lewis and Theodore Dreiser; Ernest Hemingway and Gertrude Stein; and others.