Gentleman's Agreement

by Laura Z. Hobson

Blurb

Gentleman's Agreement is a 1947 novel by Laura Z. Hobson which explored the problem of anti-Semitism in the United States, what The New York Times called, in a contemporary review, "a story of the emotional disturbance that occurs within a man who elects, for the sake of getting a magazine article, to tell people that he is a Jew and who experiences first-hand, as a consequence, the shock and pain of discriminations and social snubs."
The book, originally published in serial form in Cosmopolitan in 1946, was published by Simon & Schuster, and became a runaway bestseller, selling over 1.6 million copies. It reached No. 1 on the New York Times bestseller list in April 1947. The book was adapted into a 1947 movie of the same name starring Gregory Peck.
The book tells the story of Philip Green, new staff writer for a national magazine. A gentile, he is assigned by his magazine to tell the story of anti-Semitism. He decides to do that by telling people that he is Jewish.
This ruse causes problems with his fiancee, who is a social climbing suburbanite and divorcee. Green's son is victimized by anti-Semitism as well, adding to the tension.

First Published

1947

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