Witness (memoir)
Witness, first published in May 1952, is a best-selling book of memoirs by American writer Whittaker Chambers (1901–1961), which recounts his life as a dedicated Marxist-communist ideologist in the 1920s, his work in the Soviet underground during the 1930s, and his 1948 testimony before the US Congress, which led to a criminal indictment against Alger Hiss and two trials in 1949.[1][2]
Author
English
Espionage, communism
Memoir
May 1952
United States of America
799 (body)
1953 National Book Award finalist for nonfiction
324.273/75/092 B
E743.5 .C47
Cold Friday (1964)
Publication[edit]
Book Serialization[edit]
In the Spring of 1952, the Saturday Evening Post, then still the most widely circulated weekly magazine in the US, ran a series of twelve (12) excerpts from Witness under the title "I Was the Witness" from February 5 to April 12, 1952.
Printings, translations, formats[edit]
In 1952, Random House published Witness in trade hardback format, with several editions.[8][9] In 1953, Andre Deutsch published a slightly shorter version of Witness in London.[10][11] In 1969, Regnery published its first edition, in paperback, through an arrangement with Random House.[12] In 1984, Regnery published hardback and paperback editions of Witness.[13] Regnery continued printing Witness including 1997[14][15] and 2003.[16] The latest printing of Witness was in 2014 by Regnery, when an ebook version also became available.[17]
In 1954, Witness appeared in Spanish as El Testigo: El Caso Hiss.[18] In 2005, Witness appeared in Czech as Svēdek.[19][20]
Blackstone Audio has held audiobook rights since 1988.
Reception[edit]
Witness received widespread acclaim.[21] Kirkus Review called the "long awaited" book "fully fascinating as an anatomy of personal as well as political direction and misdirection."[22] Time magazine (Chambers' former employer) stated "Its depth and penetration make Witness the best book about Communism ever written on this continent. It ranks with the best books on the subject written anywhere."[23] The New York Times ran a review by philosopher Sidney Hook, who deemed the book "one of the most significant autobiographies of the twentieth century."[24]