Four books in one! In one volume, four classic works by Booth Tarkington , considered in the 1910s and 1920s to be America's finest living author, who captured the spirit and struggles of small town, midwestern America in the face of change. Included in this volume: The Magnificent Ambersons - Alice Adams - The Gentleman from Indiana - In the Arena: Stories of Political Life (including the sketches, “In the First Place," Boss Gorgett, The Aliens, The Need of Money, Hector, Mrs. Protheroe & Great Men’s Sons ) Booth Tarkington (1869-1946) was an American novelist and playwright best known for his Pulitzer Prize-winning works, The Magnificent Ambersons and Alice Adams . Born in Indiana, Tarkington was the son of a prominent lawyer and politician. He attended Purdue University, where he studied English and wrote for the student newspaper. After college, he began writing stories for magazines and newspapers, and eventually published his first novel, The Gentleman from Indiana, in 1899. Tarkington was a prolific writer, producing some thirty-three novels, several plays, and a number of short stories. His works often depicted small-town life in the Midwest, particularly Indiana, and his characters were often young people coming of age in the early 20th century. Tarkington's most famous works are probably The Magnificent Ambersons and Alice Adams . The Magnificent Ambersons tells the story of a wealthy family in decline, and Alice Adams is a coming-of-age novel about a young woman trying to fit into high society. Both books won Pulitzer Prizes, in 1919 and 1922, respectively. Tarkington was a popular writer in his day, and his works have been adapted for film and television several times. He was also a member of the National Institute of Arts and Letters, and was awarded the Howells Medal for Fiction in 1929. Today, Tarkington's works remain popular, and many of his novels have been republished in modern editions. He is remembered as one of the most important American authors of the early twentieth century.