
author
1892–1981
Best remembered for the sly, dreamlike novella Lady into Fox, this English writer and publisher moved in Bloomsbury circles and built a career that mixed fiction, editing, and literary life.
Born in Brighton in 1892, he came from a notably literary family: his father was the critic and publisher's reader Edward Garnett, and his mother, Constance Garnett, was the celebrated translator who introduced many Russian classics to English readers. He became closely associated with the Bloomsbury Group and was known to friends by the nickname "Bunny."
His breakthrough came with Lady into Fox in 1922, a short novel that brought him wide attention and remains the work most often linked with his name. Alongside his fiction, he worked as a publisher and editor, helping to shape literary culture as well as contribute to it.
Later in life he continued writing and editing, and he died in France in 1981. Readers often remember him for combining wit, strangeness, and emotional sharpness in a style that still feels fresh.