Laura Z: A Life

Continuing where the first volume, published earlier, of Laura Z ended, Hobson completed her autobiography before she died at age 85 this year. In a perceptive foreword, Cousins, her long-time friend and associate, notes her ability to win ""respect and even awe from all who knew her.'' Readers admire Hobson as a graceful stylist, undeviatingly honest and outspoken. She seems to have omitted no revelation in her memoirs, beginning the second volume with amusing details linked to the effects of Gentleman's Agreement, her landmark novel and Oscar-winning film. There are also witty observations on personages in publishing, politics and show business. In sad contrast, Hobson records arguments that alienated her sister, Alice, as well as her son, Christopher, and the circumstances that doomed her romantic affairs. Her son adds comments to her account of the supportive novel she wrote, Consenting Adults, after learning of his homosexuality. This is the story of a life fully lived, of a woman who kept trying and often succeeded in making people conscious of injustices that demand correcting. Photos not seen by PW. (September 15)