In 2024, the U.S. Postal Service added another giant of American letters to its Literary Arts series: Saul Bellow, a writer who considered himself a historian of American identity, populating his books with dreamers and intellectuals searching for meaning in a materialistic, sometimes disorienting world. USPS
Born Solomon Bellows in Lachine, Quebec, in 1915, Bellow moved with his family to Chicago in 1925, becoming part of the city’s vibrant immigrant Jewish community. That city would shape him for the rest of his life — and his career.
While serving in World War II, Bellow finished his first novel, “Dangling Man,” in 1944. Two decades later, his novel “Herzog” became his first bestseller, earning him the International Literary Prize and making him the first American to receive that award. Bellow went on to receive three National Book Awards, a Pulitzer Prize, and the Nobel Prize, and is widely regarded as one of the greatest authors of the 20th century.
The stamp itself, issued as the 34th in the Literary Arts series, with a value of $1.16 for the three-ounce mail rate, was issued on February 6, 2024, in Chicago. It features a portrait of the author with a Chicago street scene behind him, complete with skyscrapers and the “L” train.
For collectors, this stamp captures more than a writer — it captures a city, an era, and a singular American literary voice.
