Harry Bernstein, 101, whose acclaimed memoir of an English childhood haunted by anti-Semitism -- "The Invisible Wall" -- was published when he was 96, died Friday at his daughter's Brooklyn home, said Bruce Frankel, a friend and author.
Critics have compared Bernstein's world of pain and prejudice to those of D.H. Lawrence and Isaac Bashevis Singer -- and especially to Frank McCourt's "Angela's Ashes," which details McCourt's Irish upbringing.
Bernstein had written 40 other books but destroyed most of the manuscripts after they were rejected by publishers. His eventual success became an inspiration for other struggling authors, and in 2008 -- at age 98 -- he was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship to pursue his writing.
After "The Invisible Wall," Bernstein wrote three more books, including "What Happened to Rose" -- to be published next year in Italy, where he has a following.
Bernstein's books also have been translated and published in England, Sweden, Germany, Finland, Norway, Denmark and Brazil.
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