- Paperback: 256 pages
- Publisher: WW Norton (July 1 1996)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0393314928
- ISBN-13: 978-0393314922
- Product Dimensions: 21.1 x 14.1 x 2.5 cm
- Shipping Weight: 408 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #444,270 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
Even readers skeptical of short-attention-span publishing will find these short-short (fewer than 2000 words) essays addictive. They're like a plate of Cheese Doodles at a party: not every one is crisp and perfect, but many are, and so the reader keeps going, waiting for the next flash of brilliance. The short-short essay form seems to inspire people to write about nature. Though some are flaccid, the best, such as Kathleen Norris's paean to rain and Donald Hall's wry notes about the joy we take in suffering bad weather, connect natural events to humanity. Short memoirs are poignant, and the form cuts away any sentimentality. In three paragraphs, Stuart Dybek recalls the summer nights when drivers would occasionally pass through his neighborhood with their headlights off, and Henry Louis Gates Jr. gives his family's reasoning about why white people are poor cooks. Within such a short form, the spaces between things become paramountand in the best cases make exposition unnecessary. Judson Mitcham tells of feeding his mother in the hospital, then spotting a mass of starlings on his way home. In recalling the 50 pounds of moose meat her father gave her when she departed for college in the '60s, Brenda Peterson easily explains the food chain and her place in it. The editors contribute a cogent introduction on this innovative form, and Bernard Cooper writes in his preface about how small events become powerful, then demonstrates just that principle with a concluding meditation on sighing that is both sad and funny.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From Library Journal
Kitchen, a poetry reviewer for the Georgia Review, and Jones, a librarian and essayist, have compiled an anthology of 90 brief pieces, ranging from a few paragraphs to a few pages each, to introduce the emerging genre of "creative nonfiction." Somewhat less informational than standard essays, these nonfiction shorts focus on distilled insights, scenes, and memories. Indeed, many of the writers showcased here are best known for their poetry (e.g., Donald Hall, Maxine Kumin, Rita Dove); some, such as Diane Ackerman, Henry Louis Gates Jr., and Lee Gutkind (Creative Nonfiction, LJ 4/1/96), are seasoned in nonfiction; others are less well known. The editors have artfully arranged the works so that a theme or keyword thread connects each writing to the next one. For example, "Across the Street," an essay about a dying neighbor, is followed by "A Wind from the North," which reminisces about a recently deceased uncle. Yet each gem stands on its own. Biographical notes complete the volume. Recommended for public libraries.?Cathy Sabol, Northern Virginia Community Coll., Manassas
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
In summer, waiting for night, we'd pose against the afterglow on corners, watching traffic cruise through the neighborhood. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
In summer, waiting for night, we'd pose against the afterglow on corners, watching traffic cruise through the neighborhood. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Most helpful customer reviews
2.0 out of 5 stars
A Never-Ending Parade of Lightweights,
By doomsdayer520 (Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews
This review is from: In Short A Collection Of Brief Creative Nonfiction (Paperback)
I can't figure out why the editors and publishers of this volume are claiming it to be a celebration of a new art form. Brief creative nonfiction? Hardly. Some of the pieces here could be called creative, but absolutely none of them are nonfiction. Nonfiction is the study of issues or phenomena with evidence and analysis. Here we have a collection of what everyone else in the world calls memoirs, and which have been easily found for decades in magazines and newspapers. While such works can be a relaxing and non-stressful read when you come across them, in a compilation such as this book they are repetitive and mind-numbing. I count 91 submissions in this book, and every single one can be categorized as a simple memoir, especially since almost all of them have "I" or "me" or "our" in the opening sentence. Very few stand out from the crowd in any way. Incongruous winners include Richard Rodriguez's disturbing meditations on the struggles of Mexican migrant laborers, David James Duncan's piece about witnessing an accidental death, Michael Shay's thoughts about giving his son Ritalin, and six or seven pretty good pieces on the various horrors of war. But otherwise, the book inflicts upon us a never-ending parade of quaint musings and meditations, attempted deep thoughts on minor matters of human interest, and several dozen interchangeable Thoreau-like nature reflections. Memoir writing has its own strengths and usefulness, but this lightweight and sluggish book is not the groundbreaker it thinks it is. [~doomsdayer520~]
5.0 out of 5 stars
Don't miss this inspiring collection,
By
This review is from: In Short A Collection Of Brief Creative Nonfiction (Paperback)
Whether you're a reader, a writer, or a dabbler, you'll surely find plenty in this lovely collection to please your mind and lighten your spirit. Not one of the essays is longer than 2000 words, and many are only a paragraph or three in length. Yet each is a little sparkling gem, a nugget of pure gold. There's one by Kathleen Norris (already known for her lyrical spiritual writing) about rain that just takes the breath away. Each, in some small way, connects us to the common pulse of humanity running through the veins of the world around us.Top rating.
5.0 out of 5 stars
A truly collaborative work of art,
By yippee1999 "yippee1999" (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: In Short A Collection Of Brief Creative Nonfiction (Paperback)
So many of the stories in this book are just so poignant, so special, so.... ! They are like individual little works of art.
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