Book Description
In this riveting narrative of family, betrayal, vengeance, and murder, Lillian Baptiste is willed back to her island home of Dominica to finally settle her past. Haunted by scandal and secrets, Lillian left Dominica when she was fourteen after discovering she was the daughter of Iris, the half-crazy woman whose life was told of in chanté mas songs sung during Carnival: Matilda Swinging and Bottle of Coke; songs about a village on a mountaintop and bones and bodies; songs about flying masquerades and a man who dropped dead. Lillian knew the songs well. And now she knows these songs -- and thus the history -- belong to her. After twenty years away, Lillian returns to face the demons of her past, and with the help of Teddy, the man she refused to love, she will find a way to heal.
Set partly in contemporary Washington, D.C., and partly in post-World War II Dominica, Unburnable weaves together West Indian history, African culture, and American sensibilities. Richly textured and lushly rendered, Unburnable showcases a welcome and assured new voice.
Customer Reviews:
Takes a while to get started.......2007-09-07
I took a little while for me to get into this book. I, quite frankly, didn't care about Lillian the main character until I was almost a third of the way through. The most dimensional and complex characters were of course Matilda and Iris. Once the novel's focus shift primarily to them, it becomes a page turner. If you feel like investing the time to get to the heart of this tale, give it a read.
Chimamanda Adichie's comments on Unburnable.......2007-07-23
Chimamanda Adichie (Half of a Yellow Sun, Purple Hibiscus: A Novel) had these wonderful things to say about UNBURNABLE in the book review section of London's Guardian newspaper on Saturday June 23, 2007:
"I read Marie-Elena John's novel Unburnable on the plane from New York to Copenhagen. I laughed aloud so often reading this wondrously intelligent book about Dominica and the United States and Africa, about gender, class and race, about love and sexuality, that the bespectacled man sitting next to me put his Wall Street Journal down and leaned over to see what the title was. He asked what it was about. I could have told him how it dealt honestly with issues without ever forgetting to keep character and soul as its centre, but instead I told him a tiny anecdote from the book about black women and thongs. And I much enjoyed his blush."
A Must Read.......2007-03-27
This is a great book to kick back in silence and just immerse yourself into suspense, deep thinking, and a few tears. I was just a little disappointed with the ending, but all in all this was a great read.
Not a Fluff Read!.......2007-01-14
I have been blessed enough in the last week to read not one but TWO great books this one being the greater. I will admit I wasn't wrapped up in the book by page two but by page ten I was all caught up in this story. Marie-Elena John is an EXCELLENT story teller. Her words are beautiful and her descriptions come off the page so effortlessly. I could've easily believed this was her third novel instead of her first. I laughed, I cried and I called all my friends and advised them to please read this book. I did not know anything about Dominica before picking up this novel and now I cannot learn enough. This book intrigued me to no end and I cannot wait to read future publishings from Marie-Elena John. This story is not in the least predictable and her knowledge on the subject matter is outstanding! If you are looking for a mind challenging novel that will shock and educate you at the same time then look no further.
Long Story Short.......2006-11-08
Interesting story, you have to continue to read this book and not stop or you might get side tracked if you put it down for too long.
Amazon.com
In 1922, F. Scott Fitzgerald announced his decision to write "something new--something extraordinary and beautiful and simple + intricately patterned." That extraordinary, beautiful, intricately patterned, and above all, simple novel became The Great Gatsby, arguably Fitzgerald's finest work and certainly the book for which he is best known. A portrait of the Jazz Age in all of its decadence and excess, Gatsby captured the spirit of the author's generation and earned itself a permanent place in American mythology. Self-made, self-invented millionaire Jay Gatsby embodies some of Fitzgerald's--and his country's--most abiding obsessions: money, ambition, greed, and the promise of new beginnings. "Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgiastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that's no matter--tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther.... And one fine morning--" Gatsby's rise to glory and eventual fall from grace becomes a kind of cautionary tale about the American Dream.
It's also a love story, of sorts, the narrative of Gatsby's quixotic passion for Daisy Buchanan. The pair meet five years before the novel begins, when Daisy is a legendary young Louisville beauty and Gatsby an impoverished officer. They fall in love, but while Gatsby serves overseas, Daisy marries the brutal, bullying, but extremely rich Tom Buchanan. After the war, Gatsby devotes himself blindly to the pursuit of wealth by whatever means--and to the pursuit of Daisy, which amounts to the same thing. "Her voice is full of money," Gatsby says admiringly, in one of the novel's more famous descriptions. His millions made, Gatsby buys a mansion across Long Island Sound from Daisy's patrician East Egg address, throws lavish parties, and waits for her to appear. When she does, events unfold with all the tragic inevitability of a Greek drama, with detached, cynical neighbor Nick Carraway acting as chorus throughout. Spare, elegantly plotted, and written in crystalline prose, The Great Gatsby is as perfectly satisfying as the best kind of poem.
Book Description
Since its publication in 1925, The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald's account of the American dream gone awry, has established itself as one of the most popular and widely read novels in the English language. Until now, however, no edition has printed the novel exactly as Fitzgerald intended. The first edition was marred by errors resulting from Fitzgerald's extensive rewriting in proof and the conditions under which the book was produced; moreover, the subsequent transmission of the text introduced proliferating departures from the author's words. This critical edition draws on the manuscript and surviving proofs of the novel, together with Fitzgerald's subsequent revisions to key passages, to provide the first authoritative text of The Great Gatsby. This volume also includes a detailed account of the genesis, composition, and publication of the novel; a full textual apparatus; crucial early draft material; helpful glosses on the peculiar geography and chronology of the book; and explanatory notes on topical allusions and historical references that contemporary readers might otherwise miss. Fitzgerald's masterpiece is thus brought closer to a cross-section of readers, more accessibly and more authentically than ever before. Matthew J. Bruccoli has published widely. He is the author of Some Sort of Epic Grandeur: The Life of F. Scott Fitzgerald (1980) and editor of New Essays on The Great Gatsby (CUP, 1985).
Customer Reviews:
Great Book.......2007-09-29
I use this book as a college student for the course of "Critical Thinking Skill" . Easy to follow and to understand.
"Great" doesn't even begin to describe this one.......2007-09-29
This is a seriously awesome book. Quite simply, you must read it. I know you've heard it before: allow me to join in praising it.
The first thing I'd like to point out is Fitzgerald's brilliant use of symbolism. The cars, the colors, various characters' glasses... these aren't just trivial things, you know. Pay close attention to them.
Anyway, the next thing I'd like to discuss is the character of Gatsby himself. A very intriguing figure. In fact, he's a bit of an enigma to me in that I have no definite opinion on whether or not I admire him. My opinion on the other characters is clear-cut (I mostly dislike them, other than Nick - which I believe was Fitzgerald's intention, to portray the rich as shallow and irresponsible - another thing that comes off brilliantly). But Gatsby... I'm not sure on Gatsby. I have to salute him for sticking with his dream for so long, in spite of its hopelessness, but the ends of said dream would have resulted in disaster for all parties involved, and his motives would be questionable. Gatsby is charismatic, well-read, determined, and intelligent; he is also greedy, self-absorbed, and stuck in the past. In other words, very human. And that's the most intriguing part of his character: when the end comes, I am unsure whether or not I feel Gatsby deserved his fate. Something to ponder. I like books that make me think deeply, and this is one of them.
As for Fitzgerald's language, let us say he has total mastery over it. I knew he was a phenomenal writer from reading a collection of his short stories before I picked up Gatsby, but nothing could prepare me for what this book would present. Fitzgerald was a very, very talented writer, and there's a fine reason why he is widely considered one of the best. Books don't get much better.
As an attack on the fast, hard lifestyles of the wealthy (something Fitzgerald himself knew a lot about), and as a meditation on how time's passage can ruin lives, this is equally brilliant. Easily one of the best books I've ever read. Every character is fully fleshed out, even seemingly (but only seemingly!) trivial characters like Old Owl Eyes; the symbolism is perfect, the language is stunning, and the book is just the right length. I can think of no criticisms.
Fantastic.......2007-08-18
Most classics fall into one of two traps. The first: thick, tedious prose, tiny font, 800 pages of 18th, 19th century drama. The second: a theme so blatant it sits beating the reader on the head, neglecting the fact that stories still have things called a story. Most fall into one of those two situations--thick or preachy.
Not Gatsby. Oh no. Gatsby falls into neither classic trap. You can read it in a day and enjoy yourself doing it. Actually, you can read it in a few hours and enjoy yourself just as much as if you were rereading The Hobbit or Harry Potter. Then, once you've finished, you look back and see, to your wonderment, how powerful and deep The Great Gatsby really is.
And that is only part of Fitzgerald's success.
The entire work is highly precise. Every word has its reason for being there. None are wasted. The themes are embedded in precise locations so as not to jump out at the reader and consequently distract them from the story.
Speaking of the story, Fitzgerald does what many classical novelists fail to do--tell one. Fitzgerald told a story about this man, Gatsby, who invented himself. As a result, he told a story about following dreams, and ambition, and living life, and viewing life, and carelessness. But he told the story about Gatsby, and the people around him, first.
In that way, he avoided theme device, and plot devices, and made for an impeccable, enjoyable, thought-provoking read. Thus, five stars from me for the best classic I have ever read, The Great Gatsby.
I HATED IT!.......2007-08-01
AM I THE ONLY PERSON IN THE WORLD WHO HATES THIS BOOK?!?!?! I found the characters insipid, vacant and superficial, and I know that's the point Fitzgerald was trying to make, but instead of being deeply moved and inspired by the depiction of our society as shallow and meaningless like THE REST OF THE WORLD, I found myself incredibly disgusted and repulsed. I know this is the Great American Novel. I know that I'm supposed to appreciate it for its sublime beauty and honest portrayal of the Diseased Elite. But I don't.
Better with each reading.......2007-07-30
Jay Gatsby lives in a large mansion on the water in Long Island, New York, circa 1925. He hosts enormous parties each weekend attended by hundreds of people whom are uninvited and do not even know him. But that does not bother him. He is the perfect host, always making sure that his guests have everything their heart's desire. Nick Carraway lives next door and works in the City selling bonds. He is originally from the midwest but has relocated East to seek his fortune. He is befriended by Gatsby and others in elite social circles including a college friend Tom Buchannan and his wife Daisy, who is also Nick's cousin. But the world appears smaller and smaller as Nick discovers that Gatsby is in love with Daisy and that they dated once, years before, prior to her wedding to Tom. Gatsby has never gotten over Daisy and spends his every minute in an effort to win her back and prove his love.
Fitzgerald's best known novel is filled with love, hate, intrigue, and friendship. He describes the frivolity of the time as contrasted with the sadness of human lonliness and insecurity. What seems to say so little given that it is a very short book, really says quite a bit in what it does not say. Romantic relationships that are described as happy clearly illustrate the dispair and sadness that is truly being suffered by those that are not truly in love with each other. Platonic relationships that seem losely connected actually describe tight friendships that are closer than others that portend to be strong.
With each reading of this novel more of what Fitzgerald meant to convey comes through. It is the type of novel that grows with the reader. Reading it at different times in ones life will change what the reader gets out of it and enjoys. It is a timeless classic that continues to get better over time.
Average customer rating:
- A great find
- Worthy collection
- Great compilation of American women writers!
- Incredible classroom text!
- Alcott! Wharton! Hurston! And more!
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Great Short Stories by American Women (Dover Thrift Editions)
Sara Orne Jewett ,
Kate Chopin ,
Willa Cather , and
Edith Wharton
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The Gold-Bug and Other Tales (Dover Thrift Editions)
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Young Goodman Brown and Other Short Stories (Dover Thrift Editions)
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We Are the Stories We Tell
ASIN: 0486287769 |
Book Description
Choice collection of 13 stories includes "Life in the Iron Mills" by Rebecca Harding Davis, Zora Neale Hurston's "Sweat," plus superb fiction by Kate Chopin, Willa Cather, Edith Wharton, many others.
Customer Reviews:
A great find.......2007-01-11
This book is a great read with many classic writers included. It also has a story by Kate Chopin that was never published after the backlash she received from "The Awakening." It's a great story. I did notice this book had a price on the back of $1.99 and I paid far more on Amazon. Boo!
It's surely worth the read.
Worthy collection.......2005-06-17
At first I thought I wasn't going to like this collection very much. Not enough contemporary stories, and I am, after all, a lover of contemporary literature. I get discouraged when I read older novels. The language seems too stiff at times. So, I approached this collection with caution. A good example of what I mean about older writing being slightly formal for my taste was the short story we've all had to read in English Lit classes: "The Yellow Wall-Paper", by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. Another example is the opening story, "Life in the Iron-Mills" by Rebecca Harding Davis. After a few pages I just hjad to skip them.
That said, I luckily enjoyed most of the stories quite a bit. I think the editor had very good care in choosing stories that had universal appeal. My favorite is "Transcendental Wild Oats", by Louisa May Alcott. I know more than a "nothing-but-organic" zealot who should read this one. I found it amazing that Alcott, back in the late 1800s, was able to offer such accurate criticism of the ridiculous views that some take on behalf of misguided ideals and very few facts.
Another story I enjoyed was "A White Heron" by Sarah Orne Jewett, where a young girl has to choose between her love of the bird on the title and receiving some very needed money in exchange for pointing out its nest to a hunter. I think the whole debate in the girl's mind was very well developed. I also liked Willa Cather's "Paul's Case", with Paul being an eccentric young man who gets used to the high life too soon. And another favorite was "Sweat" by Zora Neale Hurston, a story full of karma.
Great compilation of American women writers!.......2004-05-03
This compilation of American women is a fantastic introduction to the genre--from the American experience of Rebecca Harding Davis, to the superiorly intelligent prose of Edith Wharton (my personal favorite, although her story here is not my fav.) to the feminist leanings of Kate Chopin and Zora Neale Hurston---I could go on and on. This edition makes a super (and super cheap) travel companion; especially, if like me, you prefer to read short stories when traveling, rather than longer works. This book would make a great gift for a young woman, say age 13 to 25, who would appreciate the varied perspectives on life that these women provide; and its a great way to generate interest in the authors and reading. The stories are very entertaining and thought provocing; the ideas are readily accesible. You certainly cannot go wrong with this edition... I guarantee it will leave you or the lucky recipient wanting more.
Incredible classroom text!.......2004-05-01
As a college student, I am burdened with purchasing many expensive books for classes. "Great Short Stories by American Women," however, was not a burden to purchase at all. The book showcases great works from many great female authors in the late 19th and early 20th century. Zora Neale Hurston, Edith Wharton, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, and Louisa May Alcott are just a few of the authors featured in the book.
In my class, we spent an hour discussing just one of the stories each day. "Great Short Stories by American Women" is an excellent classroom resource, and is very inexpensive.
Also, I highly recommend "The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman for class discussion. It is a compelling piece, and especially interesting to high school and college age students. It makes for an involved discussion.
Alcott! Wharton! Hurston! And more!.......2001-10-09
I was greatly impressed with "Great Short Stories by American Women," the anthology edited by Candace Ward. The stories in this volume were originally published between 1861 and 1930, and represent the work of some of the United States' best writers. The contents of the book are as follows:
Rebecca Harding Davis' "Life in the Iron Mills," a compelling piece of social protest; Louisa May Alcott's "Transcendental Wild Oats," a satiric view of life in a Utopian commune; Sarah Orne Jewett's "A White Heron," a reflection on men, women, and nature; Mary E. Wilkins Freeman's "A New England Nun," about an extended engagement; Charlotte Perkins Gilman's creepy "The Yellow Wall-Paper," about a woman who, diagnosed with "a slight hysterical tendency," is forced to undergo an oppressive treatment; Kate Chopin's lusty, sensuous "The Storm"; Edith Wharton's "The Angel at the Grave," an ironic study of the legacy of a famous philosopher; Willa Cather's "Paul's Case," a tale about a dandyish young man who just can't fit into society; Alice Dunbar-Nelson's "The Stones of the Village," a study of racism, shame, and secrecy; Susan Glaspell's "A Jury of Her Peers," a murder mystery which the author adapted from her own one-act play entitled "Trifles"; Djuna Barnes' multigenerational family story "Smoke"; Zora Neale Hurston's "Sweat," a story of a nightmarishly bad marriage; and Nella Larsen's chilling "Sanctuary."
This is an excellent, richly varied selection of thirteen tales. Unfortunately, the brief intros to each tale and its author commit the two cardinal sins of such intros: (1) They are excessively intrusive, sometimes revealing the stories' endings; and (2) they often leave out relevant information -- such as the knowledge that both Edith Wharton and Susan Glaspell received Pulitzer Prizes for their writing.
So, if you skip the brief story/author intros, you will find this to be a fine anthology, good both for literature courses and for individual reading.
Book Description
Though the voices of women in th eKalevala are muted, their roles are important. Stolen brides, lonely lives on isolated farms-those voices clamor to be heard. Wives, sisters, and daughters have their own stories, often more poignant than those of the men.
Customer Reviews:
Entertaining illumination of the female Finnish psyche.......2000-08-27
These stories are readable and re-readable and leave the reader hungering for more. This reader has led me to seek out the whole Kalevala in the author's recommended translation. These stories are touching, haunting, and ring ever so true. They opened my eyes to a clearer understanding and appreciation of the Finnish women I have known (mother, grandmother, aunts) in recent generations. Somehow the author has captured the spirit of these real people in these fictional narratives. I found it hard to let go of. I heartily recommend it to one and all, but especially to women of Finnish ancestry and those who might know or wish to know better their Finnish family and psychological heritage.
A wonderful, personal characterization of female legends.......1998-11-11
This author has a gift for taking the elusive, repetitive runes of the Kalevala and weaving riveting personal tales of the women. All too often in many cultures, women are overlooked. The author presents her characterizations in the form of short stories that are highly readable and told from the too often mute woman's point of view.
The 8 tales presented here are not direct quotes from the epic poem, but, are very true in spirit to the collected folk tales. Because of the difference in medium (prose versus verse) the characters have a chance to come to life - Louhi in all her majesty and power, the sad Aino, silly Kylli - times when women were bartered to the men with the most power. You get glimpses into their sad daily lives of hard work, and their all-to-few moments of joy. Who among us can imagine the pain of being a young lady at that time, knowing that you would likely be given to some old, powerful man in marriage? Or the agony of falling in love with someone only to be told that you would be forced to marry another?
For a Finnish-American, I would put this book high on my list of must-reads, mainly because of the clarity it brings to so many of the Kalevala heros and heroines. Culturally, it also gives a clear picture of what daily life for so many was like, and for some, is still like (in the eastern portions of Finland).
Average customer rating:
- A delicious read
- What an interesting perspective!
- A hugely appealing collection
- Charming
- Shakespeare for the Rest of Us
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Her Infinite Variety: Stories of Shakespeare and the Women He Loved
Pamela Rafael Berkman
Manufacturer: Scribner
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 074321255X |
Book Description
With elegance, sympathy, and nuance, Her Infinite Variety celebrates the women in William Shakespeare's world. These lyrical stories move from Elizabethan London, where Shakespeare is drawn to the plight of the young wife of a wealthy friend, to a wintry Denmark, where Ophelia struggles to understand her love for Hamlet, and to Shakespeare's Stratford home, where his daughter Judith deliberately enters into a shameful marriage. At the center of this remarkable book is Shakespeare's enduring love for Anne Hathaway, his beautiful, passionate, illiterate wife. Together, the masterfully interwoven stories of Her Infinite Variety bring to life a Shakespeare who was formed by the women he loved -- and who loved him.
Download Description
Like such popular bestsellers as "Girl in Hyacinth Blue" and "The Hours, Her Infinite Variety" draws on the biography and works of a great artist and transforms them into unforgettable fiction. Berkman portrays the women in Shakespeare's world in ten narratives of the playwright's life.
Customer Reviews:
A delicious read.......2004-09-13
I would compare this book to a box of chocolates, dark, light, sensuously innocent but rich enough to enjoy one story at a time. A wonderful "what if" and imaginative take on the female characters of Shakespeare's plays. I would recommend this to any young apprentice to Shakespeare or actor who is interested in finding new viewpoints on major and minor characters within the scripts. Berkman definitely goes beyond the stereotype female and cultivates a beautiful bouquet of realistic, emotional, and flesh bound women. Yes, I loved this book. I would also recommend it to readers from late teens to adults.
What an interesting perspective!.......2003-12-19
I am a fan of historical fiction and I really enjoyed this. It has smatterings of all the women in Shakespeare's lives ~~ starting from his mother to his wife, Anne, and friends, daughters, characters from his plays, and lastly, the Queen Bess.
This is a well-written book of short stories. I normally don't care for short stories but I do enjoy these! There is a chapter devoted to Lady MacBeth and you'd see where her love for her husband shines through as well as her ambition. There is Juliet's mother who is in love with Romeo's father. There are letters between the playwright and his daughters and wife.
The stories focus on different aspects of women and Shakespeare's muse seems to be all the women in his life. There is his wife, a lusty woman who he left behind. There is a friend whom he has fallen in love with but never touched improperly except once. There are his daughters. There is his landlord's daughter who adored him from afar. All these women and Shakespeare borrowed from them to write his famous plays to make each character human.
It is an interesting book ~~ and easily readable! I found this by accident and now I am looking forward to reading more of this author's books.
12-18-03
A hugely appealing collection.......2003-09-09
This is a great theme for a collection of short stories, I,m surprised it hasn,t been attempted before. Both fictitious and real life characters are featured here. We are given interesting new perspectives on well known figures eg a much more pro-active Ophelia than we,re used to seeing and a Lady Macbeth motivated by other than greed and ambition alone. We,re also given much insight into Will himself, a socially ambitious single-minded figure though kindly and well-intentioned; he fails to grasp that his family would rather have him around than live in Stratford,s finest house. All the tales were involving and moving but particularly the wealthy and educated Jennet,s struggle with childlessness and Judith Shakespeare,s love for a man her family dislike, these are timeless dilemmas.
Charming.......2002-02-05
Charming, inventive, and fun. The prose was beautiful. The characters were rich. I did not want it to end.
Shakespeare for the Rest of Us.......2001-08-15
To read *Her Infinite Variety* is to be dazzled by Pamela Berkman's imaginative capacity. From story to story, she displays a rare ability to intuit the gaps in our knowledge of Shakespeare's women--the ones in his life as well as the ones in his art--and then to fill in those gaps with the delicate filigree of her fiction. Yet while these stories display a delicately rigorous structure, the language holding them together is as vibrant and sexy as the women they depict. If you have never enjoyed Shakespeare, buy this book. Berkman's tart-tongued Titania, her haunted Ophelia, and her utterly down-to-earth Bard (rescued, finally, from both scholars and souvenir-sellers) will make you reconsider.
Average customer rating:
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Great American Women's Fiction: 10 Unabridged Classics (Audio Editions)
Manufacturer: The Audio Partners
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Binding: Audio CD
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ASIN: 1572705469 |
Book Description
Savor these enduring stories, as relevant today as when they were first published, from the most influential women authors of the turn-of-the-century--Willa Cather, Kate Chopin, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, and Edith Wharton. This anthology of complete short fiction represents some of their most significant and enjoyable work. The readers, four professional actors from Northern California, were selected for their unique abilities to portray the characters, the emotions, and the tone of each writer. 4 cassettes.
Average customer rating:
- Excellent Historical Fiction
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The Great Meadow (Southern Classics Series)
Elizabeth Madox Roberts
Manufacturer: Ivan R. Dee, Publisher
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The Time of Man: A Novel
ASIN: 1879941074 |
Book Description
Set at the time of the western migration from Piedmont Virginia to her native Kentucky, Ms. Roberts's novel recounts the heroism of the Kentucky pioneer. Roberts was that rare thing, a true artist.. She was one of the indispensables.-Robert Penn Warren. Southern Classics Series.
Customer Reviews:
Excellent Historical Fiction.......2003-12-01
This book is a very well written work of fiction that provides a positive picture of the pioneers of traditional America. The author combines detailed historical knowledge of the life and customs of Seventeenth and Eighteenth century America with superb writing skills. Her descriptions of nature are unmatched. This work has been too often ignored in contemporary America.
Average customer rating:
- "Desire and Truth"
- "Desire and Truth"
- "Desire and Truth"
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Desire and Truth: Functions of Plot in Eighteenth-Century English Novels
Patricia Meyer Spacks
Manufacturer: University Of Chicago Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0226768457 |
Book Description
Desire and Truth offers a major reassessment of the history of eighteenth-century fiction by showing how plot challenges or reinforces conventional categories of passion and rationality. Arguing that fiction creates and conveys its essential truths through plot, Patricia Meyer Spacks demonstrates that eighteenth-century fiction is both profoundly realistic and consistently daring.
Customer Reviews:
"Desire and Truth".......2000-05-18
An interesting overview of the variety of different plot structures that operate in the early novel, from Lennox (why not Defoe?) to Austen & Scott. Spacks argues that plots reflect a variety of different cultural tensions of the times, all of which are driven by varieties of "desires" or ambitions for different kinds of power.
Free of jargon, and Spacks helps you out with useful summaries if you haven't read the specific novels she's discussing.
"Desire and Truth".......2000-05-18
An interesting overview of the variety of different plot structures that operate in the early novel, from Lennox (why not Defoe?) to Austen & Scott. Spacks argues that plots reflect a variety of different cultural tensions of the times, all of which are driven by varieties of "desires" or ambitions for different kinds of power.
Free of jargon, and Spacks helps you out with useful summaries if you haven't read the specific novels she's discussing.
"Desire and Truth".......2000-05-18
An interesting overview of the variety of different plot structures that operate in the early novel, from Lennox (why not Defoe?) to Austen & Scott. Spacks argues that plots reflect a variety of different cultural tensions of the times, all of which are driven by varieties of "desires" or ambitions for different kinds of power.
Free of jargon, and Spacks helps you out with useful summaries if you haven't read the specific novels she's discussing.
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