Fiction Literature Books

"The Oxford Book of American Short Stories," edited by Joyce Carol Oates, is an impressive anthology. The editor herself is well-known as a master writer of short stories, so you know that she has insights into the genre.

This is a truly sweeping anthology. The authors (56 altogether) range chronologically from Washington Irving (1783-1859) to Pinckney Benedict (b. 1964). Many of the "giants" of U.S. literature, among them a number of Nobel and Pulitzer recipients, are included: Herman Melville ("The Paradise of Bachelors..."), Edgar Allan Poe ("The Tell-Tale Heart"), Edith Wharton ("A Journey"), Saul Bellow (Something to Remember Me By"), etc.

In her introduction, Oates notes that one of her goals in this anthology was to present "[f]amiliar names, unfamiliar titles." Thus, it is rewarding to see stories like "Cannibalism in the Cars," by Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain). But she does, in some cases, include an author's best-known story (like Charlotte Perkins Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper"). A good balance overall.

Oates also includes many authors who represent ethnic currents in U.S. literature: African-American, Jewish, Native American, Latina, and Asian-American. There are also a number of "regional" writers.

There is a wide variety of themes and stylistic approaches represented in this book. I was particularly interested in those stories that represent various forms of American vernacular speech: Jean Toomer's "Blood-Burning Moon," Eudora Welty's "Where Is That Voice Coming From?", etc. I was also pleased at the inclusion of one of Ray Bradbury's masterful science fiction tales (the haunting "There Will Come Soft Rains").

Obviously, an anthology of this nature will not please everybody perfectly; I'm sure many readers will name favorite stories and authors whom they would have liked to have seen included in this collection. Personally, I would have added a story each by Alice Walker, Hisaye Yamamoto, Samuel Delany, H.P. Lovecraft, and Octavia Butler. But overall, this is a fine anthology, good both for classroom use and individual recreational reading.

This is a solid cross-section of time, authors, style, intent, and soul. I taught this to 50+ teenagers with a high degree of success and corporate enjoyment. The primary downfall of the piece is that Oates comments before each story, sometimes playing the obnoxious neighbor by actually giving away the resolution. Read her comments after you read the story. Otherwise, great work.

When I went to graduate school for a course of study that involved primarily reading, I did not want to spend too much free time reading. Because I find it hard to put down a book that I enjoy, it was hard to commit to a novel. So I became a devoted reader of short stories, including many anthologies and collections.
This collection by Joyce Carol Oates was, hands down, the best that I ever encountered. A hardcover volume makes a good graduation present for a young scholar, or someone who loves to read but cannot find the time for a novel.

I have only read the first few stories yet, which of course are great literary works. As far as Joyce Oates' work is concerned, she has done an excellent job of introducing the collection and giving a brief summary of each author. For the price and the quality this is a book worth your library!

There is a beautiful strangeness to each of these stories that Joyce has melded into an unsettling yet perfect whole. Any professor of an MFA program will do well to expose his or her students to these neglected gems. The anthology takes the reader off the beaten path and opens the imagination to the ghostly jungle of possibility.

Meggie and her dad Mo (a traveling book binder) live a semi-nomadic existence moving from town to town all over Europe healing old books in need of new bindings. They love reading, living most of their lives in books, but to Meggie's chagrin Mo never reads to her. Upon the arrival of a vagrant called Dustfinger, Meggie learns why her father never reads aloud. The two are catapulted into a perilous adventure that Mo had tried to protect Meggie from all of her young life in which evil villains from a book are want Mo to work for them. Why? Read the book and find out how they got out of the pages of fiction, where Meggis' missing mother is, and what the power of words can mean in a world that often seems empty and boring.

This is one of the most fun and imaginative books I've come across in a long time. The characters are well drawn, the action is compelling, and it is just fun to turn the pages to see what is on the other side of each piece of paper. For lovers of books and those who are just getting into reading this is a great piece of fiction. Parents it is a bit intense for very young readers, but for adoloscents to people in their Golden Years I highly recommend this memorable book.

Meggie Folchart is twelve years old, and lives with her father, Mo. The pair are very close to each other, and have a shared passion for books - Mo, in fact, is a very talented book restorer. They have lived in their current home for a year, though it seems they have a history of moving from place to place. Strangely, however, Meggie had to teach herself to read - she can't ever remember Mo reading to her when she was small. Meggie's mother, on the other hand, has been missing for many years - she apparently went off on some sort of adventure holiday and never came back.

In the finest traditions of storytelling, Mo and Meggie's adventures start with the arrival of a visitor on a dark and rainy night. Meggie has no idea who he is, but they have met once before - nine years earlier, when Meggie was only three. While Meggie has no real memory of him, Mo remembers him very well. Their visitor is called Dustfinger, a fire-eating juggler with an unusual pet marten called Gwin. Strangely, Dustfinger calls Mo `Silvertongue' - and, furthermore, Mo seems to feel in Dustfinger's debt. Despite Mo insisting he talks to Dustfinger in private, Meggie listens to the conversation through the keyhole of Mo's workshop.

It seems that Dustfinger wants Mo to bring a mysterious book on to someone called Capricorn - another strange name, and clearly an utter villain. Mo, for his part, wants nothing to do with Capricorn, and is determined to keep this book out of his hands. He and Meggie pack up their belongings after Dustfinger leaves, and take off early the following morning. However, Dustfinger clearly expected the pair to run and catches up with them - and persuades Mo to let him tag along...

Since Capricorn is apparently based in the north, Mo has decided to head south and visit Elinor, an aunt of Meggie's mother. Elinor lives near the lakes in northern Italy, and she is also passionate about books - though more as a collector than a reader. She is very well off, and lives in a huge - and very imposing - house. However, Mo believes her fortune is dwindling due to the huge number of rare books she buys. Mo won't show Meggie the book that Capricorn is after, which only makes her even more curious about it. However, he doesn't keep it from Elinor. In fact, Elinor has heard of the mysterious book - it's extremely rare and, apparently, the few copies that become available are generally stolen. Elinor is single, has no children and - to begin with, at least - is rather crusty. There's quite a bit of verbal sparring between Elinor and Meggie when they first meet, but - in time - they warm to each other. Unfortunately, Elinor and her imposing house can't protect Meggie and Mo from Capricorn and his vicious henchmen...although they do pick up some rather unexpected allies along the way.

"Inkheart" is a great read and - despite being pretty long for a kids' book - rattles along a fair pace. There are plenty of nods to other famous books - "Huckleberry Finn", "Tom Sawyer", "Peter Pan", "Treasure Island", "Alice in Wonderland", "The Princess Bride", "Charlotte's Web" and "The Lord of the Rings", for example. (Elinor comments once that "our journey isn't going to be half as bad as those hairy-footed people's quest"). In fact, I could see this book encouraging the reader to reach for any number of those tiles as well - not to mention the sequels that follow on from this book. Totally recommended.

"This book is one of the best books I've ever read. It's very readable. The cover is very colorful and very well detailed. It kept my attention cover to cover." This is what my 10 year old daughter thought. The story is very inventive and just about impossible to guess what the next turn of events will be. For something fun I would also recommend the audio book; a ton a fun for long trips.

This is by far one of the BEST books I've ever read. And I read a lot of books. Inkheart is exciting, energtic, and magical all at the same time. The characters have great personalities. I would recommend this to anyone who is interested in fantasy. It's an all-time favorite for me!

This book is so STUPID! It's so STUPID IT MAKES ME THINK IT'S SO STUPID BECAUSE OH YEAH, IT IS STUPID! GRRRRR... IT'S STUPID BECAUSE IT'S A GAME THAT I HATE AND I WANT A REFUND!

I've heard and read of this mythic Haruki Murakami fellow before reading this book. I thought it would be a nice, summer read when I picked it up at a used bookstore in my neighborhood. At the end of the book, I was a little annoyed and regretful of finally discovering Murakami for myself. I was annoyed because the story was so absorbing and bizzare that I couldn't stop reading it. I just read it and read it for two straight days during the weekend, thus distracting me from graduate school-mandated reading that I really should've been doing.

But anyway, the book was fascinating and extremely engaging. The only other Japanese writer I've read previously was Banana Yoshimoto. I found Murakami's and Yoshimoto's styles similar yet distinct. Both have a simple (but not simplistic) narrative style and is enchanting and not excessively difficult to follow. In this book, Murakami's use of imagery and symbolism is complex, but not so complex to the point of being inexplicable. Even though there are two parallel and separate stories/characters that we are following, the book's flow is smooth and not choppy at all. Although it felt like Murakami himself didn't even know where the story was leading us to for most of the book, it was so addicting that I was just strung along willingly through the maze-like journeys of both protagonists.

All the characters in the book are charmingly flawed and human. Despite the extraordinary circumstances, some of which border on being fantastical and science fiction-y, it is very easy to like and empathize with the characters. There are many loose ends at the end of the story, but somehow, I found that it is still satisfying and did not disappoint. Besides being hooked on to Murakami, my only other regret is that I didn't start reading Murakami earlier.

Upon first delving into "Kafka on the Shore" by Haruki Murakami, I found myself dreading another coming of age story. However, it proved to be so much more than this in a variety of ways. Of course, there is still the classic runaway story present, but how many coming of age tales feature talking crows and cats, in addition to raining leeches? Despite my preconceived notions, "Kafka on the Shore" opened up an entirely new realm of thinking for me, which is what I appreciate most in a text.

I truly loved the alternating storylines of Kafka and Nakata with each chapter. Not only were the two incredibly interesting on their own, but I also craved to learn how they would intersect and finally converge. I feel that above all else, such suspense truly kept me engaged and connected at all times, even during rants about World War II.

Moreover, it seems that the overall strangeness of the text cannot be ignored when attempting to uncover what draws the reader in to the point of entranced connection. The bizarre Oedipal complex prophecy, the children passing out during a break from school, Johnny Walker, and the sexual dreams transformed the story into something much larger, something much more powerful. These details removed any suspicions that this was another attempt at a Huckleberry Finn, and introduced the text as its own entity. Additionally, I feel that each of these details, in spite of how strange they may or may not be, allowed the story to transcend to an utterly spiritual level in my mind. They blended the line between reality and imagination, so much so that I found myself barely questioning the dialogue of a cat. Also, the ethereal and poetic writing maintained this blend and instilled a dream-like quality to the text. I believe that this really transformed the story, for with each line, the fantasy becomes a bit more real and the reader is no longer distracted by an over analysis of nightly visits from Miss Saeki's fifteen-year-old spirit with some sort of physics talk.

I find it incredibly fascinating that time has such a large role in the end, because throughout the majority of the story, it has no significance at all. As Hoshimo must kill the stone's nemesis when it is dark, he therefore must battle with time by napping during the day. Similarly, Kafka must compete with time, for if he doesn't, he risks the chance of the entrance closing before he has escaped. Perhaps the fact that time actually possesses significance in the last few chapters is no coincidence at all, but instead, illustrates that normality has been restored. With the entrance now closed and Kafka's prophecy behind him in the past, it seems that he can officially move forward. He no longer has to cope with the blend of the past, present and future, but can now embrace the present in the manner he decides is proper. Time is ultimately set into place with the image of Kafka's watch beginning to function again, and it paves the way for the clear outlook on life that Kafka seems to have in the end.

The Komura Memorial Library was an idyllic Eden for me, and Oshima's cabin in the woods reintroduced Thoreau-inspired concepts. Oshima was a mentor for me, a teacher above all else, and I craved eel after almost every reading. It was exceedingly easy for me to immerse myself in the world of text, reading close to 100 pages each day. And as I imagined myself submerged in the serenity of the woods, the fresh and detailed writing engaged all of my senses and made me feel that, as a reader, I really was a part of the story. I closed the book with a feeling of completeness, but more importantly, one that I could understand. And I truly feel that ultimately, that is what every great book aims to instill in its reader.

I made it to about 50 pages from the end, but there just wasn't enough to sustain my interest. For the last half of the book I found myself losing interest in the characters and their fates. This is the fifth book of Murakami's that I have read, and the first that I could not finish. Obviously he has the skill and creativity to engage a reader's interest, and I was fascinated by aspects of the story, such as "Johnny Walker" but towards the end I just didn't care.

Many years ago I read Murakami's "Wind-up Bird Chronicle" which left me absolutely spellbound. I loved the plasticity of its prose and the suggestive and surprising metaphors that where wrapped around the shadowy plot. Other Murakami novels that I have read since - "Hard-boiled Wonderland ..." and "South of the Border ..." - left me disappointed.

The same is true, I am afraid, for "Kafka". The story has been conceived as a darkly allegorical account of a young boy's coming of age, sexual awakening and initiation rite. The first two hundred pages are promising, if not at the same level of the "Chronicle". But then Murakami seems to get lost in his own narrative labyrinth and the story becomes a wearying sequence of dreams and "teleportation experiences" (by want of a better word). Lots of it is merely clever and gratuitous - not tightly woven into the plot - and it soon wears off (a small and obvious example is the choice of `Kafka' as the protagonist's name, the initial frisson of which quickly fades). As a result many of the twists and turns in the narrative, even if they were not exactly predictable, left me cold. To me none of the "Kafka"-stuff comes close to the deeply serious, compelling, unforgettable epiphany of Lt. Mamiya in the "Chronicle".

Neither is the prose at the same height of the earlier novel. There is too much that is simply mundane (after 500 pages of "Kafka" one has "a pretty good idea" (a typical Murakami turn of phrase) what range of options is available to Japanese for breakfast, lunch and dinner) and only seldomly Murakami achieves the poetic density of his best work.

Pity. But I'll keep looking out for a worthy successor to the "Chronicle".

Being a big fan of "magical realism," I was greatly excited to read my first Murakami novel, Kafka on the Shore. People have been telling me that Murakami is a master of the genre, that his prose are beautifully simple, his plots wonderfully imaginative. And at the start of the novel, I didn't fully agree with them.

I'm not sure if it's a style of Japanese writing or the subsequent translation, but with both Kafka and Kokoro (by Soseki, and nicely referenced in the text), another Japanese novel I read last year, the prose have been simple, almost to the point of boring. It is hard to get through the beginning because of the sheer lack of emotion and story. Once the story switches to the accounts of a strange incident in WWII Japan, however, the plot starts to flutter and eventually starts to grab as the book splits off into two distinct but parallel storylines, one following Kafka Tamura as he leaves his home in Tokyo to try and escape an Oedipal prediction, and the other trailing Nakata, an elderly man who can talk to cats, as he is drawn along a mission of his own. For me, it is Nakata's storyline that truly drives the novel, lending the inventive and magical qualities that Murakami is famous for. He is an excellently drawn and amazingly realized character, almost playing the good cop to Kafka's admittedly necessary but almost uninteresting bad one. Yes, he is the book's emotional center, but I found my attention drifting whenever it would switch back to his narrative. Only when Kafka embarks on his climactic journey through the forest in the last fifty pages does the book begin to even out, building towards a moving, worthy conclusion.

Although I didn't enjoy the book as much as I thought I would before reading, I think that might just be a case of hugely high expectations. Upon turning the last page I truly did feel satisfied with the story and the way the author had woven everything together to create a parallel world full of miracles, awe, and imagination.

Had wanted to read this for about 15 years, but it's funny how more books are published and then you have to read them? How 'bout that? This book has been out six centuries, so I guessed another 15 years would not hurt me. Chaucer's facility with language, his ability to rhyme, his familiarity with the human condition, and his ability to link the human conditions to elements of people's trades and careers at this time truly make this book one which paved the way for many other satires, multi-person narratives, and rich, nuanced tales of particular events at particular times.

This book is endlessly satisfying. I found Chaucer's poetry to be very intelligent, with allusions to the work of the day, to cultural references, to fashion, to religious beliefs, to prominent figures in the world at that time, and most of all, to allowing his imagination not to be limited by expectations on the limits of his writing. The stories in the book come via the relating of experiences told by travelers on their way to Canterbury. At times, the stories are considered too dry or too preposterous or perhaps they are too derivative. But Chaucer imbues the multiple characters, the minister's wife, the metalworker, the barrister, the civil servant, with characters who respond as mentioned to stories, if the stories are not seen to be up to scratch. Many of the stories concern sexual hijinx. Some concern convoluted family relations, some concern work concerns. Chaucer's currency with the lives and ways of many in 14th century England make the book rich and satisfying. He was a master poet and it seemed that Chaucer enjoyed spinning these tales for the more privileged who would have read this book at first. It is not surprising, however, that the book has remained current. The interests, themes, and topics from which Chaucer very ably spins his tales remain relevant today.

I bought this book as a gift for my sisters birthday. It was on her wishlist, yet neither of us realized it is a coffee table sort of book. Maybe neither of us read the review carefully! Either way, we were both happy with the quality and the illustrations inside our beautiful.

The only negative was that it arrived with one of the corners a little smushed.

What would it be like if you had to make a very long journey on horse back? Pretty boring, right? But what if someone had the brilliant idea of telling stories on the way there? That would make the trip go a lot faster. This is the premise of the Canterbury Tales. There are a lot of people who all want to go to the shrine of St. Thomas a Becket at Canterbury Cathedral. They all met at a pub when the pub owner said that they should all tell one story on the way there and one on the way back. The version of the Canterbury tales only consists of four of the one hundred twenty eight that were told.
The first story that is told by the Nun's priest. This story is about a poor widow who lives on a farm. As you get further in this story it starts retelling the story of a chicken and a hen. This chicken had many wonderful hens around him. "This noble rooster ruled over seven hens, whose work it was to please him. They were his sisters and his wives." (pg. 20) But there was one hen named Lady Pertelote that he liked the most. One night he had a dream about a fox eating him. The next morning he told Lady Pertelote and she thought it didn't mean anything. A couple of days later a fox tricked him to shut his eyes and then the fox snuck up behind him and snatched him in his mouth. He was saved by the widow.
The next person to tell was the pardoner. His story was about greed. There were three people who were searching for death because they heard of all the horrible things he had done and wanted to kill him. While on their way they met an old man who told the men, "If you're so anxious to find Death, turn up this crooked road. I left him in that grove, under a tree and there he'll stay." (pg. 41) So that's what they did. When they got there they saw a sack full of gold and decided not to chase after Death but take the gold by night. They decided for one of them to go into the city and get wine to celebrate. The person that went was the youngest of them all. While he was gone the two thought up a plan to kill the third one so that they only had to split the money between them. The third boy wanted the money all to himself so he poisoned two of the bottles of wine and left one free of poison for himself. As he got the tree the two men killed him and they celebrated by drinking the wine and they died too. In the end they all got there wish. They met Death.
Those two were my favorite and the next two are by the Wife of Bath and the Franklin. The wife of Bath is about a man who threatens the life of another if they don't tell him what women want. The franklin's tale is about women who loved a man who left her and she was very sad. Nothing could make her feel better. If you want to know what happens at the end of these stories you'll have to read the book.
Historically this book is very good. It is based in the year of 1386. It show the life style of people who lived in the middle ages. It taught me that not all people were rich back then. It is historically spot on but the thing about this book is because it was written in the middle ages all the living conditions are right but it's very whimsical. Chickens can't talk, and Death isn't a person. In a way it shows how people thought back then. It tells us that some people might have wanted to meet death. Maybe in a physical way because they wanted to die or they just wanted to see someone death took away from them.
The reason I liked this book was because of the old English. I like taking in the metaphors and deciphering it. If you like Shakespeare then you'll most likely like this book. It is very whimsical and magical. It shows the people in the middle ages in a very metaphorical way. This book shows how life can be mystical and great even when you don't except it.

This is a translation abridgement (not the original text). It's not going to help you at all, with any english class. If you want to listen to the original unabridged text in middle english look here:The Canterbury Tales

I was trying to find an illustrated version of the original Chaucer as a wedding gift for a friend of mine, and found this one. I didn't realize (my fault--it's in the Publisher's Weekly review) that this was a child's version of the classic. The illustrations are nice, and, quite frankly, I haven't read the author's interpretation, but I wanted to make it clear to folks that it's not the original text, nor even an unabridged translation.

When I first saw this book, I was sceptical but excited at the same time. After all, I was worried about what path Anne Rice might have taken when writing about the life of Jesus. I sought out and read "Christ The Lord: Out of Egypt" first and then this one.

Anne Rice does a great job of growing and developing the character of Yeshua bar Joseph, from a young boy unaware of the mystery and history of his birth, to a 30-year-old man, where we are when this novel opens up.

All I can say is it is very worth the read. She does a great job of interweaving the stories from the bible into her books. She really painted a terrific visual picture of what life might have been like, but, at the same time, you are seeing it through the life of an observer, a man, Jesus.

Even though we know what happens next, I can't wait to read the next one. I am so excited about it. Can't believe I have to wait!

It's amazing to me how Anne is able to bring you immediately into the life of Jesus as the narrator of this incredible book! Her exhaustive research is evident, but it doesn't interrupt the story. You truly get a sense of what this part of Jesus' life may have been like. I found myself thinking about it for days after I finished it!

The book is based on the most respected Biblical scholarship.
Christ's life in the hidden years is described in some depth.
The presentation personalizes Him in a way that the
Scriptures deal with only tangentially.

The presentation begins with discussions surrounding
the birth of Christ. The Magi approached from the East with
gifts of gold, frankencense and myrrh. The Baptism in
Jordan is referenced concluding with the famous
wedding of Cana.

The presentation ends with the encantation:
"Hear O Israel. The Lord Our God is One. :

She never contradicts what's in the New Testament, but in creating a novel out of a few verses, she certainly adds a whole lot of highly speculative fiction to it.

Anne Rice has pulled off another well written depiction of the life of Christ. In this volume, the author imagines Jesus (Yeshua) just before he takes off on his preaching career that would change the world. Christ still struggles with his identity and over whether he can ever love in the sense of taking a wife. Meanwhile, tiny Nazerath is a place of gossip and at times mob violence. Overall the first two thirds are well written but generally not as good as Rice's original in the series. The last third or so is generally excellent as Christ undergoes the temptation in the wilderness and finally truely begins to understand he is God incarnate. One of Rice's better writing talents seems to be characterization as well as generally smooth storytelling that is able to hold my interest. As good as Lew Wallace's "Ben-Hur" or Douglas's "The Robe" were at times, they could be slow at times as well. While not yet on the level of "Quo Vadis" or Maier's "The Flames of Rome" in my opinion, I think Rice's series is well done and has potential to reach greater heights than it currently attains. I really hope she writes some more in this series and I especially want to see how she would do the Passion and Resurrection. As a person who generally likes history, I was pleased Rice alluded to the battle at the Teutonburg Forest in 9 A.D. (C.E.) though readers not interested in ancient military history might care less on that count. I am wandering about a couple of minor details in the story however.
1. People are often seen outside at night in both books. In the first century there were still some lions around parts of Judea to my knowledge and I believe leopards live in parts of Israel to this very day. And then there are the raiders Rice mentions. Would it be safe to be out late at this time?
2. Where is Peter's wife? His mother-and-law is mentioned but I don't remember any mentioning of the disciple's wife.

On the whole though, good writing and excellent characterization. I recommend it.

I tried with this "classic" ... two times, then a third ... and as much as the first few chapters (the exchanges between Marlowe and the daughter) were brilliant, I couldn't finish the thing. Just couldn't. I have an issue with private eye books anyway, but this one (between the several characters and all the confusion) just didn't take hold. I thought the exchanges between Marlowe and the kid (who killed the guy who killed his boyfriend) were great also, but immediately after that scene, I folded. It's probably my issue with private eye novels anyway, but aside from the wonderful dialogue, I had a hard time swallowing and ultimately couldn't/didn't finish The Big Sleep ... i became too anxious to read what was waiting in the bin (The Leopard). This is just the 2nd novel I couldn't finish this year (2008).

For my money, the James Cain novels were pure gold by comparison.

The Big Sleep
Raymond Chandler

"I went to bed full of whiskey and frustration and dreamed about a man in a bloody Chinese coat who chased a naked girl with long jade earrings while I ran after them and tried to take a photograph with an empty camera."

Only Raymond Chandler could write a sentence like that. He's easy to parody, but impossible to improve on. In "The Big Sleep" (1939) he leads us through a sleazy LA world of hookers, pimps, pornographers, blackmailers, gambling junkies, and floozies too many to mention.
Their indiscretions lead Philip Marlowe from one red herring to another. Marlowe manages to keep his head high and his standards out of the gutter that surrounds him.

It's easy to see how much Chandler influenced everyone who followed him, consciously or not-- Mickey Spillane, James Ellroy, Sue Grafton, Elmore Leonard and so on.

Some of his work is dated: Greater Los Angeles was still surrounded by Orange and Avocado groves, gang-bangers didn't rule neighborhoods, and the Papparazzi hadn't taken over Sunset Boulevard. Men still wore hats and dressed for dinner, and people went out to Clubs in the evening. There is male chauvinism, political incorrectness, racism, and homophobia, but those were part of the times.

Chandler's work was a natural for the movies, and for radio. His ear for dialogue was matchless. Written by Chandler and director Billy Wilder, the screenplay of James M. Cain's "Double Indemnity" became a classic with Fred MacMurry, Barbara Stanwyck and Edward G. Robinson. His later works, "T he Long Goodbye: and "The Lady in the Lake" show a bit more maturity and cohesiveness. But it's safe to say that books like "LA Confidential" and "T he Black Dahlia" wouldn't exist without the earlier works of Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett.

Although I understand the popularity of the genre, murder mysteries like The Big Sleep are not usually satisfying reading experiences for me. I frequently feel like I'm missing or overemphasizing clues: "Does that empty coffee cup mean something?" "Oh, his eyebrow went up! He must have done it!"

With The Big Sleep, I still experienced that feeling a bit, but the characters and voice were so strong and compelling that they more than made up for the plot twists and angles. Raymond Chandler's sentences are artistic masterpieces and clear influences on many 20th Century literary and cinematic archetypes.

Marlowe is a strong individual. The other Raymond Chandler characters are like Edward Hopper's Nighthawks, searching for meaning in all the wrong places.

The Big Sleep is Raymond Chandler's first novel featuring Philip Marlowe, the private eye who is the main character in most of Chandler's novels. The author immediatly thrusts the reader into the story without wasting any time on introductions or setting up characters. It's refreshing to read an author who gets straight to the point without wasting any words. The story begins with Marlowe being hired by a wealthy old man to discover the source of an extortion attempt, but the story quickly expands to include murder, pornography, and a few missing people. Marlowe is very methodical and impartial in his investigations, creating a stark contrast to the seedy and unpredictable cast of characters. Chandler does a wonderful job of portraying Los Angeles in the 1930's as it really was with its hidden dark side behind the beautiful exterior of fancy houses and nice suits. Although Chandler's style is a little dry, he has still created a thoroughly readable story without any unnecessary descriptions to slow it down. It's a shame that Chandler didn't start on his writing career until the age of 39. Even so, he was still able to write some other outstanding Marlowe novels to carry on his legacy.

Before Jim Thompson's nihilistic, tough guy crime fiction, and long before smart-talking private detectives like Robert Crais' Elvis Cole or Dennis Lehane's Patrick Kenzie, there was Raymond Chandler and his prototype hard boiled PI, Phillip Marlowe. While Hammett's Sam Spade pre-dates Marlowe's 1939 debut here in "The Big Sleep", Chandler - through Marlowe - is arguably the standard by which all others are measured, the author who could credibly lay claim as the master of the irreverent maverick sleuth: the fast-fisted, impossibly clever, dame-magnet which so many have since sought to emulate. Less debatable is Chandler's mastery the style and the elegance of prose that he introduced to pulp fiction - sharp and lean as one would expect of the genre, but rich in simile and image and as readable today as it was nearly seven decades ago.

In "The Big Sleep", in what looks like a routine case, Marlowe is summoned by a fatally ill millionaire to track down a blackmailer holding compromising pictures of one of his two wayward adult daughters. Chandler gets right to the point in spinning a tale of thugs and hit men trading in pornography and gambling, leading to more murders than a Mel Gibson movie and dalliances sleazy enough to make Bill Clinton blush. Still, while the violence and sex is quaint by today's no-holds-barred onslaught, it is no less effective - consider the terror of the shower screen in Hitchcock's brilliant "Psycho" - one of film's most disturbing moments, though the knife is never seen striking flesh.

In fairness, "The Big Sleep" is not Chandler's finest moment. The initial transgression seems neatly wrapped up with nearly half of the book to go, and one wonders what Marlowe is doing as he aimlessly kicks around what seem to be meaningless loose ends in a rather muddled middle of the book. But Chandler's craft keeps the reader engaged, wrapping up with a few clever twists and enough (barely) of the irony these early masters of pulp fiction are so well noted for.

If you're a fan of pop crime fiction and haven't gone back to read Chandler (or Thompson, Hammett, Block, Westlake, McBain...), you've got some real treats ahead of you. Great entertainment, while at the same time a peak into the roots and inspiration for so many of today's best crime writers.

It's a beautifully illustrated book. At the bookstore, it came with a matching dragon, just as beautiful. My toddler son asks for this story to be read at bedtime about once a week. He must be holding his stuffed toy dragon while I "sing" the story to him, of course!

Book was nice, recording was awful. I did not pass the CD on to my grandchild. I would not like them to remember the song sung like that.

Our 2 1/2 year old grandson Alec loves the songs and the book.

On his ride to us every morning, he listens to "Puff the Magic Dragon", repeatedly until he gets here which is 30 minutes both ways.

We bought him the book and CD in honor of his new sister Cassie who was born on 8-8-08 weighing in at 8 lbs 8 oz.

Given such a rich subject matter the illustrations should have been more creative. The simplicity and harmony of the original song is lacking on the version provided with the CD so I just play the original version when reading/listening with my son. Doing that also avoids the horrible "but not so little GIRLS AND boys" lyrics revision, at least for pre-readers. There's a typo in the book that annoys me: I believe the words are "Pirate ships would lower their *flags*..." -- in the book it's singular: flag. I personally like the happy ending that the book suggests, though. Summary: my son loves it, and I like it as long as I can listen to the original version of the song while we read.

The illustrations by Eric Puybaret are interesting, unique and imaginative and if there could be a separate rating I'd give them 5-Stars.

Peter Yarrow's singing seemed tired, but was tolerable.

What is absolutely unacceptable are the two words that were noticably "inserted" and sound like a skip! The original lyrics, "A Dragon lives forever, but not so little boys", have been revised to, "A Dragon lives forever, but not so little GIRLS AND boys." Gosh, we can't have a song that is only about a little boy? This poorly executed and tacky revision ruined the book and CD.

This woman cannot write. The story drags. Bella is so selfish and immature and the whole story follows her shallow thoughts and feelings. Ugh!

Soy una adulta mayor y adoro las historias que me hagan soñar. Mi hija me regalo el primer volumen en ingles y es fantastica; pero la traduccion al español es muy pobre. Al parecer la persona encargada de ella, no encontro realmente el alma de la novela, duele ver que aquellos lectores de lengua hispana que no puedan leer en ingles,pierdan un 50% de lo esperado.

I own this book in English and Spanish - This is my favorite book after the bible. The story is amazing!

This is one of the most entertaining books I have ever read. At some point you actually forget you are reading and begin to see the movie in your head! (No wonder it is being released in Dec 2008)
An impossible love story, a humble quest and a magnificent adventure make this book a most have in your collection, even if you cannot bring yourself to read any other book, there is NO WAY you won't enjoy the wonder if this story...

TwilightGeek

Las historias con personajes fantasticos que luchan contra sus lados mas oscuros son siempre muy entretenidas,agregenle una historia de amor, dosis de humor y ademas de intriga y suspenso, esto ultimo son una serie de interrogantes que han venido surgiendo de la saga completa; Crepusculo, Luna nueva y Eclipse. deberian de ser respondidas o aclaradas en el ultimo libro Breaking Dawn que muy pronto vera la luz. Estas interrogantes se han visto ofuscadas tal vez por la misma historia de amor, pero es en ellas, en donde veremos un desenlace inesperado, las que he podido captar son: La singularidad de Bella, inmune a los poderes extrasensoriales de algunos vampiros, el por que de esto puede ser muy importante en este libro, ya hemos visto vampiros, hombres lobos, sera que veremos algun otro ser de fabula, tengo idea que Bella es una mestiza de Hada, su madre tan despistada y aerea me da la sospecha que se las trae, otra cosa que dudo es en la transformacion de Bella en vampiro, mas bien creo que ella sera la redencion de Edward, el menciona que si se pudiera transformar en humano lo haria a cualquier costo, el hecho de que la sangre de Bella tuviera semejante tentacion para el me parece parte de ese proceso, despues de todo las tentaciones son parte de todo proceso depurativo y evolutivo. De Jacob solo espero que logre superar su amor por Bella, seria ironico una imprimacion con Leah, Seth sera el eslabon de un proceso de acercamiento entre ambos bandos y veremos tambien al clan del norte en conflictos con los lobos, en fin, que predicciones aparte, la saga es interesante y la lectura muy amena, ampliamente recomendada para todas las edades.

I have read all or parts of several versions of The Aeneid, including the highly praised Robert Fagles's and Robert Fitzgerald's versions. Mandelbaum's translation is far superior. He takes the reader into the epic's action without sacrificing the Latin of the original. His version is lively and the reader will (or should) have no difficulty reading the Aeneid to the conclusion. He will be carried along by the poetry and the subject matter of this great epic. Highly recommended.

With Robert Fagles's version of 'The Aeneid' just released, I thought that would be the version I would be reading. I tried Robert Fitzgerald's version some years ago, but I gave up after the 5th or 6th "book".
After reading the numerous glowing reviews for Allen Mandelbaum's translation, I thought I would give it a shot.... plus it cost a lot less than Fagles's! I was not disappointed.
Mr. Mandelbaum's take on Virgil's epic is eminently accessible, very easy to understand (but not dumbed down at all). The glossary at the end is a huge help in identifying characters and places (as many of them go by more than one name).
This is a thrilling tale full of adventure, romance, war, friendship and loyalty. If you buy only one version, this is the one to get.

First, I'm not qualified to opine on whether Mandelbaum's translation is true to the Latin. I struggled with Virgil's complex poetry as a 4th year Latin student and have no idea if Mandelbaum gets it right. But this translation is eminently readable, retaining the feel of epic poetry. I have the feeling that any flaws in Mandelbaum's rendering reflect shortcomings in Virgil's original text.

Second, this is a very handy edition, especially for the price. Even if you already own the Aeneid in other form, you might want to pick this one up. It is a pocket-sized paperback, yet the print is not tiny and is very readable. This is a better edition to bring with you on the plane than one of the bulkier versions. Plus, this edition provides an excellent glossary, which is an absolute must given the torrent of names that flow through this work.

Finally, the Aeneid itself: Virgil is a literary titan, if only for his Georgics. The Aeneid is also a towering work, but troubling and flawed. Virgil himself was troubled by this work, which he left unfinished with instructions for it to be destroyed. In his effort to give Rome its own epic, combining features of both the Odyssey and Iliad to create the Aeneid, Virgil adopted some of the less interesting mannerisms of those older works. In particular, the battle scenes are violent, soaked in blood, long on smashed brains and decapitations and dripping entrails, short on exploring the pathos of life cut short for the sake of pointless conflict. It reads much like the Iliad, with seemingly endless lines of "A slew B and C slew D and E slew F." Maybe this was good stuff to an ancient Roman but to a modern reader it is boring in the same way as all the "begats" in some books of the Bible. Even more disturbing than the over-the-top, repetitive violence of the work is the sense of underlying pessimism, as every time reason and peace seem about to prevail, some god or goddess shakes things up and -- all too easily -- the killing starts anew. Maybe this reflected Virgil's own disgust with the times that he had lived through, with civil war erupting every few years until Octavian had finally killed off every other rival. But the rivers of blood that are spilled in the second half of the Aeneid do not make for as ennobling a foundation myth as perhaps Virgil was looking for. While Rome is destined for greatness, it is so because Jupiter has said so, has decided to favor Aeneas above his enemies, not because of anything inherently great about the proto-Romans. Maybe, had Virgil lived longer, he might have found a way to tweak this work to have Aeneas end up as more than just an executioner for Fate.

And it is in the first half of the epic that Aeneas indeed is more than just a slayer. His romance with Dido is perhaps the most famous story within the poem and, although it is also marred by too much Olympian meddling, portrays Aeneas as possessing humanity and a capacity to love that is missing at the end. His descent into Hades, so that he can have one last conversation with his father, is also a compelling episode. In short, the Aeneid stands as a great work, a classic, for these beautiful passages, even if the last few books of the poem read a little like someone trying to narrate the events in a violent video game.

I consider the primary difficulty in studying The Aeneid to be the introduction of more than 250 proper names in the first three books. This Bantam Classic includes the best glossary I have found in any translation or commentary. The Mandelbaum translation is also the one quoted by Professor Elizabeth Vandiver in her lectures "The Aeneid of Virgil" published by The Teaching Company.

Every two or three years some semi-educated American Classics professor trots out another translation of Virgil or Homer - these being the last two Classical poets that anyone can be prevailed upon to read, even in translation. It was much the same in the nineteenth century, except that back then every educated person understood more or less what metre was and how poetry differed from prose. In America at least the educated are no longer at all sure what metre or poetry are, and 'poets' apparently just sit down and scrawl out some prose that they think sounds vaguely poetical. Occasionally they will even chop up their prose into 'verses' of more or less equal length.

Noted reviewers can be prevailed upon by the publishers to give blurbs to these American professors' abominable travesties of Virgil or Homer, and the poor ignorant masses read this stuff in college. A few - a VERY few - are even impressed by these translations, God help them.

I remember a class I was in where everyone groaned about how aweful Mandelbaum's Virgil was. The consensus was Virgil must have been a very second-rate poet. I was the only student that knew Latin - I had been studying it since the age of eight. I tried to tell my fellows that Virgil was at least as interesting as Spenser or Shakespeare, and much more beautiful, but no one believed me.

I will say however that Mandelbaum is not the worst of the lot. To split your sides laughing, try Fagles, who converts Virgil into low buffoonery. Fagles by the way, had not studied Latin for decades when he made his translation - apparently he never read Latin for pleasure. And he presumed to translate the Aeneid! Enough said.

The concept is great. The product did not meet the promise. The presentation style was just too artsy-fartsy, like a bunch of undergraduate girls from the Seven Sisters, sitting around saying "Look how smart I am."

I couldn't finish the thing. It would be a great book to sleep to.

I'm looking to improve my writing and I came across this book and decided to give it a listen. I was surprised at how helpful and fun it was. The text was very engaging, and you can tell the author put a lot of time into making this book not only informative but also enjoyable. I now look for specific elements when I read and have discovered the things I want to improve in my own writing.

I'm sorry, but this book is incredibly dry. I can't seem to finish it no matter how hard I try. Don't buy it if you have short attention span.

I really enjoyed Reading Like A Writer and since my son enjoys learning tips from authors, I gave this book to him after reading it.

A great gift item for those who want to, or think they would like to, write a book!

Author Francine Prose's latest non-fiction book Reading Like a Writer, a Guide for People who Love Books and for Those who Want to Write Them, brings to the study to literature exactly what the study of literature needs: literature. She reads a text for what it offers as a unique assemblage of words into sentences into paragraphs into chapters into volumes. The author of a great work of literature creates carefully, deliberate placing each word for meaning and effect.

To study literature this way, one needs time. Time to read slowly, to savor the words, to appreciate the gift of literature. One might also need a dictionary. And of course Strunk and White's Elements of Style--a textbook developed early in the last century to set out in the clearest, most direct terms the basic rules of grammar and punctuation and how these things combined with our carefully chosen words create style.

In its pithy way, USA Today called Prose's book "A love letter to the pleasures of reading." That's exactly what it is. It is also a love letter to the pleasure of learning to write. Each chapter focuses on a different aspect of writing that makes an author's work unique--words, sentences, paragraphs, narration, character, dialogue, details, gesture. The closing two chapters offer insights into "Learning from Chekhov" and "Reading for Courage." Prose draws on works of great writers and models reading to write. That is, by reading great works carefully, a student of literature who wishes to write develops a personal database of who does what well and learning to turn to specific writers for specific help.

For example, a writer struggling to effectively communicate character through dialogue might turn to authors he knows does that well--or to Chapter 6 in Prose's book. There the writer will find a close reading of passages from Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility in which she does just that. The writer can take from that reading an example of just how to.

Prose's book unhooks literature from the life-support of the classroom full of sartorial know-it-all professors with their one and only way of reading a work and their critical methods--feminist, Marxist, Freudian, sociological, and on and on--to show that the life-support is totally unnecessary; the patient breathes quite independently, thank you.

To anyone whose parents suggest he or she study something other than English in college the better to secure a good job, I say take that advice. If you love literature and want to read it well, all you really need is Prose's book.