Prominent writers of fiction dispense copious, often conflicting, and largely entertaining advice to beginners and sundry others who feel called to publish short stories and novels. Most of the famous authors collected here by Busch, himself a prolific novelist (Girls, 1997; Long Way from Home, 1993, etc.) are American, most are contemporary, and all are English-speaking (though some give weight to their counsel by refering to Chekhov, Kafka, and Tolstoy). Only 3 of these 36 pieces have never been published before. Still, the collection makes good and illuminating reading for anyone attracted to fiction, not just to prospective writers. In an exceptionally fine letter of rejection, writer/editor Pam Durban explains and demonstrates the “clarifying particularity” that marks a successful story. In the very next letter, shrewdly positioned by Busch, Shelby Foote harangues Walker Percy to the effect that he should never, ever let an editor tell him how to write. Some interesting common themes emerge. One is resentment: “People want you to think what you do is not magical,” warns Ann Beattie. Another is noble suffering for art. An underlying assumption of many of these letters seems to be that the demoralized aspirant is slaving away in penurious, undeserved anonymity. The writer longs for recognition and security. Some of the famous authors accept the topos at face value and offer comfort; tough-minded Janette Turner Hospital does not: “I wonder if there’s any such thing as a secure niche in the literary world? Perhaps there is; but if so, it would be a deadly thing to achieve in one’s lifetime. Smugness and self-satisfaction are inimical to art.” One theme that fails to emerge is what effect the university sinecures of so many contemporary American writers may have on our fiction. Like Busch (who teaches at Colgate University), most of the contributors are also academic professors. To paraphrase Samuel Beckett: Good writing is not about something; it is something itself. Busch’s collection embodies good writing.
Pub Date: June 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-393-04735-0
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Norton
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2000
An enjoyable slice of 20th-century music journalism almost certain to provide something for most readers, no matter one’s...
Music journalist and musician Wald (Talking 'Bout Your Mama: The Dozens, Snaps, and the Deep Roots of Rap, 2014, etc.) focuses on one evening in music history to explain the evolution of contemporary music, especially folk, blues, and rock.
The date of that evening is July 25, 1965, at the Newport Folk Festival, where there was an unbelievably unexpected occurrence: singer/songwriter Bob Dylan, already a living legend in his early 20s, overriding the acoustic music that made him famous in favor of electronically based music, causing reactions ranging from adoration to intense resentment among other musicians, DJs, and record buyers. Dylan has told his own stories (those stories vary because that’s Dylan’s character), and plenty of other music journalists have explored the Dylan phenomenon. What sets Wald's book apart is his laser focus on that one date. The detailed recounting of what did and did not occur on stage and in the audience that night contains contradictory evidence sorted skillfully by the author. He offers a wealth of context; in fact, his account of Dylan's stage appearance does not arrive until 250 pages in. The author cites dozens of sources, well-known and otherwise, but the key storylines, other than Dylan, involve acoustic folk music guru Pete Seeger and the rich history of the Newport festival, a history that had created expectations smashed by Dylan. Furthermore, the appearances on the pages by other musicians—e.g., Joan Baez, the Weaver, Peter, Paul, and Mary, Dave Van Ronk, and Gordon Lightfoot—give the book enough of an expansive feel. Wald's personal knowledge seems encyclopedic, and his endnotes show how he ranged far beyond personal knowledge to produce the book.
An enjoyable slice of 20th-century music journalism almost certain to provide something for most readers, no matter one’s personal feelings about Dylan's music or persona.Pub Date: July 25, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-06-236668-9
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Dey Street/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis...
Privately published by Strunk of Cornell in 1918 and revised by his student E. B. White in 1959, that "little book" is back again with more White updatings.
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis (whoops — "A bankrupt expression") a unique guide (which means "without like or equal").Pub Date: May 15, 1972
ISBN: 0205632645
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Macmillan
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972
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