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by Gwendolyn Brooks
ISBN: 0944191002
Binding/Media: Paperback - 511 pages
Condition: Used: Good
Comments: Sold with pride and shipped with confirmation for US addresses. No publisher marks, no shelf wear. Gently read copy. Inscription/ writing on the first page, but no further marking or imperfections.
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Customer Reviews
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Ms. Brooks best writings
Rating  (5)
Date: 2007-01-30
This book contains some of Gwendolyn Brooks best poetry. It is definitely a keeper!
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Late Great American Writer's Collection of Standards
Rating (5)
Date: 2004-12-13
5 out of 5 customers found this reveiw helpful
Its been a few years since I thought about this book. I was searching around suggested items from Amazon, and memories of this great writer came rushing back to me. This book is a collection of poems, short stories, a novel, highlights from several decades of excellent writing. I wish Chicago would do more to honor her like Europe honors their great writers regardless of race. Anyway, Ms. Brook's poetry is influenced by the classical literature she studied during her time and she takes that style to the south side of inner city of black Chicago. The results are poems that feel quiet, calm, much like the demeanor she displayed when she was alive. However she can communicate anger, depression , anguish, without hitting you across the head with it. This changes a little when you read through some of her sixtites work such as the "Riot" which describes the riot in the sixties after Dr. King was assasinated. I find myself missing her reading "We real cool" but at least I have this and other books from her memory alive in me.
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Excellent poetry
Rating  (4)
Date: 2003-06-09
3 out of 3 customers found this reveiw helpful
A collection of poetry by Brooks, probably the most honored African- American poet. It also includes "Maud Martha," Brooks' single novel to date. I liked the novel, but felt it was a little too much for me. I like poetry, but I think I like it in small doses, where I can relax and read and reread it without concentrating on how much time it is taking me to do so. Her fiction is like poetry, in the sense that it had as much to do with the vision of things as it did with the characterization or the plot. This is my failing as a reader: I've never cared that much for description, and the longer it continues, the more likely I am to tune out.But the short poems here, especially from her earlier period, I like a lot. The subjects are strong and powerful, the economy and purpose of the prose admirable. One of my favorites was a poem called "Queen of the Blues," which contrasted the stage persona of a Billie Holliday-like singer with the treatment she receives as an African-American woman. Queen or no queen, she still has the blues. Or "The Murder," about a young boy who sits his toddler brother on fire then doesn't understand when the little brother isn't around afterwards. I did not care as much for her later poems, which were much more experimental in form and harder to follow in content.
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Brooks has "a long reach, / strong speech"
Rating (5)
Date: 2001-10-24
2 out of 2 customers found this reveiw helpful
"Blacks" is a collection of several decades' worth of the work of Gwendolyn Brooks, who is one of the most significant figures in 20th century American poetry. At over 500 pages long, "Blacks" is a truly monumental text. Included are several books in their entirety ("Annie Allen," "In the Mecca," etc.) as well as excerpts from some later books ("Primer for Blacks," "The Near-Johannesburg Boy and Other Poems," etc.). Although most of the books represented are works of poetry, "Blacks" also contains the text of Brooks' 1953 novel "Maud Martha."Brooks is a stylistic virtuoso, proficient with the sonnet, ballad, free verse, and other forms. She is an expert with alliteration, rhyme, and other musical effects. Her vocabulary is encyclopedic; she evokes not only African-American vernacular speech, but also the entire sweeping history of the literary tradition in English. In this collection are both short poems and longer poems. Many of Brooks' poems deal with aspects of African-American life. She writes of anti-Black violence and other forms of racism, and reflects upon enduring figures in African-American cultural history. She also writes of family relationships and intimate personal crises. Her novel, "Maud Martha," is a poetic chronicle of the life of a dark-skinned urban Black girl. We follow Maud Martha through her girlhood, marriage, and motherhood. "Maud Martha" is a memorable vision of an African-American woman's life, and, in my opinion, should stand beside such literary works as Harriet Jacobs' "Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl," Zora Neale Hurston's "Their Eyes Were Watching God," and Audre Lorde's "Zami." Of Brooks' long poems, I found the most memorable to be "In the Mecca," a tragic and haunting narrative poem that takes place in a Chicago apartment building. "In the Mecca" is a sort of urban, African-American "Odyssey" in which we encounter the various inhabitants of this world. In her poetic tribute to Langston Hughes, Brooks writes that he has "a long reach, / strong speech." I would say the same of Brooks. Her amazing body of work deserves to reach into the 21st century and beyond.
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Sweeping and Epic
Rating (5)
Date: 2000-03-19
18 out of 21 customers found this reveiw helpful
Gwendolyn Brooks is one of my favorite poets and this anthology of her work gives a glimpsing answer to the question 'why?' "Blacks" is a veritae encyclopedia of the America experience written in Brooks' lucid but unsettling style. It's people like T.S Eliot which make us think art is an inclusive privilege of a born, elite few. And then artists -like Brooks- go right along and prove that, at its best, art is inclusive, fun and thought-provoking. Rather than tying itself up in esoteric knots, Brooks' poetry flows along personal but recognizable paths that most blacks have experienced at one time or another. I go to Northwestern U. and we've had the privilege of her speaking at our school many times. And after meeting her my respect only grew. Forever "young, gifted and black" Gwedolyn Brooks deserves nothing less than the attention given to the likes of Langston Hughes or Phylis Wheatley. This books shows us why.
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by Monica Ferris
ISBN: 0425229904
Binding/Media: Hardcover - 256 pages
Condition: New
Comments: Sold with pride. Brand new copy with publisher mark on the bottom.
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Customer Reviews
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Another needlecraft mystery
Rating (4)
Date: 2010-07-10
I dolike Monica Ferris' mysteries.Yet sometimes she tries to put all of her characters into her stories & they don't need to be. This mystery was very easy to figure out. I'll continue to read her books but hope the next book is more interesting.
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Betsy Devonshire of Crewel World solves another mystery
Rating (4)
Date: 2010-05-03
Monica Ferris does it again. I love her needlework/murder mystery series. In the latest installment we find Excelsor getting ready for a Halloween parade. There is a local wiccan that creates her own microbrews and her newest brew is called Not afraid of the Dark Brew. There is also a superstitious alcholic that winds up dead after taunting the wiccan at her restraunt. Now the mystery is who done it? The wiccan asks Betsy, who owns Crewel World Needlework shop and also is a part time sleuth, to help solve the murder because all of the talk about her possibly putting a curse on the dead man is hurting her business. The author throws in several subtle clues as to who the murderer is.I had it figured out long before the author reveals it in the book. I find this series a great read and look forward to reading the next installment.
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Blackwork doesn't work
Rating  (2)
Date: 2010-03-12
1 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
Betsy Devonshire, the main character, is the owner of needlecraft store Crewel World.
When a man dies after taunting a Wiccan (who after all, must have cast a spell on the poor man), ta-da!, Betsy must investigate.
Now, there is absolutely no reason for Betsy to become involved in the crime. However, Betsy and the townspeople (and it seems, some of the local police, rather frightening), feel that Betsy is The Only One who can solve the crime. Betsy goes around asking people for alibis, and people talk to her instead of telling her to get lost. What's up with that?
In addition to the unappealing smugness that Betsy is the Only One who can solve the crime, Betsy is a rather bland character. The characters surrounding her are rather bland. There really is nothing to this series. I don't think I'll be eagerly awaiting the next installment. Hopefully the Wiccan won't put a curse on me for saying that :)
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Blurb is better than the book
Rating  (1)
Date: 2010-02-23
This is my first, and last, foray into this series. I was so excited when I read the blurb. Ohh...needlework...oh...wicca... oh ... brewing. All right!! Bring it on! Unfortunately, the characters were so generic I kept having to refer back to the blurb to remember who the main character was supposed to be...ugh!
It didn't help that I didn't care for her writing style. It is more literary in that she kept telling the reader what was going on rather than showing it to them. Even that wasn't in an interesting enough fashion to keep me reading.
Thankfully, I got this from the library.
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A pick perfect for year-round enjoyment
Rating (5)
Date: 2009-12-18
0 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
BLACKWORK: A NEEDLECRAFT MYSTERY is a powerful survey continuing Monica Ferris' best-selling Needlecraft Mystery series. Here it's Halloween and Betsy Devonshire, owner of a needlework shop and a part-time sleuth, finds murder mixes too easily with black magic. When a Wiccan practitioner ends up dead without a mark on his body, Betsy is on the case in a pick perfect for year-round enjoyment.
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by Iris Johansen
ISBN: 0739446541
Binding/Media: Hardcover - 520 pages
Condition: Used: Like New
Comments: Sold with pride and shipped with confirmation for US addresses. Gently read copy in like new condition. No reading/ shelf wear.
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Customer Reviews
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First... and last Johansen novel?
Rating (1)
Date: 2009-08-26
This is in reference to the audio book.
This book is awful. Really, really awful. I am stopping halfway through, which is something I've never done. I'm currently hoping that an atomic bomb goes off a the end, but I don't care enough to go that far with it. Do people really love this author?
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No more Jane!
Rating  (3)
Date: 2009-04-16
I have to agree with the other reviews here. Jane is the most annoying character I've ever come across. I thought that something was wrong with me, because it took two tries for me to even finish this book. That's unusual because I can pick up a Johansen and go until the end. But she just does not do it for me. I didn't like anything about her. I kept trying to find something, but it's just not there.
And Trevor was annoying and intrusive here. No endearing qualities at all, like John Logan, or any of her other leading males. I just couldn't really get into him or Jane.
The mystery itself was interesting. If this had happened to any other two people, I think I would've enjoyed it.
That being said, this does not in any way deter me from reading other Johansen books. She's fantastic! I'm still reading (with no interruptions) and buying.
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Great Read
Rating (5)
Date: 2009-02-18
Great addition to the Eve Duncan life stories. I never get tired of reading about her life. Eve and Joe are of course my favorite characters that Iris has created. I love the awesome balance that Iris can always seem to create between action and love to keep her audience on the edge of their seat. This is a great story. This is a must buy and a must read.
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Great Service!
Rating (5)
Date: 2009-01-10
This was a gift for a friend. Arrived in mint condition on time! Thanks Alot.
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Painful to give it even 1 star
Rating (1)
Date: 2008-11-27
1 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
Absolute garbage. The plot is so silly it is not even worth calling it far-fetched, with all sorts of mumbo-jumbo - history, reincarnation, volcanic eruption thrown in. Again we have this superintelligent supertough guy (Indiana Jones/James Bond/computer whizz all rolled into one, & he has a sensitive side as well) who then lusts after a schoolgirl nearly half his age. What, he couldn't find a woman his age despite all his accomplishments. BTW did I mention he was also super-rich? The only reason I finished the book (with large parts unread) was with the hope somehow Aldo & Trevor would turn out to be the same guy with multiple personalities but that didn't happen. And I have never read such unrealistic characters, a 17-yr old who has no friends of her age and acts like a grown professional woman, no amount of her experience on the streets can make me buy that, & Eve Duncan & Joe Quinn are among the weakest characters I have come across. Sorry this was my first, & going to be last, Iris Johansen. The mystery is not this book, but how this writer has adoring fans.
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by Bruce Alexander
ISBN: 0425232743
Binding/Media: Paperback - 320 pages
Condition: Used: Like New
Comments: Sold with pride. Unread copy. This is a publisher's overstock copy, with a publisher's mark on the bottom.
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Customer Reviews
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Not What It Seems
Rating (4)
Date: 2010-07-29
"What may seem to be decided is often left open to chance. That which may seem at hazard is sometimes more certain than we could ever know."
- final paragraph
The year is 1768 and in London, the Bow Street Court is presided by Sir John Fielding who, along with his half-brother Henry, established the Bow Street Runners as the city's first police force. Sir John sits at the bench daily, listening to witnesses, weighing evidence, and deciding the outcome to hundreds of cases. But, like the statue of Justice herself, Sir John is blind.
Thirteen-year old Jeremy Proctor, a young orphan, has come to London to learn the printing trade taught to him by his father. When a mishap lands him in front of Sir John, the latter takes young Jeremy under his wing, determined to help him find an apprenticeship. While waiting for a meeting with Samuel "Dictionary" Johnson, Sir John is informed that a local nobleman, Lord Richard Goodhope, has committed suicide. Fielding takes Jeremy with him to the crime scene, where, it turns out, nothing is as it seems.
It quickly becomes evident that the suicide is, in fact, murder. But how could it have been committed? The victim was locked in his study, shot on the right side of the head despite being left-handed. He had gambling debts in the thousands. He was having an affair with a stage actress. His mysterious half-brother Charles Clairmont is suddenly in town. What does it all mean?
With Jeremy's eyes acting as his own, Sir John, along with an Irish surgeon and the help of the Runners, investigates the crime. Like an Agatha Christie play, all is not as it seems - and all is revealed in the end. The first in the Sir John Fielding Mystery series, "Blind Justice" is told from young Jeremy's point of view. It reads like a cross between a Sherlock Holmes novel and a work by Christie. And it is very good.
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A Most Peculiar Suicide
Rating (5)
Date: 2010-06-29
In this, the first of the series, we meet Jeremy Proctor, an orphan falsely accused of theft before the Bow Street magistrate Sir John Fielding. After dismissing the charges, Sir John takes the boy into his home as a ward of the court. When a nobleman is found dead of a gunshot wound in a locked room, it is first believed he committed suicide. Suspicious of the circumstances, Sir John orders an autopsy which reveals the man was poisoned. With plenty of suspects, the blind magistrate has a virtual gordian knot to untangle.
As usual, the book is riveting. Bruce Alexander captures the flavor of 18th century London, describing sights and smells as experienced by a 13 year old boy from the country, and capturing the polite, slightly stilted language of the time perfectly.
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Recommended for readers of the locked room genre.
Rating (4)
Date: 2010-01-04
Sir John Fielding (1721-1780) was a real person, a blind English magistrate responsible for creating London's first police force. Alexander co-opts this historical figure in writing a series of mysteries, of which this--Blind Justice--is the first.
The story is told by an older fellow looking back on his younger days as helper to Sir John. In this installment, Sir John, in his capacity as magistrate of the Bow Street Court, is investigating an apparent suicide in a locked room.
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1st in series
Rating (5)
Date: 2009-10-08
This book and the others in the series feature Sir John Fielding, a real life magistrate in 18th century London. Henry Fielding of "Tom Jones" fame.
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Very Nice, Enjoyable Characters, Good Mystery
Rating (4)
Date: 2008-07-04
1 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
I really enjoyed this murder mystery set in eighteenth century London. I enjoyed the characters of Sir John Fielding and his charge Jeremy Proctor.
The customs and flavor of London during the times were well depicted with horrid smells and all. The characters were well developed and realistic. The mystery was a good one and I was surprised at the big reveal at the end.
It was an easy read with good tension and I enjoyed the narration in the fictional account of Master Jeremy's memoir.
It reminded me a bit of Kate Ross' Julian Kestrel Mysteries which I really enjoyed as well.
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by Dale Peck
ISBN: 1416576126
Binding/Media: Hardcover - 432 pages
Condition: Used: Like New
Comments: Sold with pride, in like new condition.
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Customer Reviews
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Why is the Kindle edition more expensive than the paperback?
Rating (1)
Date: 2010-02-05
0 out of 4 customers found this reveiw helpful
Amazon and publishers are going to blow this distribution out of the water if they don't get pricing agreements resolved. They need to look at the demographics that illegally download and ascertain whether a DRM situation is really going to inhibit diehard piracy - and passing the cost of that on to legitimate consumers will be another notch in the belt for the death of the traditional publishing industry. I'm disappointed that Amazon isn't managing this more effectively and now wonder if buying a Kindle was a mistake.
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Awsome
Rating (5)
Date: 2010-01-21
1 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
Great book for fantasy lovers who want a more mature fantasy to get away from the common TEEN Fantasy.
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A Supernatural Thriller
Rating (4)
Date: 2009-04-02
1 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
Peck, Dale. "Body Surfing: A Novel", Atria, 2009.
A Supernatural Thriller
Amos Lassen
Set in upstate New York, Dale Peck's new novel, "Body Surfing", is a supernatural thriller about a race of extremely sexual demons known as Morgan. They looked for human victims and took temporary possession of them. While the victims are possessed they gain powers by which they can recover from injury. Jasper Van Arsdale discovers this when his best friend, Q., is taken by Leo, a perverse Mogran and drives them and their girlfriends into the side of a mountain. This fast-moving novel is full of twists and surprises. The Mogran have grown out of the collective unconscious and their story is sexy and unsettling. What is so interesting is that we are taken to a new world which greatly resembles the world we live in. As the Mogran inhabit the bodies of humans wreak havoc on Jasper and Q, two typical high school boys who live for parties and girlfriends. Q. suddenly begins to act recklessly and Jasper is concerned. When both of their lives were put in danger, it seems sure that Q. is possessed by something very sinister,
At the same time in Khartoum, Ileana tracks a man who leaves behind a trail of blood and bodies and in turn there is a great deal of strife. She is supposed to stop him; she is belongs to an elite group of hunters trying to decipher a mystery that drives people to commit terrible crimes. When Ileana and Jasper come together their friendship is tested and become involved in a violent battle.
Peck's novel teems with the occult but with a new twist and there are new looks at metamorphosis. This is nothing like anything you might have read by Peck as this novel looks at pop culture vampirism. The focus of the novel is on a race of evil beings (the Mogran) that can slip into the bodies of people and take over their minds so that they cause violence to those around them while they take on the appearance of the host body but replace the mind with their own. Genre-wise the novel falls into two categories--horror and thriller. We visit malevolent places where evil exists and violence brings on more violence. It is well written even if not totally believable.
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Long time Peck fan
Rating (5)
Date: 2009-03-24
1 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
Let me begin by confessing that "The Law of Enclosures" is my favorite book of all time. It, too, involved some wonderful "cutting edge" experimentation. I've seen some reviews for this book that seem so "closed-minded."
Expand, imagine and enjoy the otherworldly landscape Peck creates in "Body Surfing."
I loved this book and I particularly enjoyed the fact that it's OUT THERE. Quite honestly this novel has the potential to be a wonderful series because Peck has so expertly created another world with new rules. EXCELLENT READ.
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A huge disappointment..
Rating (2)
Date: 2009-03-18
2 out of 6 customers found this reveiw helpful
A notable departure for Dale Peck this unusual novel skirts around the edges of pop-culture vampirism and in the process offers up some perplexing issues, most notably why such an acclaimed author of literary fiction would write something that seems so sophomoric. From the monstrous to the blood curdling and then onto the brutally erotic, this novel centers on a race of evil beings called the Mogran who surreptitiously slip into people's bodies, taking over their minds and exacting violence on those around them while also assuming the role of the host and replacing the native mind with its own.
Traveling for Upstate New York to Darfur and then accelerating through the Balkans crisis of 1992, the novel starts with Ileana who is part of a secret society called The Legion. Currently in Darfur, Ileana is on the hunt, looking for this "epidemic of lust" where the beast of the Mogran is haunting the streets. One Mogran, Alec has been leaving traces of himself everywhere, sometimes going through fifty bodies in three months. Although the Mogran are as "old as the river, and beyond your comprehension," Ileana remains haunted by the horrors of a single night in 1992, in the Balkans that becomes a waking nightmare when the tattered web of memories her own demons had once left in her mind.
Meanwhile, Leo the oldest and most powerful of all the Mogran, is intent on locating their last kind and teaching them how to breed. Commanding a reservoir of knowledge that rivaled a great university's library, Leo is using his fledging student Jasper Van Ardsdale. When Jasper dies a virgin in a car accident with the car driven by Qusay (Q), Jasper discovers that he has all of eternity to contemplate his mistake, finds himself inhabiting the body of his friend Jarhead, with his sagging jeans, and his dopey benevolent and needy smile. While Qusay services the accident unscathed, full of memories and unexplained knowledge, Jasper is set upon a path of bodily possessions and carnal appetites. Eventually all of these characters come together as they ache for the next plane of existence, the darker urges, the baser ones: for sex, violence, dominance.
At this point, the novel descends into an horror cum action thriller as the Legion try to uncover the damage of years of deception, and destroy the Mogran who seem to be racing against time to replicate themselves. Ileana and Jasper seem to be the agents of change, but in the process, the narrative is just too confusing. Peck's historical allusions are interesting, but his prose style feels cheap and the novel feels strung together. While the underlying themes of sex and demons inhabiting our subconscious mind are sometimes compelling, and we are certainly immersed into those malevolent places where evil lurks, Body Surfing is mostly sensational and exploitative, where violence begets violence, and reflecting a unique literary talent that is somewhat wasted. Mike Leonard March 09.
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by Clowes, Blackburn
ISBN: 0741408201
Binding/Media: Paperback - 200 pages
Condition: New
Comments: Sold with pride and shipped with confirmation for US addresses. No publisher marks, no shelf wear.
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Customer Reviews
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Old Secrets Never Die & Bones in the Backyard
Rating (5)
Date: 2009-02-11
1 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
I enjoyed reading both "Secrets" & "Bones" and enjoyed both thoroughly. Can't wait until third book. I am acquainted with Ms. Clowes and always tell her how much I love her books and can't wait for the next one, and keep prodding her. Florence, you and Lois are great! Just keep writing.
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A good read and looking for the next adventure
Rating (5)
Date: 2008-02-21
1 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
The Bashia Gordon mystery series(-"Secrets" and "Bones")are,I hope,soon to be followed by the third in the series. Both of the books mentioned above are a good read which keeps the reader guessing about the plot and conclusion. The authors have done a fine job on the first books in the series. I trust them to perfom as well on the third. I recommend that you the first read-Bones in the Backyard- and then follow with the most recent-Old Secrets Never Die. I believe you will enjoy meeting the new friends in the books.
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A Riveting Tale
Rating (5)
Date: 2003-03-08
Bones in the Backyard is a well-written and well-plotted mystery...the characters are so well developed that you are immediately drawn into their world. A terrific tale from the beginning to the end!
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A good mystery to read
Rating (4)
Date: 2002-04-05
I really enjoyed reading about Bashia and Dottie and the mystery they found themselves in. Their long-time friendship was fun to be a part of as I read. I wanted to keep reading to find out what was going to happen next which is always a positive aspect of a mystery. I enjoyed the great descriptions of things I was unfamiliar with like northeastern Connecticut and interior decorating. I am especially proud of Lois and Florence for the hard work and research they put into this book!
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A good read - holds interest and suspense
Rating (4)
Date: 2002-03-27
A good mystery that keeps you in suspense until nearly the end, which is hard to put down. The book introduces two female mature sleuths and their friends and one wants to see more of them in future mysteries. The main characters are nicely developed and there is a "cliff hanger" type of ending of the romance between two characters that leaves the reader wondering whether that will grow to higher levels. So, authors, we need a sequel. Besides being amateur detectives, these women are interesting people who have been in the Peace Corps, have artistic talents and a large streak of curiosity. Nice descriptions of the New England countryside are also a positive feature of this novel.
Congratulations on a project well done.
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by Maile Meloy
ISBN: 159448869X
Binding/Media: Hardcover - 240 pages
Condition: New
Comments: Sold with pride. Brand new copy with publisher mark on the bottom.
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Customer Reviews
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Bridget's Review
Rating (5)
Date: 2010-07-11
The amazing stories that make up this book, tug on your heart even long after you finished reading it. It's one of those books that open your eyes to emotions that feel brand new. I give it five stars.
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My first time reading this author, and I loved it!
Rating (4)
Date: 2010-07-09
For those who are totally in the mood for some short story reading in the summer time when you may have a lot of other things going on (and may not have the attention span that makes you proud), this is a great find.
It was my first time reading anything by this author. I saw a mention of this book as a "sleeper hit" in Oprah Magazine, and said, "why not?" I fell into these stories, took my delight, finished 'em off quick, and then thought I should give back to the community.
Now, when approaching an author for the first time, and knowing nothing about the author's style, its nice to have a little guidance. So I summed up each story in a sentence or two, and did not my best not to ruin anything. Hope this guide helps all you first-timers out. (Those who don't want anybody else's business in your own reading pleasure should just skip this review.)
Travis B.
What a heart-breaking story. Most girls would die for a ride behind a cowboy through a snowy street to a café, but this girl is simply not into working-class heroes. And you really feel for the cowboy.
Red From Green
Not one of the stand-outs in this collection, but it is a nice look at father-daughter relationship, a common theme with a lot of variations that Meloy uses skillfully.
Lovely Rita
Loved this story! Rita reminds me of the mythical Freya who is willing to sleep with the ugly, hard-working trolls in order to get what she wants. Her sidekick Steven doesn't have much to say (no guy who spends his life on a blue-collar factory floor usually does), but his emotion still comes through, and the final, beautiful line of this story is his.
Spy Vs. Spy
Other reviewers really enjoyed this story, and the consensus seems to be that this is one of the best of the collection - Aaron is the favored son, George isn't. But George lives for any opportunity to right the balance and make Aaron miserable.
Two-Step
I really liked this one. It's the story of two home-wreckers, and the husband who inspires them. It is hard to feel sorry for the first one, but the cold-hearted calculation and utter stupidity of the second one really takes the prize.
The Girlfriend
Wonderful scary-movie story, with a terrible moment when you realize what really happened.
Liliana
Great dead-grandmother story. Meloy does her family inheritance and inherited wealth stories with a bitter twist.
Nine
Good story about a child who must be around nine when most of the action takes place. Couldn't quite put my finger on what is missing in this story - it doesn't "work" as well as the stars in the collection.
Agustin
This story shifts to a different culture, upper-caste Argentina. To me, it seems as if Meloy gets the details of that world right. The housemaid's saintly sacrifice isn't all that believable, but Agustin's reaction is. Not as good as some of the other stories in this collection, but not bad.
The Children
This story did not work because the character of Jennie is too precocious for a girl of twenty - she just isn't credible, and the story pivots around her. But there is some great insight into what goes through the mind of someone who is SO ready to leave the marriage - just not by the time the story ends.
O Tannenbaum
Story starts out "edgy" and rude. As it progresses, you feel that Meloy's reputation wouldn't suffer from a happy story that wasn't so cynical once in a while. But by the end, you're thinking, "that figures".
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An Amazing and Heartfelt (And Sometimes Heartbreaking) Collection of Short Stories
Rating (5)
Date: 2010-05-21
I loved this book. But sometimes the most glowing book reviews are the hardest to write. There are only so many synonyms for amazing.
"It was great!" The end.
Maile Meloy's short stories are conflicting at their best moments. They are heartfelt and heartbreaking. They are triumphic and tragic. They are disturbing and delightful all at the same time. Meloy carefully crafts characters in a very short space and despite the brevity, as a reader I fell in love with her characters; I wanted to hug them and cheer for them. And then Meloy does what only the best writers can do without us getting angry with them...she leaves us hanging. Not entirely. Each story has enough of a conclusion that we can surmise what will happen next, but Meloy doesn't end any story with a neat little bow where all the ends are conveniently tied off and we can close the book with a satisfying snap. Each story leaves something (sometimes a little something, sometimes a lot of something) to the reader's imagination. We each know what we want to happen at the conclusion, but rarely does Meloy explicitly share those moments with us. We are left to our own devices, to marvel and wonder. And that is Meloy's genius. And why this is a short story collection worth rereading.
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Interesting theme marred by poor writing
Rating (2)
Date: 2010-05-10
4 out of 9 customers found this reveiw helpful
Three stories in, I got the bad, bad feeling that the short story is turning into conceptual art: a strong idea (here, the theme of characters desiring the titular "both ways") with absolutely no craftsmanship to back it up. The characters have no motivations, no personality whatsoever. The dialogue is embarrassing; Meloy just can't seem to use it to any positive effect. Meandering plots that come to feeble climaxes, underused settings, pedestrian descriptions -- it's hard to find a reason to read this one, beyond the unifying theme. Pretty much every story could have been the product of a mandatory high school creative writing class.
Necessarily, most of the positive reviews of this collection come from a top-down perspective, never much discussing anything other than the theme and a few vague plots. Lots of readers have apparently enjoyed Both Ways..., and good for them. But if your tastes run toward the finer examples of the modern short story -- particularly with an eye toward writing -- this will be a deeply disappointing read. Three stories; that's all I could manage.
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Perfect Book for Short Story Fans
Rating (5)
Date: 2010-04-23
1 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
Maile Meloy's Both Ways Is the Only Way I Want It is a perfect fit for short-story lovers. Her stories are tender, but ironic; Montana-tough, but soft-spoken. Each one has qualities of both simplicity and ineffability. The characters are everyday people, drawn with exquisite precision by a writer whose humanity is evident in all of her stories. She's also the Gary Cooper of writers with not an extra word on a page. To state the obvious (but I can't help myself), I highly recommend this book.
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by Raymond M. LaFehr
ISBN: 0974750603
Binding/Media: Paperback - 250 pages
Condition: New
Comments: Sold with pride and shipped with confirmation for US addresses. No shelf wear, no publisher marks.
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by Caroline Deacon
ISBN: 0007136080
Binding/Media: Paperback - 144 pages
Condition: Used: Very Good
Comments: Sold with pride and shipped with confirmation for US addresses. No writing, no highlighting. Gently read copy with light reading wear.
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by Oriana Fallaci
ISBN: 3596237068
Binding/Media: Paperback
Condition: Used: Like New
Comments: Sold with pride and shipped with confirmation for US addresses. No publisher marks, no shelf wear.
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