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The Trails We've Tread

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They have been on the move for the past half-year or so now, starting from their longtime home in the downstairs closet, on to my desk, then to my... Continue »

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On Mount Hood: A Biography of Oregon's Perilous Peak
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Binocular Vision: New and Selected Stories

by Edith Pearlman

ISBN13: 9780982338292
ISBN10: 0982338295
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Synopses & Reviews

Review:

"A finely tuned collection by writer's writer Pearlman combines the best of previous collections (How to Fall; etc.) with austere, polished new work. Pearlman's characters for the most part are stiff-upper-lipped Northeasterners who take what comes and don't grumble: in 'The Noncombatant,' Richard, a 49-year-old doctor suffering gravely from cancer during the tail end of WWII, rages quietly in his small Cape Cod town as celebrations erupt and memories of the wasted lives of the dead are swept away. A fictional Godolphin, Mass., is the setting for many of the stories, such as 'Rules,' in which the well-meaning staff at a soup kitchen try not to pry into the lives of the 'cheats and crazies, drunks and dealers' who frequent the place. 'Hanging Fire' is a perfectly crafted story about a 21-year-old college graduate, Nancy, on the cusp of embarking on life and certain only of her obligation to herself. The tale of retired gastroenterologist Cornelia Fitch in 'Self-Reliance' reads like the fulfillment of Nancy's own self-determined trajectory: after a successful career, she determines how she wants to leave this life: with dignity and a wink. This should win new converts for Pearlman. (Jan.)" Publishers Weekly (Copyright PWyxz LLC)

Synopsis:

In this sumptuous offering, one of our premier storytellers provides a feast for fiction aficionados. Spanning four decades and three prize-winning collections, these 21 vintage selected stories and 13 scintillating new ones take us around the world, from Jerusalem to Central America, from tsarist Russia to London during the Blitz, from central Europe to Manhattan, and from the Maine coast to Godolphin, Massachusetts, a fictional suburb of Boston. These charged locales, and the lives of the endlessly varied characters within them, are evoked with a tenderness and incisiveness found in only our most observant seers.

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Average customer rating based on 3 comments:

: Rachel Osborn, January 5, 2013 (view all comments by Rachel Osborn)
These stories are lyrical and haunting. I love short stories. More and more they are seeming to me like the antidote to a world with too many words. Each story was a little gem of well chosen words that wove characters, story and mood leaving a light but definite and original impression. In particular the story "Fidelity" will always be with me; a perfect story with a perfect description of the color of the sky at 5 o'clock in every season as lovers watch and wait for the time they must part.
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: SophyLou, August 5, 2012 (view all comments by SophyLou)
The first story sets the tone for the book -- quiet stories about presence, witness, and love in many forms.
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: The Book Bully, January 2, 2012 (view all comments by The Book Bully)
To echo Ann Patchett in her introduction to this amazing short story collection, "Why aren't more people raving about Edith Pearlman?!" I defy any reader to walk away from even one of these stories without a dropped jaw. Pearlman is a master at establishing character and atmosphere within a page, sometimes a paragraph. Each one of these gems plunges you into a new world but just as quickly drops you off at the exit. Often after finishing a story I found myself staring out the window, stunned and awed.

Even if you claim short stories aren't your cup of tea, challenge that belief and pick up this book. I have a feeling you'll thank me.
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Product Details

ISBN:: 9780982338292
Author:: Pearlman, Edith
Publisher:: Lookout Books
Subject:: Literature-A to Z
Copyright:: 2011
Publication Date:: 20110131
Binding:: TRADE PAPER
Language:: English

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Binocular Vision: New and Selected Stories New Trade Paper Edith Pearlman

0 stars - 0 reviews

$18.95 In Stock

Product details pages John F. Blair Publisher - 2011-02-02 English 9780982338292 Reviews:

"Publishers Weekly Review" by Publishers Weekly, "A finely tuned collection by writer's writer Pearlman combines the best of previous collections (How to Fall; etc.) with austere, polished new work. Pearlman's characters for the most part are stiff-upper-lipped Northeasterners who take what comes and don't grumble: in 'The Noncombatant,' Richard, a 49-year-old doctor suffering gravely from cancer during the tail end of WWII, rages quietly in his small Cape Cod town as celebrations erupt and memories of the wasted lives of the dead are swept away. A fictional Godolphin, Mass., is the setting for many of the stories, such as 'Rules,' in which the well-meaning staff at a soup kitchen try not to pry into the lives of the 'cheats and crazies, drunks and dealers' who frequent the place. 'Hanging Fire' is a perfectly crafted story about a 21-year-old college graduate, Nancy, on the cusp of embarking on life and certain only of her obligation to herself. The tale of retired gastroenterologist Cornelia Fitch in 'Self-Reliance' reads like the fulfillment of Nancy's own self-determined trajectory: after a successful career, she determines how she wants to leave this life: with dignity and a wink. This should win new converts for Pearlman. (Jan.)" Publishers Weekly (Copyright PWyxz LLC)

"Synopsis" by Ingram, In this sumptuous offering, one of our premier storytellers provides a feast for fiction aficionados. Spanning four decades and three prize-winning collections, these 21 vintage selected stories and 13 scintillating new ones take us around the world, from Jerusalem to Central America, from tsarist Russia to London during the Blitz, from central Europe to Manhattan, and from the Maine coast to Godolphin, Massachusetts, a fictional suburb of Boston. These charged locales, and the lives of the endlessly varied characters within them, are evoked with a tenderness and incisiveness found in only our most observant seers.

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