Synopses & Reviews
With his five previous books of fiction, Charles Baxter established himself as a contemporary literary master, in the traditions of Raymond Carver, William Maxwell, and Alice Munro. This radiant new collection confirms Baxter's ability to revel in the surfaces of seemingly ordinary lives while uncovering their bedrock of passion, madness, levity and grief.
Review
"No one will ever accuse Baxter of literary frivolity and that's the problem. In these eight stories, even the most casual events come bathed in sociopolitical gloss....A fine writer is here tried (tired?) and true." Kirkus Reviews
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"Charles Baxter displays once again the ability to orchestrate the details of day-to-day reality into surprising patterns of revelation and the knack for describing the fleeting moments that indelibly define a life." Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times
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"[S]even virtuosic stories preceding a novella largely bereft of the stories' shared merits....Fortunately, the novella comes last: newcomers will have seen what Baxter's reputation is built upon, and admirers will not mind that his gambles do not always pay." Publishers Weekly
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"A remarkable storyteller....Rarely have I been stopped by what I read and moved so deeply." Chuck Wachtel, The Nation
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"Reading Mr. Baxter's work reminds us of fiction's ability to take us out of ourselves....This is a book we can enjoy with admiration untainted by rancor or envy though writers may secretly wish that they'd written it themselves." Francine Prose, The New York Times Book Review
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"[B]axter is an exemplary writer because he works in persuasive solidities, in what is actual, in what, when dropped into water, displaces it up and into the air. Believers is also a source of simply gorgeous prose..." Frederick Busch, The Los Angeles Times
Synopsis
From the winner of the PEN/Malamud Award for Excellence in the Short Story and "one of our most gifted writers" (Chicago Tribune) With his five previous books of fiction, Charles Baxter established himself as a contemporary literary master, in the traditions of Raymond Carver, William Maxwell, and Alice Munro. This radiant collection confirms Baxter's ability to revel in the surfaces of seemingly ordinary lives while uncovering their bedrock of passion, madness, levity and grief.
About the Author
Charles Baxter lives in Minneapolis and teaches at the University of Minnesota. He is the author of seven other works of fiction, including Believers, Harmony of the World, and Through the Safety Net. The Feast of Love was a finalist for the National Book Award.
Exclusive Essay
Read an exclusive essay by Charles Baxter