thoughts dissected

Let's Play a Game

How about Hide n' Seek?
Okay. I will hide something - thoughts dissected.
You will seek something - my personal blog.

Having fun yet? I hope so (and thoughtsdissected.com might return . . . but for now it just wants to hide).

Well, what are you waiting for? Come and find me.

PS. This URL might become redirected to my personal blog and if that is of no interest to you then please remove any links from your blogroll or favourites list.

Oh, and if my personal blog does interest you then please let me compliment your on your fine taste in blog reading. (wink)

For the Love of the Story . . .

Thoughts Dissected for the Week of September 27- October 03.

Let Us Celebrate

I'm an ardent fan of Zoetrope All-Story magazine and the new issue is now available. Yay!
Selected stories can be read online. Again: yay!

First Lines

"At the Café Lovely"
by Rattawut Lapcharoensap

Every so often I dream of my brother’s face on fire, his brown eyes—eyes very much like my own—staring at me through a terrible mask of flames. I wake to the scent of burning flesh, his fiery face looming before me as an afterimage, and in that darkness I am eleven again. I have not yet learned to trespass. I have not yet learned to grieve. Nor have I learned to pity us—my brother, my mother, and me—and Anek and I are in Bangkok sitting on the roof of our mother’s house smoking cigarettes, watching people drift by on their bicycles while the neighbors release their mangy dogs for the night to roam the city’s streets.

Recently Praised!

Runaway by Alice Munro

She is one of those few living writers who, in the way of the greats, must simply be read.

Yet again, Runaway provides a complex feast. Each story's title is but a single word, the distillation of its subject or theme. And each carries, too, the broader weight of Munro's central human interests: Chance, Silence, Passion, Tricks, Powers. There is a quality of the seven deadly sins about this grouping, except that there are eight stories in the collection, and except for the fact that these potentially volatile abstractions remain, in Chekhovian fashion, absolutely neutral. "You would have me, when I describe horse thieves, say: 'Stealing horses is an evil.' But that has been known for ages without my saying so," Chekhov wrote to Aleksey Suvorin. "Let the jury judge them; it's my job simply to show what sort of people they are." Munro knows this, profoundly: No behaviour is shocking, no detail beneath notice, no human spirit dismissed. Like a hospital nurse, Munro sees and accepts it all, quietly recording, ordering into meaning. It is just life.

oh yeah, says who?

First Lines

"Chance" by Alice Munro

Halfway through June of 1965, the term at Torrance House School for Girls is over. Juliet has not been offered a permanent job—the teacher she was replacing has recovered from a bout of depression—and she could now be on her way home. Instead, she is taking what she has described as a little detour. A little detour to see a friend who lives up the coast.

Recently Praised!

A Bit on the Side by William Trevor

If "A Bit on the Side"' shines a little less brilliantly here and there -- the reader at the mercy of the storytelling rather than the story -- it is because Trevor, at times, can be so oblique, so baroque and convoluted on the page, that a phrase or a paragraph must be reread and puzzled out. But who else, in our time, is in the position of having himself to compete with? What other living writer could so regularly follow his own masterpieces -- ''Angels at the Ritz,'' ''Lovers of Their Time,'' ''Beyond the Pale,'' ''Two Lives,'' ''After Rain,'' ''The Story of Lucy Gault'' -- with another and then another? Year after year they come, novels, collections of stories like these -- treasures of gorgeous writing, brilliant dialogue and unforgettable lives.

oh yeah, says who?

For the Love of the Story . . .

Thoughts Dissected for the Week of September 14- 19.

Recently Praised

Collected Stories by Isaac Bashevis Singer

Many people consider Isaac Bashevis Singer as one of the great storytellers of the twentieth century. William Deresiewicz looks at Singer's life, and the accomplishments and controversy surrounding his work.

Question posed to readers?

"Who will read stories of Polish shtetls a half century hence?"

Answer from this reader:

I will. And so will countless others who are also impressed by Isaac Bashevis Singer's prolific and intellignet stories.

In Sunday's New York Times Book Review

"The Bargain" by Truman Capote

"This short story, written more than 50 years ago, appears ...for the first time — as far as anyone knows, the last unpublished story by Truman Capote."

First Lines

Several things about her husband irritated Mrs. Chase. For instance, his voice: he sounded always as though he were bidding in a poker game. To hear his unresponsive drawl was exasperating, especially now when, talking to him on the telephone, she herself was strident with excitement. ''Of course I already have one, I know that. But you don't understand, dear -- it's a bargain,'' she said, stressing the last word, then pausing to let its magic develop.

Recently Praised!

Poached Egg On Toast by Frances Itani

Itani is a master of the telling image, of carefully organizing and revealing these until the epiphanic moment of release. Less successful is her use of dream imagery to further narrative goals; almost all these stories house one dream, and the device begins to feel reflexive.

The bereftness of human isolation, unspeakable separation (both geographic and emotional) and the inability to broach perceived relational divisions inform all Itani's stories.

oh yeah, says who?

For the Love of the Story . . .

Thoughts Dissected for the Week of September 7- 13.

Recently Discovered!

The reason to visit Barking Seal is not simply because it offers a significant and ever-growing collection of short story reviews and commentary, it is because Ian’s comments are also intelligent and thought provoking. It is wonderful to discover a site that celebrates the magic of the short story and Ian and his site are truly worth celebrating.

Do yourself a favour and visit his site often.

Recently Praised!

Five new collections, which we are told, could be collectively labelled "Short Stories: Anxiety Attacks" were recently reviewed by Jeff Turrentine. These collections offer “candid snapshots of an anxious people.”

The Secret Goldfish - David Means
Unkept - Courtney Eldridge
When the Nines Roll Over - David Benoff
Field Study - Rachel Seiffert
Rear View - Peter Duval

Turrentine suggests that these collections not only offer anxious characters, but also offer a wonderful reading experience.

It also offers moments of gleeful indecision - wondering what collection to begin with.

On My Nightstand

Well, I have decided which one of the five to begin with.

I just started reading Field Study, Rachel Seiffert's collection of short stories.

Eileen Battersby of The Irish Times claims that:

this book is so good that even a positive review seems inadequate. It is extraordinary to experience these fictions, each an insight into the ordinary lives of ordinary people. Seiffert remains in complete, occasionally quite awesome control.

The only story I have read so far is "The Crossing" - a taut, concise narrative which explores issues of trust and betrayal when humans are in extremis.

I have read that (the same story) appears, almost unaltered, in the middle section of The Dark Room, Seiffert's award winning and much praised debut novel.

I have not read that novel. However, if the other stories are anything like "The Crossing" this will be an extraordinary reading experience.

Listen to a Story.

BBC Radio 4 aims to engage and inspire - and it often does. Many of the programs have a listen again option so that "you can now catch up on Radio 4's Drama and Readings from the last seven days, whenever you want."

The Afternoon Reading is either a short story or an abridged book. It often features writers who are new to radio.* This week the programme features The Big Sneeze a week of short stories inspired by a sneeze.

Once again experience the joy of having a story read to you. And just in case - gesundheit!!

At Long Last

In this week’s issue of The New Yorker (and online), Marilynne Robinson publishes "Kansas," her first piece of fiction in two decades.*

First Lines!

"Kansas" by Marilynne Robinson

Last night the two of us had a conversation. I doubt you will remember it. I told you that I might be gone sometime, and you said where, and I said to be with the Good Lord, and you said why, and I said, because I’m old, and you said, I don’t think you’re old. And you put your hand in my hand and you said, you aren’t very old, as if that settled it.

Robinson also spoke to The New Yorker’s Carin Besser, about her nonfiction writing, Calvinism, and the Civil War.

“A Venture Into Something Literary”

If you are familiar with Small Spiral Notebook then you already know that each issue is brimming with wonderful offerings. If you are not familiar with this very fine online (and now in print) journal you are missing some glorious writing. Do not despair: the fall issue is now available and it does not disappoint.

Want Proof?
Read "How to Be a Good Daughter" by Jill Carroll, it is a wonderful short story.

It begins. . .

When you read to your father from one of his westerns, leave the cowboys galloping across the page to look up and see his crepe-like paw reaching for the book. Hand it to him slowly, as if the very act of giving him the book were a timid question.

Wish to continue? Of course you do!

Liking Chekhov . . .Or Not

Often called the greatest of short story writers, Anton Chekhov changed the genre with his spare prose and impressionistic depictions of the human condition. Although countless readers are moved by his masterful art, some readers remain steadfastly unmoved. Mary Dejevsky is one such reader and she shares her "dislike" in a recent article revealingly titled "The twist in the tale? They’re boring."

According to Dejevsky:

Chekhov in general, and the short stories in particular, still defeat me. One challenge is the extent to which his stories and plays are intended to be satirical. Certainly, characters are treated with satire or irony, but the satire is not carried into the story or situation as a whole. Another difficulty is the juxtaposition of the comic and tragic, described as "laughter through tears" and branded quintessentially Russian.
It is too easy a defence of my non-appreciation of Chekhov to argue that only Russians can understand it; after all, plenty of non-Russians It is too easy a defence of my non-appreciation of Chekhov to argue that only Russians can understand it; after all, plenty of non-Russians are avowed fans and cite the universal foibles of Chekhov's characters as a reason. I don't share this view either

Perhaps some readers agree with Dejevsky’s opinion and find Chekhov’s stories defeating. I am not one of those readers. I am indeed an "avowed fan" and each time I re-read one of his stories my appreciation is renewed.

The twist in that tale? Each reading is magical.

First Lines

"The Lady with the Dog" by Anton Chekhov
Translated by Constance Garnett

It was said that a new person had appeared on the sea-front: a lady with a little dog. Dmitri Dmitritch Gurov, who had by then been a fortnight at Yalta, and so was fairly at home there, had begun to take an interest in new arrivals. Sitting in Verney’s pavilion, he saw, walking on the sea-front, a fair-haired young lady of medium height, wearing a béret; a white Pomeranian dog was running behind her.

They are Back!

Having taken a brief summer sabbatical, The Danforth Review is back with a bevy of literary offerings including eight short fiction pieces.

Listen to This!

Bookworm: A must for the serious reader, "Bookworm" (as heard on KCRW, a community service of Santa Monica College), showcases writers of fiction and poetry - the established, new or emerging - all interviewed with insight and precision by the show's host and guiding spirit, Michael Silverblatt.*

Recent Programs that Highlighted Short Story Collections

David Bezmozgis discussed his stunning debut Natasha: And Other Stories. (aired September 02)
E. L. Doctorow spoke to Silverblatt about Sweet Land Stories. (aired July 15)

Collection of the Month

'Funny, sad, playful, savagely accurate about human relationships and failings, The Lemon Table is vintage Julian Barnes'. -- Literary Review

I am off to re-read this exquisite and exhilarating collection.

I will return Tuesday.

Have a wonderful Labor Day weekend. Make certain to smile, laugh, love, read, and choose to be happy.

We Must Celebrate!
William Saroyan
August 31, 1908 - May 18, 1981

Novelist, short-story writer, dramatist, and essayist.
His stories celebrated optimism in the middle of trials and difficulties of the Depression-era.
Saroyan worked tirelessly to perfect a prose style, that was full of zest of for life and was seemingly impressionistic. The style became known as 'Saroyanesque.'

Short Story Connection

It was Saroyan's short stories that first brought fame. The Daring Young Man on the Flying Trapeze (I934) was an instant best seller and catapulted Saroyan to national celebrity. Other collections followed through the 1930s, culminating in 1940 with My Name is Aram. These tales magically evoke Saroyan's Armenian-American boyhood and confirmed his reputation as one of American literature's classic short story writers.

How Shall We Celebrate?

Visit the official web page of The William Saroyan Foundation.
Read one of his short stories: The Foreigner

First Lines

"The Cafeteria in the Evening and a Pool in the Rain" by by Yoko Ogawa

Juju and I moved here on a foggy morning in early winter. There wasn’t that much to move—just an old wardrobe, a desk, and a few boxes. It was simple enough. Sitting on the enclosed porch, I watched the small truck rattle off into the mist. Juju sniffed around the house, checking the cinderblock wall and the glass panel in the door, as if to reassure himself about his new home. He made little grumbling noises as he worked, his head cocked to one side.

Recently Praised

Damage Done by the Storm by Jack Hodgins

There is something very Canadian about the stories in this, Jack Hodgins’ third collection. It’s not just that many of them are set in the author’s native B.C. – on the coast or the islands or in logging settlements – since some unfold further afield, in a German town or the backroads of Mississippi. It’s not even his characters, bookended as they are by relatives and responsibilities, by wayward or oblivious children and parents. Instead, it is the stories themselves‚ gentle yet unsettling, their promise of a melodrama or climax that morphs into something far less easy or obvious.

oh yeah, says who?

Read Me a Story!!

Art Bar Reading Series presents Jonathan Bennett, David O’Meara and Jon Paul Fiorentino this evening at the Victory Café (8 p.m.)

It should come as no surprise that I am an avid fan of Jonathan Bennett's writing.
If it does come as a surprise - let me repeat - I am an avid fan of Jonathan Bennett's writing.

If you are not yet an avid fan of Bennett it is likely because you have not yet experienced his wonderful stories. Well, what are you waiting for?

On this day in 1957, Malaya (Malaysia) gained independence from Britain.

Happy 47th Merdeka Day

Malaysians from all walks of life welcomed the stroke of midnight marking the country's 47th National Day celebrations in a carnival atmosphere.

Short Story Connection:

Malaysian novelist, satirist, and short story writer, the most important contemporary prose writer in the Malay language. Shahnon Ahmad has gained acclaim with his innovative, rich use of old and new languages that have combined Malay languages , such as Kedah, Prak, Johore, Negri Sebilan, Minangkabau, with Sanskrit, Javanese, and Arabic. He has won in 1984 the highest literary award in the country as the National Laureate. He also holds the honorary title of Dato, roughly the equivalent of a British knighthood. Shahnon's novels often dealt with controversial issues of the day.

By the mid-1960s, Shahnon was considered with Samad Said among the leading short-story writers - in general the short story played a more important role than the novel.

Also on this day in 1962, the Caribbean nation Trinidad and Tobago became independent within the British Commonwealth.

In literature, V. S. Naipaul is Trinidad's best known novelist.
Miguel Street (1959), a collection of short stories, won a Somerset Maugham Award.
Post Colonial Web offers a brief biography and overview of Naipaul's life and writing.

Short Story Reader's Club

Current Selection: "The Thing in the Forest" by A. S. Byatt

This story has the potential to do more than provide a chilling depiction of a monster, it has the power to permit the reader to explore the definition of what a "story" can be. It deserves more than one reading.

According to Mary Flanagan:

In "The Thing in the Forest", two little city girls are separated from their families in wartime Britain. On the eve of allocation to their foster homes, they witness an apparition in a nearby wood. It may be a manifestation of shared anxieties or it may be real, but this is no common-or-garden monster. It's thrilling, horrific and utterly original, and never mentioned again until they meet decades later in the same country house.

If this story does not convince you that there might be a "thing in the forest" it will at least convince you of the wonder of Byatt's story telling skill.

First Lines

"The Thing in the Forest" by A. S. Byatt

There were once two little girls who saw, or believed they saw, a thing in a forest. The two little girls were evacuees, who had been sent away from the city by train, with a large number of other children. They all had their names attached to their coats with safety pins, and they carried little bags or satchels, and the regulation gas mask. They wore knitted scarves and bonnets or caps, and many had knitted gloves attached to long tapes that ran along their sleeves, inside their coats, and over their shoulders and out, so that they could leave their ten woollen fingers dangling, like a spare pair of hands, like a scarecrow. They all had bare legs and scuffed shoes and wrinkled socks. Most had wounds on their knees in varying stages of freshness and scabbiness. They were at the age when children fall often and their knees were unprotected. With their suitcases, some of which were almost too big to carry, and their other impedimenta, a doll, a toy car, a comic, they were like a disorderly dwarf regiment, stomping along the platform.

The two little girls had not met before, and made friends on the train. They shared a square of chocolate, and took alternate bites at an apple. Their names were Penny and Primrose.