The Story of the Century: a novel

The Novel of the Century by David Bellos review – the story of Les Misérables

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From a room with a view of the harbour and seabirds, removed from political tumult, he finished the enormous manuscript he called his leviathan. Why, as the Gospel of Matthew declares, are the poor always with us? Hugo thought they should not be. For him, the persistence of poverty was a sign that the revolution was incomplete. The character Fantine descends into debt when she is abandoned by the father of her child, sacked from her factory job, and resorts to selling her hair and teeth before becoming a prostitute. After leaving prison with nothing, he becomes a factory owner.

There is no inflation, so he keeps the money he has made from manufacturing black glass beads in a trunk in the ground for 10 years without it depreciating. The choice of black glass beads as the foundation for his fortune connects the novel to the global slave trade, because they were used as tokens of exchange in the purchase of human cargo from Arab and African middlemen. Translation rights were not included. Lacroix boasted that he did not have a cent of the cash he had promised Hugo; he had to get an enormous loan from the Oppenheim bank, where he had the necessary contacts.

My Own Life is published by Vintage. The Novel of the Century is published by Particular Books. I probably liked it more than it deserved simply because it was so different than the usual formula literary fiction. This was one of the few stories in the anthology that surprised me, that didn't head where I was expecting after reading the first paragraph. The protagonist Connie is too-stupid-to-live--but I have to admit this is one of the most memorable stories in the book, and probably the most often anthologized.

One of the few in the anthology I had read before.

Dec 16, Ollie rated it it was ok Recommends it for: It can't be easy to choose the best American short stories of the 20th Century. Even if you have over pages to fill like this collection classic stories are bound to be left out.

The Best American Short Stories of the Century

Although there are plenty of good stories here from canonical writers, I had a few problems with this anthology. First of all, some of the stories were not very good, and I can't help feeling that they were chosen because they fit some kind of needed token representation. It's a crime that Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" is not in this collection surely one of the best American short stories ever written? Towards the end, there's a story by Alice Munro, which is kinda funny when you consider that she's the quintessential Canadian writer who has, by the way, never lived in America.

And here's a question for you: Oct 24, Michael rated it it was amazing Shelves: This was a wonderful collection of short stories from crime, love, illness, death, racism, and humor. Aug 15, John Wiswell rated it really liked it Recommends it for: Literary readers, short story readers, modern classics readers. Updike's The Best American Short Stories of the Century underrepresents humor and "genre" fiction, and for every drop of optimism there is a bucket of pessimism - so, it's a typical literary fiction collection. These are not the best-told stories, nor the most interesting stories.

Those Updike selects are chosen for their literary value, their intellectual depth and understanding of more delicate elements of the craft, like religious allusions or flexible voice.

Scott Fitzge Updike's The Best American Short Stories of the Century underrepresents humor and "genre" fiction, and for every drop of optimism there is a bucket of pessimism - so, it's a typical literary fiction collection. You're not supposed to agree with Updike's selections I would have chosen other Wright, Welty and O'Connor stories , but this is a great resource for beginners who want to understand the American literary short story, or who are looking for new writers to explore.

Anyone who recognizes every name on the Table of Contents, though, is overqualified and shouldn't pick this up - you probably own, have read, or will disagree with the addition of each story that's in in here. Nov 06, Hafeez Lakhani rated it it was amazing Shelves: Scott Fitzgerald, because really I'd long been in the camp who'd read Gatsby and nothing else of his. His story Crazy Sunday was so good I stopped after each page and re-read, to lengthen my time with it. Also nice to get a small dose of a few masters who I of course respect but couldn't sit through a whole novel with - like Nabokov, Saul Bellow, Hemingway.

Also amazing samplings of Roth, Updike, Lorrie Moore, and other gems. If there's any flaw it's that Updike doesn't give any props to ethnographic rock stars who started to come alive in the 90s like Junot Diaz, Jhumpa Lahiri, Edwidge Danticat - but surely they'll get their cred in the next century's tome.

May 22, Lindsey rated it it was amazing Shelves: This is a truly amazing collection! My mom and I each had a copy and read it at roughly the same time. My mom, of course, finished first! I eagerly await each yearly edition of the Best American Short Stories, so this volume was a special treat for me. One of the things that surprised me about this book was just how 'American' it is. John Updike notes in his introduction that he tried not just to choose stories written in America, but stories that truly tell us something ABOUT America.

I think This is a truly amazing collection! I think that he succeeded completely. Each of these stories moves you down the path of American history via a window into a small corner of the 'American' experience. This book is not only full of powerful, diverse stories but also provieds a good introduction to many well known authors. Whether you plow through it like I did, or read a story here and there, this is a book you should have on your shelf.

Jun 08, Nick Black rated it liked it Recommended to Nick by: Also, I'm pretty sure Alice Munro is Canadian, yet John O' Hara finds no place here both are semi-explained in Updike's introduction--the former hailing from "Anglophone Canada" how does this fit into either a pan-continental or nationalist reading of the term "American"? Aug 06, Crystal rated it really liked it. What I learned from this book Edward O'Brien, who started the annual Best American Short Stories, saw the virtue in our diversity as a nation being represented so well in a distinctly American literature.

So from the intro I learned that the short story form is an American genre think Washington Irving, Edgar Allan Poe, etc and it has been mostly dismissed by the rest of the literary world for lacking "sophistication and technique".

The introductions are given by the year's guest editor and What I learned from this book The introductions are given by the year's guest editor and this one is John Updike. Choosing from , he picked 56 stories that he felt best mirror the realities of American life.

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I never ever thought of short stories as a news medium, another thing I learned. I liked that Updike took each decade and reminded the reader to keep in mind what was going on in society and the world because these influences do bleed through. So, many stories that I wanted to dismiss as just stupid or self indulgent, now I thought more about understanding.

Updike wrote in the intro, "The American experience, story after story insisted, has been brutal and hard. I can attest, having read each of the fifty-five stories in this volume, that I feel like I have done something of value by reading this book; and I am glad that I came to possess this volume, at what time I know not, but it was a happy impulse when and where I purchased it. Jul 22, Nicholas rated it it was amazing.

I would be hard-pressed to say anything negative about a collection of short stories selected by John Updike. This collection of stories are character and era-defining, stunning classics of American short story literature. With pieces from classic American authors like Faulkner, O'Brian, and Lardner, it does not disappoint. My opinion of this I would be hard-pressed to say anything negative about a collection of short stories selected by John Updike. My opinion of this anthology is that it's an excellent and exciting collection of period literature.

An excellent snapshot of our nation at the time the stories were written. Of all the stories written, my favourite was Updike's "Gesturing". Strong and vivid writing technique, and a nice modern approach to the family system. Apr 23, Tyler rated it it was amazing. First you should know I've always loved short stories. The really great ones seem to have all the richness and plot and feeling of a novel, but wrapped up in a few short pages.

So it's a challenging genre to do well, sort of like the famous apology from Blaise Pascal for writing a long letter because he "lacked the time to make it short. I can't resist listing a few that I enjoyed most: But they're all poignant and impactful and beautiful. Sort of like life I guess. Feb 28, Shan rated it really liked it Shelves: What could be better reading material for someone with a head cold, mild general malaise, and the attention span of a five-year-old? There actually is an answer to this question, and it's "comic books.

Feb 20, Abby rated it liked it.

Some of these stories were amazing, and others were amazingly depressing. Dec 16, Vincent rated it really liked it Shelves: Yes, I finished the last four stories of this fifty-six story volume during the week that little Nico decided to arrive in this world. I found it useful to have this book at the hospital as I read outloud a few of the stories I most appreciated to Jessica and Nico during labor yes, there are some calmer moments before the dilation and the "big push". I noted about 20 stories for a re-read due to story construction, writing technique, or overall likability of the story, which of course, is trul Yes, I finished the last four stories of this fifty-six story volume during the week that little Nico decided to arrive in this world.

I noted about 20 stories for a re-read due to story construction, writing technique, or overall likability of the story, which of course, is truly subjective. This is a definite read if you favor the short story in these ever time consuming days, or if you have a short attention span. Hard to pinpoint my favorite story, but if I were forced for an answer I would recommend: The Best American Short Stories of The Century These wonderful short stories have helped me re-discover the magic of a fabulous if short story.

After finishing them I have started reading short tales…again. They are different in subject and manner but they share something: From the very famous Scott F. Crazy Sunday was about Hollywood, a strange affair and alcoholism. The German Refugee has another subject, treated however with the same talent, delicacy and profound human knowledge.

Those tales that impressed me most have been reviewed separately. Such is the case for a very short story called Wild Plums. Here We Are made me think of my own marriage and was a lot of fun, even when the lead roles quarreled. Both The Christmas Gift and The Second Tree From the Left are very touching, heart-felt stories, which cause some sadness and no lesser joy of reading marvelous writers.

A City of Churches is about bigotry and is told with humor and a light pen. I empathized with the young woman and laughed at the zealot.

The Things They Carry is about Vietnam and, surprisingly has a funny side to it, apart from the grave, tragic message that war is horrible. All together, this a great book and I wish you read it. Mar 13, Ginny Thurston rated it really liked it. My husband loves John Updike, so it is interesting to see what he chose as the best short stories.

They were fairly evenly spread through the decades and included all the greats like Faulkner, Hemingway, Nabokov, Cather,Saroyan, E. I had taught several of these in AP English There are plenty of obscure writers, as well. I rem My husband loves John Updike, so it is interesting to see what he chose as the best short stories. I remember my AP students asking me why all of the literature was so tragic and full of angst I really appreciated the few light stories that really made me laugh I did miss Jhumpa Lahiri, but I am not sure if she qualifies as American, or maybe she is more 21st Century.

Regardless, she is my favorite short story writer Jan 20, James Edwards rated it liked it. Technically all the stories were written perfectly. However, I was disappointed that the majority of them were depressing. In addition, it seemed as if some of the authors were more interested in writing techniques than creating characters or stories that drew you in. This is unfortunate because there's not much room in a short story for development of plot or character depth. I was surprised I didn't care for some stories written by big names, while others I was relieved that they came through Technically all the stories were written perfectly.

I was surprised I didn't care for some stories written by big names, while others I was relieved that they came through for me by writing something that drew me in. I was thankfully rewarded with also liking an author I had not read before: So, with that, there was some good that came out of reading this large collection.

Dec 16, Bryan Murphy rated it it was amazing. Not sure about the best, but most of them are pretty bloody good, though there is a bit too strong a focus, for my taste, on the grim: One thing I did not expect was to enjoy "big names", especially the earlier ones, so much. I also noticed that few of the later stories are at all experimental in style or language. A fine addition to anyone's bookshelf. Apr 12, Linda Canup rated it really liked it.

If you only read one of these stories, read "I Want to Live! Nov 05, Bet rated it liked it. We really lost a jewel when Updike died.

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