Jesus' Son: Stories by92 reviews Denis Johnson Harper Perennial, 1993 Children of loneness + I read the first couple stories... + Aimless Days of the Addicted In Denis Johnson's stunning collection of short stories "Jesus' Son", there is an image that stays with you most of the time. This is the picture of loneness and desolation. In one of the best tales, called "Emergency", the main character whose name goes by FH and a friend drive through the ...             CivilWarLand in Bad Decline47 reviews George Saunders Riverhead Trade, 1997 A Message to America + A GREAT COLLECTION OF SHORT STORIES + Stories with a twisted, dark, and tragicomic american vision + Thank You, Mr. Saunders             Almost No Memory: Stories14 reviews Lydia Davis Picador, 2001 the surprising weight of a simple act + A Master of the Short Short + Interesting collection After having stumbled upon Lydia Davis three years ago, I read every one of her books, and fell quite in love with them. I proceed, as though I am reading a list. Every detail is a full bite. There are no flowers; it is not sentimental. Her prose is simple and clear. When I am finished, there ...             Break It Down10 reviews Lydia Davis Farrar Straus Giroux, 1986 Her sentences are like little gilt-wrapped presents that explode when opened. + Well, to tell you the truth I haven't officially read the book yet... + Uneven- yet often brilliant + Often personal, often objective...a wide scope of style             A Good Man Is Hard to Find and Other Stories40 reviews Flannery O'Connor Harvest Books, 1977 Do Yourself a Favor and Read Flannery O'Connor + A Southern Story Classic + Explore the Dark Side in the Deep South + for the love of all that is grotesque + A perfect collection of stories...             Sam the Cat: and Other Stories34 reviews Matthew Klam Vintage, 2001 How to Write + Depressing but I couldn't stop... + funny, daring, and smart The characters are not all that admirable, but the writing and insight are so deft that they will elicit your sympathy nonetheless. The dialogue is just right. The picture of urban anomie is harrowing at times, but that's what makes it so good. If you're a student of writing, this is style worth ...             Tell Me: 30 Stories3 reviews Mary Robison Counterpoint, 2002 her greatest hits + Great Stories classic stories such as "Coach" and "Pretty Ice" and "Yours" are finally together in one volume!             Like Life10 reviews Lorrie Moore Vintage, 2002 "It's like life, but it's not necessarily life." + Good stuff + Loneliness, alienation with wit + A Lorrie Moore book is a treasure             Anagrams14 reviews Lorrie Moore Vintage, 2007 Loved the language and humor, but oh so sad + A witty poetic genius writes a surprise. + Moore is a master I have read three Lorrie Moore books, but missed this one so it was a treat to delve into her writing again. I enjoyed the story and laughed at the turns of phrase. It is fun to have a book that it is best to read slowly so you don't miss the unexpected anagram or wry comment about life. Then ...             Why Did I Ever25 reviews Mary Robison Counterpoint, 2002 Get This Book + Brilliant + "why does everything i love burn" -- Homer This is the best book I have read in a long time. You'll laugh; you'll cry. The format is a little different, but you should find yourself hooked almost immediately. The characters: a neurotic Hollywood script doctor; her methadone addicted daughter and hospitalized son; some truly wacky neighbors; ...             A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again: Essays and Arguments93 reviews David Foster Wallace Back Bay Books, 1998 Literate Gonzo + What a tragedy to have lost such a genius. + Wallace on a Cruise Ship? David Foster Wallace--may he R.I.P.--is one of my very favourite non-fiction writers. I'd categorize his style as a sort-of literate new journalism; while DFW is definately the main character of every essay here (even when he's purportedly talking about, say, David Lynch, DFW's distinctive voice ...             Borges: Collected Fictions67 reviews Jorge Luis Borges Penguin (Non-Classics), 1999 A book you and your doppelganger will both enjoy + Intelligent fiction - makes you think + The path you are to take is endless... + The Greatest Collection + Amazing deal             Cronopios and Famas9 reviews Julio Cortazar New Directions Publishing Corporation, 1999 Makes me happy. + Really good book, in an acceptable edition + CORTAZAR AT HIS BEST + Buy this book! + Cronopios and famas             Do the Windows Open?32 reviews Julie Hecht Penguin (Non-Classics), 1998 Is This Woman a Genius? + It made me laugh out loud! + Her short story about Elvis In a world of the banal, the vulgar, the repellent, Julie Hecht glows with a true light. Her writing is both simple and complex. Her stories are of a wandering soul, a person trapped in solitude while speaking to many neighbors and acquaintances. All her conversations, as her cypher of a husband ...             Safety of Objects33 reviews A. M. Homes Harper Perennial, 2003 Where the suburban heart is + Good stuff. Strong voice. + Nobody is Safe + Rural America like you've never read it before!             Self-Help29 reviews Lorrie Moore Vintage, 2007 Everywoman + These stories will make your really think + Excellent read for students of literary fiction Wow. Lorrie Moore just gets it so right. These stories are piercing, exposing, pointing the finger right at the reader, yet sympathetic and just true, true, true. Moore certainly has a flair for drama, which comes out in stories like "What is Seized", but it's never gratuitious or too ...             Bad Behavior33 reviews Mary Gaitskill Vintage, 1989 Exposing external and internal wounds of happiness and normality + Caustic stories about the emotionally dark side of sex. + fantastic. + Your Neighbor's Secret Life?             The Art Lover: A Novel (New Directions Classics)3 reviews Carole Maso New Directions, 2006 Beautiful, Unsurpassed + Skillfully crafted. Exquisite writing. + a fresh blending of prose and poetry that does more than tel Unexpected after the spectacular flameout that was "Ghost Dance", this is the signal work of perhaps the finest living American writer. A more intense, devastating, meticulously constructed work you will not find if you read every book on offer at Amazon. "The Art Lover" is like a shattering, ...             Girl With Curious Hair27 reviews David Foster Wallace W. W. Norton & Company, 1996 DFW, Fiction and DFW and Fiction + "John Billy" levitates ! + Brilliant, funny, disturbing Okay, so here's the deal w/ DFW: the guy is extremely intelligent. he is also overtly aware of his intelligence and displays it all over the place. this bothers people. some things to remember and know about DFW: he was a philo. major as an undergrad; his first book was an investigation of the ...             Because They Wanted to: Stories47 reviews Mary Gaitskill Simon & Schuster, 1998 Stunning Stories! + Great writing + Kraft-Ebbing meets Miss Lonelyhearts + A strange jangling beauty + Brilliant!!!