The Paris Review Book: Of Heartbreak, Madness, Sex, Love, Betrayal, Outsiders, Intoxication, War, Whimsy, Horrors, God, Death, Dinner, Baseba

I picked this up because I admire the editors at the Paris Review (past and present) and I wanted to acquaint myself, and my family with the variety of authors and their writing in the near immediate way that an anthology affords. The book is divided into topics: heartbreak, madness, sex, love, betrayal, etc., and the contributers span living and dead, male and female, young and old writers. In point of fact some pieces are interviews of the author on the topic, some are essays, short stories and other formats by them. Even if you've read their novels, it's interesting to see how they handle a topic in short form. If you have a mental check-list of important writers and want to taste their particular style and craft -- this book is for you. It is especially interesting to examine how pieces can become dated or continue to feel timeless, regardless of the mastery. Take a forkfull of radicchio then a piece of endive, or consume the entire bowel in one sitting. You are sure to enjoy this literary meal.

Reading anything can be a little time consuming if you're not into it, but this book strives to break-away from that by dividing up sections anyone can find interesting and paramount to their own lives as well as favorite authors interviews and intriguing samplings of written work. Read a lot or a little at time, but read it, its worth it!

Well I have never read a copy of the magazine The Paris Review but have subscribed to Granta since it started and subscribe to The New Yorker. The first story in the anthology "Terrific Mother" by Lorrrie Moore was enough for me to give this five stars - let's face it, where can you get such a thrill for $21? There may be some stories, poems, interviews, that don't grab me with the same electric immediacy as that first story, but I don't have to read it from cover to cover. It's one of those terrific bedside books as far as I'm concerned and an absolute joy to explore.

This book makes a perfect gift for both serious literature junkies and those who have blown off reading for the past fifty years. If the former applies to you, here's the best from the best. If you're in the latter category, this book will catch you up to speed. The Paris Review published the first chapter of Kerouac's ON THE ROAD, the first chapter of McInerney's BRIGHT LIGHTS, BIG CITY, the first chapter of Franzan's THE CORRECTIONS, etc., etc., etc. Obviously, they've been able to spot new talent from the day they started even to today. And of course, their fantastic interviews with writers themselves are legendary. A must for the collector and the neophyte alike.

Well, as a whole the book was certainly worth reading. It was a bit less organized than the title perhaps suggests...but who said a book can't be mildly random. I have only two warnings for prospective buyers. 1) The poetry selections weren't uniformly fabulous, and, in my ignorant opinion, lagged behind the short stories in quality. 2) A lot of the big name authors appear only in passing. For example, only two selections of Faulkner's work appear...both short (less than a page in length) segments of interviews on the art of writing. Have fun reading the book...just don't expect it to deliver on all its promises.