The Unseen Hand: And Other Plays

WOW! This book is absolutely electrifying. I was first turned on to Sam Shepard from reading "True West", one of his later amazing plays. As I read more and more I thought I had a good understanding of his writing: until I read this book. This book contains many of Shepard's earlier plays from the time he first landed in New York and, as his roommate Charles Mingus Jr. has said "Would go into a room with a ream of paper and come out two hours later with a finished play". If you have really enjoyed some of Shepard's later stuff, I definetly recommend this book to give you a fresh perspective on someone who literally turns "conventional theatre" upside down. If you are new to Shepard, you might want to tryhis later works first, only because they are easier to follow. These earlier works are very much like the "Beat generation"- throwing out speeches and sentences without punctuation, with tons of craziness happening on every inch of the stage. Sometimes the plays may be hard to follow, or confusing, but if you really "get" what Shepard is doing, you will love this book. Just be warned that all the plays are far from conventional theatre. If you are an "Our Town" type of person this isn't for you. If you enjoy Albee and Beckett, if you enjoy equal parts peace and chaos on stage, then check this book out.