One of the finest American poets of the second half of the twentieth century, James Schuyler was at the same time a remarkable novelist. Alfred and Guinevere are two children who have been sent by their parents to spend the summer at their grandmother's house in the country. There they puzzle over their parents' absence and their relatives' habits, play games and pranks, make friends and fall out with them, spat and make up. Schuyler has a pitch-perfect ear for the children's voices, and the story, told entirely through snatches of dialogue and passages from Guinevere's diary, is a tour de force of comic and poetic invention. The reader discovers that beneath the book's apparently guileless surface lies a very sophisticated awareness of the complicated ways in which words work to define the often perilous boundaries between fantasy and reality, innocence and knowledge.
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Editorial Reviews
Review
"The novel…is quite an extraordinary piece of work, chronicling an uneasy period in the life of a brother and sister, seven—year—old Alfred and 11—year—old Guinevere." — Michael Hofmann, London Review of Books
"A delectable little book…A deft and funny creation of a high quality somewhere between the terror—haunted humor of Richard Hughes’ A High Wind in Jamaica and the placid, presumably unself—conscious amusements of Daisy Ashford’s The Young Visiters." — Commonweal
"Schuyler, who died in 1991, was a noted poet, however this book is not written in 'poetic prose'—he employs a simple style, without imagery or complexities. But every page displays a poet’s sensibility in the fresh and inventive ways Schuyler has his child narrators use and misuse language.Alfred and Guinevere is a small treasure, and its restoration to print is to be commended." — Phillip Routh, Rain Taxi Review of Books
"You can hear it now — for, in dialogue form, (except when Guinevere Gates is writing in her diary) here are the skirmishes, the misadventures and mishaps, and the troubles that she and her younger brother Alfred get into in their city home…" — Kirkus Reviews
"A delectable little book…A deft and funny creation of a high quality somewhere between the terror—haunted humor of Richard Hughes’ A High Wind in Jamaica and the placid, presumably unself—conscious amusements of Daisy Ashford’s The Young Visiters." — Commonweal
"Schuyler, who died in 1991, was a noted poet, however this book is not written in 'poetic prose'—he employs a simple style, without imagery or complexities. But every page displays a poet’s sensibility in the fresh and inventive ways Schuyler has his child narrators use and misuse language.Alfred and Guinevere is a small treasure, and its restoration to print is to be commended." — Phillip Routh, Rain Taxi Review of Books
"You can hear it now — for, in dialogue form, (except when Guinevere Gates is writing in her diary) here are the skirmishes, the misadventures and mishaps, and the troubles that she and her younger brother Alfred get into in their city home…" — Kirkus Reviews
About the Author
James Schuyler (1923–1991) was a preeminent figure in the celebrated New York School of poets. He grew up in Washington, D.C., and near Buffalo, New York. After World War II, he made his way to Italy, where he served for a time asW.H. Auden’s secretary. His books include three novels, A Nest of Ninnies (written with John Ashbery), Alfred and Guinevere, and What’s For Dinner, as well as numerous volumes of poetry.
John Ashbery is the author of twenty books of poetry, includingSelf-Portrait in a Convex Mirror (1975), which received the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry, the National Book Critics Circle Award, and the National Book Award; and Some Trees (1956), which was selected by W. H. Auden for the Yale Younger Poets Series. He has also published art criticism, plays, and a novel. Ashbery is currently the Charles P. Stevenson, Jr., Professor of Languages and Literature at Bard College.
John Ashbery is the author of twenty books of poetry, includingSelf-Portrait in a Convex Mirror (1975), which received the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry, the National Book Critics Circle Award, and the National Book Award; and Some Trees (1956), which was selected by W. H. Auden for the Yale Younger Poets Series. He has also published art criticism, plays, and a novel. Ashbery is currently the Charles P. Stevenson, Jr., Professor of Languages and Literature at Bard College.
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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A funny, minor treasure,
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This review is from: Alfred and Guinevere (New York Review Books Classics) (Paperback)
Schuyler is best remembered (with Kenneth Koch, John Ashberry, and Frank O'Hara) as one of the "New York" school of poets. This slim little novel, however, shows that his talents in prose have been underappreciated. ALFRED AND GUINEVERE is a hilarious little story--told entirely through dialogue, letters, and Guinevere's diary--of two very precocious children sent to live in the country with their uncle and grandmother for reasons initially unclear to them. Their attempts to piece together the larger adult world (which may comprise adultery, death, disappointment, and loneliness) are very funny and poignant, and though Alfred and Guienevere often get on each others' nerves their mutual devotion still rings quite true. This is a fast read, and its high quality may still not justify the exorbitant cover price. (NYRB has been charging too much for its editions, which are beautiful and spectacularly chosen, but often run to novella-length rather than to full novel-length). But I was glad I had bought--and read--this little-known jewel.
9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
beauty and poignancy,
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This review is from: Alfred and Guinevere (New York Review Books Classics) (Paperback)
Out of print for nearly 50 years, New York Review Books has happily reprinted this slim, charming, nearly forgotten classic by Schuyler, best known as a poet. Told entirely through the dialogue, letters, and diary entries of two very precocious children -- Alfred and Guinevere, sent to live in the country with their uncle and grandmother for reasons not entirely clear to them -- Schuyler brilliantly and hilariously portrays their attempts to piece together the larger, enigmatic adult world around them. Beneath the book's apparently guileless surface, there also lies a sophisticated awareness of the complicated ways in which words work to define the boundaries between fantasy and reality, innocence and knowledge. Thoroughly delightful, Alfred and Guinevere will move you with both beauty and poignancy.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A wonderful book,
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Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Alfred and Guinevere (New York Review Books Classics) (Paperback)
I worked with children for 14 years, and Alfred and Guinevere is one of the few books that seems to "get" kids. The brother and sister in A&G seem like real kids you might know. The book is rich and psychologically penetrating.
(Another great book about children: Nicholson Baker's The Everlasting Story of Nory)
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Inside This Book
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First Sentence:
ALTHOUGH JAMES SCHUYLER'S reputation rests chiefly on his poetry, his first book was the present novel, published in 1958. Read the first page Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Uncle Saul, Alfred Gates, New York, Miss O'Boyle, Guinevere Gates, Pauline Van Daanke, Miss Healey, Waldorf Salad New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
ALTHOUGH JAMES SCHUYLER'S reputation rests chiefly on his poetry, his first book was the present novel, published in 1958. Read the first page Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Uncle Saul, Alfred Gates, New York, Miss O'Boyle, Guinevere Gates, Pauline Van Daanke, Miss Healey, Waldorf Salad New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 15
books:
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100
books
cite this book:
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- A Nest of Ninnies by John Ashbery in Front Matter, and page 4
- The Diary Of A Nobody by George Grossmith on page 7
- A Message to Garcia and Other Essays by E. Hubbard on page 5
- Little Women (Great Illustrated Classics) by Lucia Monfried on page 49
- The Home Book: Prose and Poems, 1951-1970 by James Schuyler on page 7
See all 15 books this book cites
- London Review of Books: A 25th Anniversary Anthology by Frank Kermode on page 175, and page 176
- Anglo-Saxon Attitudes (New York Review Books Classics) by Angus Wilson in Back Matter
- On the Yard (New York Review Books Classics) by Malcolm Braly in Back Matter
- Moravagine (New York Review Books Classics) by Blaise Cendrars in Back Matter
- The Tenants of Moonbloom (New York Review Books Classics) by Edward Lewis Wallant in Back Matter
See all 100 books citing this book
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