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August: Osage County [Paperback]

Tracy Letts
3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (41 customer reviews)

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Book Description

February 1, 2008

Winner of the 2008 Pulitzer Prize for Drama

“A tremendous achievement in American playwriting: a tragicomic populist portrait of a tough land and a tougher people.”—Time Out New York

“Tracy Letts’ August: Osage County is what O’Neill would be writing in 2007. Letts has recaptured the nobility of American drama’s mid-century heyday while still creating something entirely original.”—New York magazine

One of the most bracing and critically acclaimed plays in recent Broadway history, August: Osage County is a portrait of the dysfunctional American family at its finest—and absolute worst. When the patriarch of the Weston clan disappears one hot summer night, the family reunites at the Oklahoma homestead, where long-held secrets are unflinchingly and uproariously revealed. The three-act, three-and-a-half-hour mammoth of a play combines epic tragedy with black comedy, dramatizing three generations of unfulfilled dreams and leaving not one of its thirteen characters unscathed. After its sold-out Chicago premiere, the play has electrified audiences in New York since its opening in November 2007.

Tracy Letts is the author of Killer Joe, Bug, and Man from Nebraska, which was a finalist for the 2004 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. His plays have been performed throughout the country and internationally. A performer as well as a playwright, Letts is a member of the Steppenwolf Theatre Company, where August: Osage County premiered.


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Editorial Reviews

Review

'Sensationally entertaining...Tracy Letts' fiercely funny, turbo-charged tragicomedy is, flat-out, no asterisks and without qualifications, the most exciting new American play Broadway has seen in years.' New York Times'Best American drama of the past decade' (USA Today). --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

About the Author

Tracy Letts is the author of Killer Joe, Bug and Man From Nebraska, which was a finalist for the 2004 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. He is a member of the Steppenwolf Theatre Company, where "August: Osage County" premiered.

Product Details

  • Paperback: 152 pages
  • Publisher: Theatre Communications Group (February 1, 2008)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1559363304
  • ISBN-13: 978-1559363303
  • Product Dimensions: 5.3 x 0.4 x 8.5 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 7.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (41 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #43,536 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

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Customer Reviews

Excellent story with unpredictable plot twists. Lady of Avalon  |  5 reviewers made a similar statement
Not one member is nurturing to others or uplifting. C. Stephens  |  1 reviewer made a similar statement
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
54 of 64 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Summer and Smoke (and Pills) February 11, 2008
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
When The Stern Librarian saw this show in New York recently she heard lot of debate at intermission (both of them!) about whether Tracy Letts has a written a classic to stand with the best of Eugene O'Neill and Tennessee Williams, or whether the play is a Carol Burnett spoof of those masters. Anyone who thinks this play is nothing but a bawdy of exchange of insults and swears (and catfights about catfish) should read the published play. On the page it is abundantly clear that the poetry quoted in the lovely opening scene by the doomed husband finds its messy, human correlative in the scenes that follow, with language so memorable it deserves to be printed on t-shirts and sold in the lobby. This is a masterpiece from beginning to end, from August to tragic December. The Stern Librarian (I get a lot of reading done in the TKTS booth).
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17 of 24 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars The Most Exciting Play This Year February 7, 2008
Format:Paperback
August: Osage County is literally the most exciting play of the year. I saw the play in early January, and instantly fell in love with it. Which is an odd thing to say considering the plays heavy subject matter. It deals with everything from drug abuse, molestation, suicide and other topics that just by letting you know what they are would be spoilers.

And while it may seem over loaded with serious subjects, it is a play about a family coming together after the loss of a family member and is filled with so much humor, it's hard to believe that it's a drama. Of course most of the laughter comes out of awkwardness of the situation.

This family has their share of problems and they all rise to the surface when shoved together for the funeral. There are dishes broken, marragies ruined and lots of yelling and cursing. If it sounds a little melodramatic, it is. BUT it's written in such a clear, precise way, it transends simple melodrama and becomes something else all together.

My only reservation is that the play is very long. It is three full acts. (Running time was over 3 and a half hours on Broadway) BUT it is so worth it. It is able to cover so much ground because it's thorough and no plot of subject is dropped.

This is going to be a play that will be around for a while. A true ensemble piece, what we've come to expect from Steppenwolf Theatre. It is a Modern American Classic.
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8 of 11 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars A must-read for literature and theatre lovers alike... October 6, 2008
Format:Paperback
By far one of the best plays I've read in a long time, maybe even since my love affair with 'Angels in America.' Bitingly funny and horribly tragic, I've yet to find one disappointed fellow reader of Letts' masterpiece.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
1.0 out of 5 stars Sooner: Bust not Boom
This play requires a cast of at least a dozen experienced character actors. Their bodies, faces, movements and voices must bear the visible and audible signs of the suffering... Read more
Published 5 days ago by Bookie
5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating!
Tracy Letts is a genius. The plot line in this play will really throw you for a loop. I can't wait to see the film coming to theatres in November!
Published 27 days ago by Holly Elizabeth Hammack
5.0 out of 5 stars riveting family drama
Excellent story with unpredictable plot twists. Realistic family dynamics created by the playwright. Characters that any actor would want to portray.
Published 4 months ago by Lady of Avalon
4.0 out of 5 stars August: Osage County
I really enjoy reading books that have good character builds -- August Osage County definitely has that! Read more
Published 7 months ago by Amydo
2.0 out of 5 stars Think Tennessee Williams in Oklahoma. Af whole family full of sad...
Had to read this story placed in Oklaoma. From the drug dependent mother, to the daughter that chooses a sleezy boyfriend over doing the right thing; every person in this family... Read more
Published 8 months ago by C. Stephens
5.0 out of 5 stars A must-read
I'd heard about the play, of course- it won the Pulitzer, after all- but hadn't seen it yet. As much as I was looking forward to reading it, I was also a little wary: would it live... Read more
Published 10 months ago by Panchoskie
3.0 out of 5 stars Be Aware
As usual Kindle delivered instantly etc and I love reading on Kindle. BUT I'm annoyed that this book does not have text to speech capability. Read more
Published 13 months ago by vickie kirihara
1.0 out of 5 stars Painful, and not in a good way
Compress the story line of any soap opera into a 3 hour play, sprinkle it sparsely with dark humor and liberally with profanity, and it will save you the trouble of enduring... Read more
Published 22 months ago by Music lover
4.0 out of 5 stars August: Osage County
Book was new; which is a plus. Saw the play, now I want to learn a monologue, and this book is perfect for that.
Published on February 26, 2011 by Debbi Smith
3.0 out of 5 stars The Banality of American Macabre
You'll find everything except murder in this play: suicide, adultery, mental retardation, drugs, sexual abuse, lots of spite and hatred, dysfunctional families and plain stupidity. Read more
Published on February 14, 2010 by vs
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