Carol Shields's The Stone Diaries: A Reader's Guide (Continuum Contemporaries) [Paperback]

Abby H. P. Werlock (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0826452493 | ISBN-13: 978-0826452498 | Publication Date: September 1, 2001

Continuum Contemporaries will be a wonderful source of ideas and inspiration for members of book clubs and readings groups, as well as for literature students.The aim of the series is to give readers accessible and informative introductions to 30 of the most popular, most acclaimed, and most influential novels of recent years. A team of contemporary fiction scholars from both sides of the Atlantic has been assembled to provide a thorough and readable analysis of each of the novels in question. The books in the series will all follow the same structure:a biography of the novelist, including other works, influences, and, in some cases, an interview; a full-length study of the novel, drawing out the most important themes and ideas; a summary of how the novel was received upon publication; a summary of how the novel has performed since publication, including film or TV adaptations, literary prizes, etc.; a wide range of suggestions for further reading, including websites and discussion forums; and a list of questions for reading groups to discuss.

Editorial Reviews

Review

The following notice appeared in Time Out (London) on January 30, 2001:

Study Aids Get Chic

Concerned about keeping up at the book club? Stuck for something to say when dinner party talk turns to Zadie Smith? Or no time to read Captain Corelli’s Mandolin before the movie comes out? Never fear, cool new study aids are here in the form of Continuum Contemporaries – The Novel Approach, a series of handy readers’ guides to contemporary fiction. Launching in September, with further waves in January and May 2002, they’re much slicker than the frumpy cheat-aids of yore, including everything from website links to review buzz, and deliberately featuring new novels such as Bridget Jones’s Diary, The Shipping News, Trainspotting, and even the Harry Potter books.

"A brilliant idea—short, perceptive books which tell you what you need to know about some of the most vibrant and challenging writing around today—a bit like having a reading group in your pocket."—Ian Rankin

"The series comes as near to squaring various circles - popular / academic, 'good read' / 'classic Lit', novel / film of the book as any I know. And at best it goes a fair way towards reshuffling those categories and redrawing the boundaries. With the first volume, I was relieved. After two or three, I was hooked.
The books are invaluable for gathering out-of-the-way or ephemeral comment from TV and radio interviews and the web as well as from literary reviews.

Refreshingly upfront and up-to-date…

Given the space, there are remarkably balanced film/novel comparisons of the most well-known examples…

An important feature is the fully referenced bibliographies, including reviews and copious website addresses - the latter ranging from fanzines and authors' and publishers' own sites to academic discussion lists and online journals.

In method as in subject matter, these guides move freely on the interface between print culture and multimedia. Highly finished and pleasantly handleable as books in their own right, they gesture accommodatingly to both words and worlds beyond.

Taking the series as a whole, it also confirms two things: that narrative nowadays is generically highly hybrid and increasingly cross-media; and that an understanding of the processes of writing and reading 'contemporary classic' (or at least 'currently famous') fiction cannot be separated - yet must be distinguished - from the processes of making and marketing books and films."
— The Times Higher Education Supplement, May 31, 2002

From the Publisher

This is an excellent guide to Carol Shields's novel of 1993. It features an interview with Shields, a full-length analysis of the novel, and a great deal more. If you're studying this novel, reading it for your book club, or if you simply want to know more about it, you'll find this guide informative and helpful.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 96 pages
• Publisher: Continuum (September 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0826452493
• ISBN-13: 978-0826452498
• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 5.2 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,647,970 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Book Club Choice!, October 29, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Carol Shields's The Stone Diaries: A Reader's Guide (Continuum Contemporaries) (Paperback)

Even though my Chicago-based book club had already read Carol Shields's The Stone Diaries, we all went out and bought Abby Werlock's guide to our favorite novel. What a help this book has been to us! When we first discussed the novel, we had all sorts of questions, especially about whether Daisy or someone else was speaking at any given time. Well, Werlock's explanation solves it all! And even though she provides many answers to common questions, she asks questions herself, providing even more issues to delve into in this very complex and satisfying book. I recommend it to all devotees of Carol Shields.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Background for Carol Shields's best book!, October 29, 2001

By 

a reader from Los Angeles (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Carol Shields's The Stone Diaries: A Reader's Guide (Continuum Contemporaries) (Paperback)

As a long-time fan of everything by Carol Shields, I was glad to see the United States starting to pay more attention to this Canadian writer, especially for The Stone Diaries, in my opinion her best book. The background information that Abby Werlock provides is incredibly helpful (for instance, Shields is not responsible for the title!). Ms. Werlock's interview with Shields is a plus, especially because she wisely avoids the q and a format and instead spreads Shields's comments throughout the book. I love The Stone Diaries, but now, after reading Werlock's book, I understand it even better!

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simply Beautiful, August 6, 2003

By 

Teresa Jansen "tsj57" (Lompoc, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Carol Shields's The Stone Diaries: A Reader's Guide (Continuum Contemporaries) (Paperback)

The Stone Diaries is my favorite book, and I've read a lot of books.It's difficult to put this book into words or to clearly convey the emotion it evokes. It is the story of Daisy, a quite ordinary woman, and the author, who I'm sorry to say recently passed away, shows us how it is exactly that ordinariness that makes every human being so precious. She shows us that people have common threads that unite us. She also shows us that we ordinary folk still have qualities and experiences unique to us. As for Carol Shield's writing: Extraordinary.