The Complete Stories [Paperback]

Bernard Malamud (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 12, 1998

New York Times Notable Book of the Year
Publishers Weekly Best Book of 1997

With an Introduction by Robert Giroux, The Complete Stories of Bernard Malamud is "an essential American book," Richard Stern declared in the Chicago Tribune when the collection was published in hardcover. His praise was echoed by other reviewers and by readers, who embraced the book as they might a displaced person in one of Malamud's stories, now returned to us, complete and fulfilled and recognized at last. The volume gathers together fifty-five stories, from "Armistice" (1940) to "Alma Redeemed" (1984), and including the immortal stories from The Magic Barrel and the vivid depictions of the unforgettable Fidelman. It is a varied and generous collection of great examples of the modern short story, which Malamud perfected, and an ideal introduction to the work of this great American writer.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Due to his formidable skill as a novelist--and to the fact that one of his novels, The Natural, had the good or bad luck to be repackaged as a large-screen vehicle for Robert Redford--Bernard Malamud hasn't always been recognized as short-story master of the first rank. As this collection demonstrates once and for all, he is. The anthology pieces, such as "The Magic Barrel," "The Silver Dish," or "Rembrandt's Hat," would be more than enough to place the author in the pantheon. But the 54 stories gathered here represent an astonishing abundance of narrative smarts and brilliant, Yiddish-accented prose. Malamud's heroes meet all manner of misfortune--there's something distinctly Job-like about even his most contented characters (a typical one has "a sort of indigenous sadness [that] hung on or around him")--yet the author suffuses their woes with gentle comedy. And while Jews occupy center stage in almost every tale, they are universal rather than parochial figures: as the beleaguered tailor in "Angel Levine" triumphantly informs his wife, "Believe me, there are Jews everywhere." --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Malamud, who died in 1986, is perhaps better known for his novels (e.g., The Natural; The Fixer) than for his short stories, though these he published abundantly in collections over the years (e.g., The Stories of Bernard Malamud, 1983). Giroux, Malamud's longtime editor, publisher, and friend, who put together this evident labor of love, quotes Flannery O'Connor on Malamud: "I have discovered a short-story writer who is better than any of them, including myself." Many of these stories treat the dead-end lot of working-class Jews ("The Cost of Living") or the thwarted aspirations of the artist Fidelman in Italy ("A Pimp's Revenge"). Appearing in the order in which they were written (rather than published), the 55 stories span his first, "The Armistice" (1940), until his last experimental biography of Virginia Woolf. Displayed thus, Malamud's skill is consistently sound, effected quietly through disciplined pacing and dignified characters. Essential for libraries that lack Malamud's previous story collections.?Amy Boaz, "Library Journal"
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 656 pages
• Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (October 12, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0374525757
• ISBN-13: 978-0374525750
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #281,042 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Master of the Short Story, October 15, 2006

By 

Carla Fair-Wright "avid reader" (Houston, TX USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Complete Stories (Hardcover)

Called the modern master of the short story, Malamud has won two National Book Awards and the Pulitzer Prize (for the Fixer). The Complete Stories is a collection of short stories -- bound by a central theme. All are about individuals faced with moral decisions or confronted by societal limitations. You'll find that the stories in this book highlight the mundane and the absurd.

I was touched by the characters in the book because they are so human. I was amused, angered, and felt great pity for these fictional people. I rarely read fiction, so few authors seem to me able to "get it right". Malamud has it right. The characters react like normal people. They are alive with conflict. Like the rest of us, they sometimes make poor choices and may live unfulfilled lives.

One of my favorite stories is Riding Pants. In "Riding Pants" we meet Herm, who is the sixteen year old son of a butcher. Herm lives alienated by the world around him. Riding is the only joy in his life. Like a small child's security blanket, his riding pants bring him solace. Frustrated by his son's refusal to accept his world, his father takes a drastic step.

If you want fairy tale endings and beautiful people riding into the sunset, this may not be the best book for you. If you want to taste life from the eyes of another, perhaps discovery a truth about yourself. Read The Complete Stories. This is an excellent book!!!

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful short story anthology, April 17, 2006

By 

Reader "cvrcak1" (Boca Raton, FL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Complete Stories (Paperback)

I heard about the writer during the Nextbook.org book readings in Chicago. I have never read any of Malamud's work previously. Curious to learn about how he perceived life of immigrants, Jewish underclass and life struggles in general, I have decided to read his complete collection of short stories. It was pure delight to read these short stories not only because of their intense content, bu also because it gave complete insight of the Malamud's growth as a writer. One can see how his writing and style is changing and evolving over time. It becomes better and better with writer's personal maturity. I would stongly recommend this writer to anyone who wants to read about Jewish culture, learn about life of immigrants in the period between 1930s-1960s. Now I am looking forward to read Malamud's other work.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A very good story writer, December 27, 2004

By 

Shalom Freedman "Shalom Freedman" (Jerusalem,Israel) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The Complete Stories (Paperback)

Malamud has written some of the most noted stories of the second half of the American twentieth century. His famous 'The Magic Barrel'with its broken characters broken Yiddish sufferings disappointments and strange poetic intensity is perhaps the most well- known and emblematic of his general approach as a writer. Malamud is a man of the precise word, the carefully drawn artistic touch, the minor note of beauty which suddenly pains. Malamud is the person of sympathy with the sufferings of his own characters, and with the ideology that this suffering is what makes them most human . In another sense the suffering is what defines the Jews and is where Judaism too becomes emblematic of what humanity is. Malamud travels in different worlds for his stories in the Italy of Fidelman , and in the far off Western regions of America where Jews are very rare and distant strangers. Of the many different kinds of encounters in his story he makes his own poetic universe, touched with small irony, and with a Yiddish bittersweetness.
These are stories for those who love the high art of small tones and intuitions of one of the finest story- writers of his time.