Drinking with the Cook [Hardcover]

Laura Furman (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The protagonists of the 13 sensitive, well-crafted stories in Furman's new collection are mainly women who lead solitary inner lives even when they are involved in intimate relationships. Most live in the country, or in the suburbs of cities in Texas or New England; many are committed vegetarians; in several stories, rain is pervasive, and in each of them, the atmosphere is muted and melancholy. For all of these women, the future is frighteningly unclear, and they all must come to terms with loss and longing. Miriam, the narrator of "Hagalund," the most complex and satisfying story, looks back at a time 20 years ago when she fled to Sweden to escape a broken heart, and lived with American draft protestors against the Vietnam war. Furman deftly recreates the political activism, casual drug use and hand to mouth existence of this small community, while depicting Miriam's decision to move to another stage of her life. Another painful epiphany that opens the door to freedom sways Deborah, the questing heroine of "The Apprentice," who seeks clues from an artist on how to pursue her career, and discovers a more fundamental truth. Though a few of the narratives are stretched thin by their heroine's caution or inertia, in the main Furman's quiet observations of lonely lives ring true, and she establishes a small universe of people looking for connection but unable to escape the bonds of self-doubt. Fans of Furman's previous novels (Tuxedo Park) and collections (The Glass House) will enjoy this work, and booksellers would do well to recommend it to readers seeking fiction that depends on adroit characterization rather than flashy denouements.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Review

"Furman is especially brilliant at capturing the moment when self-deceit begins to crumble, making this a refreshingly truthful and illuminating set of stories. Furman is respected among writers, but this matter-of-fact collection should make her better-known among readers."--Marta Salij

(Marta Salij )

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Winedale Publishing; 1st edition (March 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0970152523
• ISBN-13: 978-0970152527
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,826,217 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Penetrating collection, June 22, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Drinking with the Cook (Hardcover)

This finely wrought collection impressed me with the many ways Laura Furman is able to elaborate simple themes of outsider-ness and disillusion. Each character and situation is unique, rendered with exactitude and a calm, clear-eyed pity. And for each, the yearned-for ideal of home remains just beyond reach; however much work and attention is lavished on house and garden, the protagonists cannot make for themselves a home.

Although most of the viewpoint characters are women, the long, beautiful story "Melville's House" concerns an elderly, dying man taking a day-trip with his daughter and grandson to the great writer's "Lourdes of disappointment," where Melville realized he would not succeed financially after pouring heart and talent into Moby Dick. Along the way, David has time to reflect on the home he tried to create for his family, and whether he remained only a tolerated outsider in it.

"Hagalund," another long story, concerns a young American woman living in Stockholm during the Vietnam War. She has enough vicarious status among the other draft-evaders and radicals to be offered shelter with them, although her famous boyfriend remains on the lam in the U.S. The expatriates' provisional, bored, paranoid existence during the miserable winter is memorably evoked, as the heroine gradually awakens from her tranced dependence.

In the sharp, impressive title story, a woman gives up job and New York apartment to live in the coutnry with her lover. Previously, they have visited each other for various lengths of time, and she has idealized his situation. When the narrator makes her move, she brings a slightly ridiculous, Martha-Stewartish sensibility to his rustic, rumpled lifestyle and learns too late that his larder and bed are already well-stocked by his best-friend's wife.

I strongly recommend these eloquent stories.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Quiet subtle stories, June 4, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Drinking with the Cook (Hardcover)

This is a book for people who delight in quiet, reflective fiction and for those with an ear for the delicate rhythms of English prose. The stories deal mostly with women, and domestic themes--relationships, houses, families--prevail. There is a subtle depth to all of the people and their lives. Nothing catastrophic occurs, but you can feel the seismic charges that underlie the most ordinary lives. Willa Cather, Peter Taylor, and John Hersey come to mind as writers whose styles are equally quiet and meaningful. Above all, Furman is an American Chekhov.