Esquire's Big Book of Fiction [Paperback]

Adrienne Miller (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 2002

Since the first issue was published in 1933, Esquire has played a vibrant and vital role in American literary history. The magazine has been passionately dedicated to publishing short fiction that is lively, enlightening, but also necessary, and has, over the decades, helped launch the careers of many of the most important writers of the century. This celebration of Esquire fiction contains forty-nine of the most outstanding short stories to have appeared in the magazine.

Esquire's Big Book of Fiction features work from every decade of Esquire's life-from Ernest Hemingway and John Steinbeck in the Thirties, Irwin Shaw in the Forties, Norman Mailer and John Barth in the Fifties, Philip Roth and John Updike in the Sixties, Barry Hannah and Harold Brodkey in the Seventies, Tobias Wolff and Tim O'Brien in the Eighties and Robert Stone and Russell Banks in the Nineties.

Collected here are "The Snows of Kilimanjaro" by Ernest Hemingway; "The Death of Justina" by John Cheever; "Towel Season" by Ron Carlson; "Parker's Back" by Flannery O'Connor; "Adult World I" and "Adult World II" by David Foster Wallace; "Neighbors" by Raymond Carver; "Fleur" by Louise Erdrich; "A Man in the Way" by F. Scott Fitzgerald; "In the Men's Room of the Sixteenth Century by Don DeLillo; "Rock Springs" by Richard Ford; "The Remobilization of Jacob Horner" by John Barth; and "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien.

Esquire's Big Book of Fiction is a stunning appraisal of the state of fiction in the 20th century, and beyond, and is a testament to the prominence and durability of one of the last remaining publications for short fiction in the country.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

When it comes to fiction, writes Esquire's literary editor Miller in her introduction, the magazine's mandate has always been to "publish stories that take hold of you and don't let go." To see just how those stories have evolved over the past 70 years is one of the pleasures of this anthology, which gathers 54 pieces that have appeared in the magazine since its 1933 launch. The collection shows off Esquire's distinguished literary tradition with stories by the leading lights of each era, from Ernest Hemingway to David Foster Wallace. Hemingway's "The Snows of Kilimanjaro," John Steinbeck's "The Lonesome Vigilante," Flannery O'Connor's "Parker's Back" and Vladimir Nabokov's "The Visit to the Museum" mingle with pieces by Thomas McGuane, Russell Banks, Tony Earley, Aleksandar Hemon and Antonya Nelson. Esquire was among the first to publish Raymond Carver, with the 1971 "Neighbors," about a couple enthralled with their vacationing neighbors' apartment. The magazine also published early work by Philip Roth, such as "A Jewish Patient Begins His Analysis," perhaps more familiar to readers as the opening of Portnoy's Complaint, and by Don DeLillo, whose "In the Men's Room of the Sixteenth Century" follows Lady Madonna, a cop dressed as a woman, as he wanders Times Square on the anniversary of the beheading of St. Thomas More. Most of the contributors will probably be familiar to readers, but then, this isn't the place to find the latest crop of baby geniuses it's a chance to rediscover some of the best of 20th-century short fiction.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

This collection from Esquire celebrates short fiction with 49 of the best selections that have appeared in the magazine's pages since 1933. Included are works from Ernest Hemingway, John Cheever, Irwin Shaw, John Steinbeck, and F. Scott Fitzgerald as well as from the more contemporary David Foster Wallace, Tony Earley, and Don DeLillo. Seven women writers (Flannery O'Connor, Jayne Anne Phillips, and others) are also represented. (This disproportion is understandable given Esquire's male focus and the rarity of female voices in the early years covered.) The stories offer a wide range, from fishing and camping adventures to a grim tale of school violence and religion. One of the most poignant stories, "The Wish," Joanna Scott's account of a black married college student, shows how ambition and hard work cannot bring protection from the random violence in today's urban neighborhoods. An informative introduction by Miller, the current literary editor, traces Esquire's long history of introducing new fiction to its readers. This anthology will delight readers seeking to sample some of the best short fiction in the 20th century. Highly recommended for academic and public libraries. - Nancy R. Ives, SUNY at Geneseo
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Paperback: 816 pages
• Publisher: Context Books (May 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1893956261
• ISBN-13: 978-1893956261
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 2.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,434,425 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars best anthology out there, June 3, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Esquire's Big Book of Fiction (Paperback)

This is probably pound for pound the best literary anthology I've come across. A great mix of old (Hemingway, Flannery O'Connor, Nabokov) and new (Means, Foster Wallace). I wish I had this book in my undergraduate days--would've been great to have these stories all consolidated in one package as they are here. It also has the best cover I've ever seen for an anthology.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best collection on the market, June 2, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Esquire's Big Book of Fiction (Paperback)

So much better than the Best American Stories of the Century. I took this book on vacation with me, and found it to be one of the greatest collections I've ever read.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best of the Best, May 31, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Esquire's Big Book of Fiction (Paperback)

If you want to read the very best short fiction ever written, then buy this book. Truly the very best this century's writers have to offer.