Family Dancing (Paperback)

by David Leavitt (Author) "Neil's mother, Mrs. Campbell, sits on her lawn chair behind a card table outside the food co-op..." (more)
Key Phrases: radiation therapy center, dwarf girl, Donna Lee, New York, Henry Traylor (more...)

Editorial Reviews

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"Astonishing -- funny, eloquent, and wise." -- Review

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"Astonishing -- funny, eloquent, and wise." (The New York Times )

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Product Details

• Paperback: 205 pages
• Publisher: Mariner Books (November 14, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0395877326
• ISBN-13: 978-0395877326
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #999,932 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #14 in	Books > Literature & Fiction > Authors, A-Z > ( L ) > Leavitt, David
  #35 in	Books > Gay & Lesbian > Literature & Fiction > Fiction > Short Stories > Gay

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars early Leavitt work shows some brilliance..., December 22, 2002

By	lazza (Fort Lauderdale, Florida) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

'Family Dancing' is a collection of short stories written by David Leavitt when he was in his early twenties. It is remarkable thata young man can write with such sensitivity. The prose is very fluid, and the characterizations are quite realistic. Quite remarkable considering these are *short* stories, not novels. However these stories are somewhat uneven in their overall quality, and I think I know why.

David Leavitt is best known for writing gay fiction. In 'Family Dancing' about a third of the stories are gay-themed. But I find the gay characters in these stories, and even in his fine novel 'The Lost Language of Cranes', to be very two-dimensional. However Leavitt's observations of parents coping with dysfunctional lives, marriages, and children to be most affecting. In 'Family Dancing' there are a couple of simply wonderful, extremely moving stories about people living with cancer. These stories alone are worth the price of this book.

Bottom line: a mixed bag containing treasures. Recommended.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars the family exposed, November 16, 2000

By	M. H. Bayliss "book queen" - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Reading these poignant stories is like watching 15 or so different versions of American Beauty. Beneath the surface in almost every family lie illness, infidelity, betrayals and anger. This is his first collection of stories and they make for an excellent collection. I had read his later books first like The Lost Language of Cranes which I think are stronger overall, but as a first collection, these stories are revealing.

Leavitt has a knack for exposing the underside of family relations. Many of his stories focus on husbands who leave their wives, but just as many focus on the effect these family disputes have on the children. Overall, these stories will leave you with a feeling of sadness -- he touches many nerves from cancer to men coming to terms with their sexuality, to abandoned sisters and brothers. I think Leavitt is a very sensitive writer with an eye for the problems that plague 20th century families.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Couldn't Please Me More, June 3, 2002

By	Curtis Lane (Orlando, FL United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Family Dancing (Paperback)

Leavitt is one of the true modern masters of the short story--it is ashame his novels aren't quite as well done. Here is where Leavitt launched his career, to justified critical delight. These stories are near perfection--and our of a writer in his early 20s!--with well-drawn characters and serious themes, though sometimes playful treatments. Leavitt's preoccupations seem to be with the family, homosexuality, and cancer, but he has yet to make any of these topics stale. Highly recommended.