The Floatplane Notebooks [Paperback]

Clyde Edgerton (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Ballantine Books; 1St Edition edition (December 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0685295710
• ISBN-13: 978-0685295717
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)

More About the Author

Clyde Edgerton is the author of ten novels, a memoir, short stories, and essays. He is a member of the Fellowship of Southern Writers and teaches creative writing at UNC Wilmington. He lives in Wilmington, NC, with his wife, Kristina, and their children.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Southern Lit at its Best, June 4, 2002

By 

Winston Smith (Locust Grove, VA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Floatplane Notebooks (Mass Market Paperback)

"The Floatplane Notebooks" tells the story of the Copelands, a typical Southern family that gathers every year to clean up the family cemetery. Using the narrative structure of Faulkner's "As I Lay Dying" (a series of single-narrator chapters), the family experiences a devastating event that threatens to unravel the family fabric. In the end, all is well, and powerfully bittersweet.
The story has what is easily one if the funniest scenes I've ever read (regarding a well and a flashlight), and the way the story is resolved at the end is truly touching (the careful reader will see that the two scenes are closely related). Another notable feature is the observations of one of the book's main characters - a wisteria vine. This may seem strange, unless the reader realizes that the vine is essentially the theme of the story, for it represents death (a ubiquitous theme in all great Southern literature). The Copeland family could easily solve the problem of cleaning the family graveyard by just killing the wisteria vine. But, if they do, they then have no real reason to gather every year. This is a family that is united by and finds strength in death.
This is a truly unique and great story, though not appropriate for younger readers. Skilled readers will find much to appreciate. "The Floatplane Notebooks" is Southern Lit at its very best. READ THIS BOOK.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A moving story with memorable characters., March 26, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Floatplane Notebooks (Mass Market Paperback)

This was one of the few Edgerton books that I had not read. It is an enjoyable story with a bit more sadness than the typical humorous Edgerton tale. The characters are still quirky southerners. The play against brothers reminded me of Jim Harrison's Legends of the Fall - I even pictured Meridith as Brad Pitt (the movie version). The use of all the different narrative voices was creative ( especially the vine) Thinking back I can't believe so many stories were woven together so effectively. I'll remember this story always.-It's one of those.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My All-Time Favorite, September 5, 2003

By 

Noel Sutton (Indianapolis, IN United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Floatplane Notebooks (Library Binding)

This is absolutely my favorite book, I truly wish it was my family he was writing about.
Edgerton is by far the best Southern author writing today.