Object Lessons: The Paris Review Presents the Art of the Short Story [Deckle Edge] [Paperback]

Lorin Stein (Editor), Sadie Stein (Editor)

Book Description

Release date: October 2, 2012

A New York Magazine Best Book of the Year
A Huffington Post Best Book of the Year 

Twenty contemporary authors introduce twenty sterling examples of the short story from the pages of The Paris Review.

 

What does it take to write a great short story? In Object Lessons, twenty contemporary masters of the genre answer that question, sharing favorite stories from the pages of The Paris Review. Over the course of the last half century, the Review has launched hundreds of careers while publishing some of the most inventive and best-loved stories of our time. This anthology---the first of its kind---is more than a treasury: it is an indispensable resource for writers, students, and anyone else who wants to understand fiction from a writer’s point of view.

 

"Some chose classics. Some chose stories that were new even to us. Our hope is that this collection will be useful to young writers, and to others interested in literary technique. Most of all, it is intended for readers who are not (or are no longer) in the habit of reading short stories. We hope these object lessons will remind them how varied the form can be, how vital it remains, and how much pleasure it can give."—from the Editors’ Note

 

WITH SELECTIONS BY

Daniel Alarcón · Donald Barthelme · Ann Beattie · David Bezmozgis · Jorge Luis Borges · Jane Bowles · Ethan Canin · Raymond Carver · Evan S. Connell · Bernard Cooper · Guy Davenport · Lydia Davis · Dave Eggers · Jeffrey Eugenides · Mary Gaitskill · Thomas Glynn · Aleksandar Hemon · Amy Hempel · Mary-Beth Hughes · Denis Johnson · Jonathan Lethem · Sam Lipsyte · Ben Marcus · David Means · Leonard Michaels · Steven Millhauser · Lorrie Moore · Craig Nova · Daniel Orozco · Mary Robison · Norman Rush · James Salter · Mona Simpson · Ali Smith · Wells Tower · Dallas Wiebe · Joy Williams

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Hyperinteresting shoptalk from some of literary culture’s best shops, and best talkers.”
—Kathryn Schulz, New York Magazine (Top 10 Books of 2012)

“The stories are indeed varied in their style, as the editors’ note promises, but many of them left me with the same feeling: devastation.”—The Christian Science Monitor

“Object Lessons [is] my new favorite gift book.”—Elizabeth Taylor, The Chicago Tribune

“This thoughtful book will make you look at short fiction with new eyes.”—Minneapolis Star Tribune

“As the ‘Best American’ anthologies begin their annual take-over of bookstore shelf space this month, short story fans should look past those displays to find this collection curated from the archives of The Paris Review.”—The Cleveland Plain Dealer

“The editors call this a guide for young writers and readers interested in literary technique, and the book achieves that purpose while also serving as a tribute to the role The Paris Review has played in maintaining the diversity of the short story form. The collection reminds us that good stories are always whispering into each other’s ears.”—Publishers Weekly

“A compendium of The Paris Review’s short story hits, curated with the ambitious, aspiring writer in mind. … Jeffrey Eugenides’ discussion of Denis Johnson’s “Car Crash While Hitchhiking” captures that story’s heartbreak and serves as an essay on the virtues of the form itself. … A smart showcase of a half-century’s worth of pathways in fiction.”—Kirkus

About the Author

Established in 1953, The Paris Review is America’s preeminent literary magazine.

Lorin Stein is the editor of The Paris Review.

Sadie Stein is deputy editor of The Paris Review. They are not related.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Picador (October 2, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 9781250005984
• ISBN-13: 978-1250005984
• ASIN: 1250005981
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.7 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #186,782 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

David Means, an internationally acclaimed fiction writer, was born and raised in Michigan. His second collection of stories, ASSORTED FIRE EVENTS, won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Fiction and earned a National Book Critics Circle nomination. His third book, THE SECRET GOLDFISH, received widespread critical acclaim and was shortlisted for the Frank O'Connor International Short Story prize. His fourth book, THE SPOT, was selected as a 2010 Notable Book by The New York Times, and won an O. Henry Prize. His books have been translated into eight language. His stories have appeared in The New Yorker, Harper's, The Best American Short Stories, The Best American Mystery Stories, The O. Henry Prize Stories, and numerous other publications.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 30 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars An homage to the exquisite taste of the late great George Plimpton August 18, 2012

By moose_of_many_waters VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

I've had a subscription to The Paris Review for longer than I've been married. Back when I got my first few issues, my beard was barely there and sometimes I'd let the fuzz grow out for a few weeks. Now I shave every day because two thirds of my beard is white. Why have I subscribed to this magazine for close to 40 years? There's one reason: its former and original editor, George Plimpton. He had unique taste for an editor of a literary magazine. He tended to stay away from the pretentious and precious and he wasn't afraid to include a story or poem that would make you laugh out loud. As a writer and reader, I'm of the "please don't tell me your tsuris because I have enough of my own" school. There certainly were stories and poems in George Plimpton's Paris Review that were full of self pity. But I could easily avoid them. Almost every issue had something memorable. For over 40 years, Plimpton ruled over The Paris Review with a deft touch. This volume is essentially an homage to what undoubtedly is George Plimpton's most significant and enduring creation.

In Object Lessons, some well known writers are each invited to pick one story from The Paris Review's past. I've read almost all the stories contained here before. It was fun to read quite a few of them again. My one quibble is that the writers have tended to dwell on the more depressing stories The Paris Review has published. With one exception, they've forgotten the humor. I don't get that bias. For many years, there was actually an annual humor prize associated with the magazine that came with a significant chunk of cash. Early and wonderful stories of TC Boyle, David Foster Wallace, and Rick Moody published in The Paris Review aren't found in this volume.... These are omissions that aren't fatal, certainly, and there's much to admire in the stories chosen.

Mr. Plimpton has been gone for almost a decade, and predictably The Paris Review floundered more than a bit for several years after he died. But it has gotten back most of its mojo as of late. It's trying to be a little hipper and edgier and unfortunately, its content is also a tad more depressing on average. But every once in a while, a story with verve, humor and intelligence will appear. When I read those stories, I know The Paris Review still serves a unique and valuable purpose.

If you're a fan of the contemporary short story, this volume will likely please you with the caveat that most of the voices are strongly male. Also, if you're the type of reader who sticks to bestsellers, I'd stay away; these stories almost all avoid the tropes that mainstream readers find necessary and comforting. The short introductions to the stories are hit and miss things. For my money, I'd just skip them and stick to the stories themselves. Read more ›

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Object Lessons July 31, 2012

By Brendan Moody VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

The title of this anthology says a bit more than it means to. OBJECT LESSONS has an attractive concept: twenty contemporary writers pick their favorite stories from the archive of THE PARIS REVIEW and, in the words of the editors' note, "describe the key to its success as a work of fiction" in an introductory comment. This approach, the justification for the subtitle's mention of the art of the short story, will, the editors hope, make the anthology "useful to young writers, and to others interested in literary technique." And it is-- but no more so than any other largely excellent anthology would be.

Perhaps the problem is that the writers were asked to pick favorite stories. Writing with a truly intelligent critical eye about things one loves is difficult. Or perhaps it's the space available; the longest of the introductions is about three pages, which doesn't leave room for much specific insight. Whatever the reason, these mini-essays don't reveal much about "keys to success" or "the art of the short story" that readers of such an anthology couldn't work out on their own. They're more enthusiastic than analytic, with piles of superlatives about general, easily-observed features. Of course the situation doesn't call for term papers, but the success or failure of any short story is a complicated question, and virtue often rests in small, easy to miss things. A few writers do offer appropriately close readings, but even then they focus on broad variations in diction and similar comparatively simple points. (One of Dave Eggers' observations on James Salter's "Bangkok" would be quite powerful, except that it rests on a literal misreading of the text.) The introductions are well-written, affectionate, often poetic, not incisive about technique.

But enough about the introductions.... The stories themselves are more than enough to make OBJECT LESSONS worth reading for students of contemporary and recent literary fiction. Ranging in date from 1955 to 2010, they're varied in length, style, and setting, though eccentric characters, surreal turns, and jagged, disorienting styles abound. The anthology opens, for example, with Joy Williams' "Dimmer," a story so bleak and so disturbing in its imagery that it wouldn't be out of place in a horror anthology, and ends with Dallas Wiebe's "Night Flight to Stockholm," a satire on literary success and its very physical price that takes an unexpected lyrical turn. But the anthology also offers demonstrations of the power of more traditional prose and plot, as in the earliest story, Evan S. Connell's "The Beau Monde of Mrs. Bridge," a quietly devastating, sympathetic reflection on middle-class convention and repression that grew into Connell's famous novel, or Ethan Canin's "The Palace Thief," a fifty-page story with as much insight into politics, education, and ambition as many novels, topped off by what may be the best example of refined, unexpectedly revealing narration since THE REMAINS OF THE DAY. This enthusiastic list of stories could be greatly prolonged, but as has been noted, enthusiasm has its limits. A few stories didn't dazzle this reader as much as they did the authors who chose them-- "Bangkok" is so stripped down it verges on pointlessness, and Thomas Glynn's "Except for the Sickness I'm Quite Healthy Now. You Can Believe That." demonstrates the perils of the eccentric, the surreal, and the jagged by offering more oddness than genius. But all twenty stories have something to offer the reader interested in craft. They are, indeed, object lessons, and those who want to study them can learn more from them than any introduction could reveal, for the virtues of a great short story are infinite. Read more ›

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Great collection and introductions August 14, 2012

By K. Polzin

Format:Paperback|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

I've read a few of this type of short story collection: authors select and introduce stories that made an impression on them. I discovered the writer Donald Barthelme in a similarly-styled collection, You've Got to Read This. I evaluate these collections based on how much I enjoyed both the introductions and the stories.

In the Editors Note, The Paris Review calls itself a "laboratory for new fiction," and the stories tend toward the experimental, for better or worse. I enjoyed most of the stories, however, and more than a few made an impression on me, including stories by Lydia Davis, Steven Millhauser, Leonard Michaels, Bernard Cooper, Mary Beth Hughes, and James Salter.

The longest story, Ethan Canin's "The Palace Thief," was one of the most readable. It impressed me with its historical sweep - I got a sense of the character's entire life in the space of 20-30 minutes.

The introductions were mostly excellent, though with a couple that were too analytical for my taste. There were some particularly perceptive introductions by Daniel Orozco, Jeffrey Eugenides, David Means, and Aleksandar Hemon that helped elucidate both the stories and writing in general.

In all, a great book that may lead you to discover new writers.

20 of 26 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Promoting the genre or the literary magazine? August 12, 2012

By K. Sullivan VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

"Object Lessons" is an anthology of 20 short stories from the archives of "the Paris Review." Each was selected by a contemporary author ("masters of the genre") who provides a brief introduction. Most selections are between 10 and 20 pages in length, with a couple exceptions on either end. They were written as long ago as 1955 (the magazine was founded in 1953) and as recently as 2010, with each intervening decade also represented. The styles range from standard narratives to absurdist surrealism.

Any reader expecting insightful analysis in the introductions will be disappointed. The tone is more gushing fan-boy than critical examination, the substance dominated more by empty, giddy compliments than practical "lessons". They resemble jacket blurbs more than meaningful commentary. When confronted with such overdone effusive praise, the tendency is to respond in one of two extremes: either conform (blindly accept their "expert" opinions as fact) or rebel (approach the works critically as a counterbalance). Of course, neither approach is fair to the stories themselves. The other practical problem with the introductions is that they often contain spoilers. I would suggest reading the stories first and then backtracking to the introductions.

This anthology is presented as "an indispensable resource for writers, students, and anyone else who wants to understand fiction from a writer's point of view." It claims to answer the question, "What does it take to write a great short story?" But it isn't the former and doesn't do the latter. Looking past its lofty claims, it's just a diverse collection of short stories linked by their publication in the same literary periodical. It can be judged on that criterion alone.

So how good are the stories?... Opinions will inevitably vary according to the reader's taste, but of the 20 stories, I only liked five ("The Palace Thief" - a glimpse into tenuous relationships and the evolution of a prestigious prep school, "Night Flight to Stockholm" - a humorous consideration of a writer for whom the proverbial giving of an arm and a leg takes on a literal meaning, "Lying Presences" - a strangely compelling sci-fi tinged horror tale set within the context of a fraternal relationship, "Dinner at the Bank of England" - a hodgepodge of philosophical rumination, and "City Boy" - an absurd take on an affair gone wrong). I thought a minimum of four were terrible and I was ambivalent about the rest - no way enriched by the experience. When only a quarter of its stories are successful, it's difficult to recommend the book.

Another noteworthy fact is that the advanced reader copy, which is said to be an uncorrected proof, was littered with typos . Hopefully the book is thoroughly proofed and edited prior to final publication. Readers bothered by frequent typos may well wish to preview the book before purchasing. The back cover also claims there are 21 stories; one more than is actually included.

It's difficult to avoid the suspicion that this publication is more about promoting "the Paris Review" than the genre anthologized. That's not necessarily a bad thing. In fact, good luck to them. But their marketing is borderline disingenuous and not a little self-congratulatory. And then there's the product itself, featuring flawed introductions and a questionable selection of stories. Read more ›