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Total Immersion [Paperback]

Allegra Goodman (Author)
4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)

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Book Description

August 10, 1998
In "The Succession," the members of a prosperous Hawaii synagogue agree on almost nothing. But when the president of the synagogue absconds with a small fortune, far deeper—and more troubling—rifts emerge...In "The Closet," Evelyn's sister flees her family to take up residence in the attic—while the shunned Evelyn finds herself slipping into the waters of her sister's soul....In "Wish List," an expert on terrorism, vacationing at an academic retreat in England,receives a late-night phone call from National Public Radio. Asked for commentary on a hostage situation of which he is ignorant, Ed can whisper only: "It's unspeakable."

Total Immersion

In these and other exquisite stories, Allegra Goodman fills rooms with laughter and voices, captures dinner parties, seaside picnics, academic grudges, shul politics, and the kind of hurts that only families and lovers can know. Featuring two new stories previously published in The New Yorker, Total Immersion is Allegra Goodman's first collection of short fiction—a masterful work from one of the most powerful and eloquent voices on the American literary landscape.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"Goodman is brilliant at capturing the clutter of both interior and exterior life."—Los Angeles Times

"Allegra Goodman is a remarkably gifted young writer, with a penchant for getting swiftly to the truth of things."—Chaim Potok

From the Publisher

"Allegra Goodman is brilliant, funny, knowing, alive, a marvel."
--Cynthia Ozick

"A work of real talent and great assurance... Allegra Goodman has observed as deeply as many writers can hope to do in a lifetime."
--Francine Prose

"Goodman is brilliant at capturing the clutter of both interior and exterior life."
--Los Angeles Times

"Allegra Goodman is a remarkably gifted young writer, with a penchant for getting swiftly to the truth of things."
--Chaim Potok


Product Details

  • Paperback: 304 pages
  • Publisher: Dial Press Trade Paperback (August 10, 1998)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0385332998
  • ISBN-13: 978-0385332996
  • Product Dimensions: 5.3 x 0.8 x 8 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #119,304 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I was born in Brooklyn in 1967, but grew up in Honolulu where I got to run around barefoot. I lived in Hawaii until I flew back east for college. I attended Harvard, where I stepped in my first slush puddle. Now I have waterproof boots because I live in Cambridge, Mass, with my family. Don't get me started on the winters here, and the snow days! When I'm not writing, I spend most of my time driving my four kids around, reading, thinking about getting some exercise (I like to swim), wondering what we should have for dinner, and occasionally indulging in some therapeutic vacuuming. Oh, and I keep a blog of my thoughts on the writing process, the books I'm reading and the literary life. You can find me at www.allegragoodman.com or join me on Facebook.

 

Customer Reviews

3 Reviews
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4 star:
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3 star:
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Average Customer Review
4.0 out of 5 stars (3 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Light Touch Disguises 21 Year Old Writer's Deft Insight, August 6, 2000
This review is from: Total Immersion (Paperback)
This is the second book I have read by Allegra Goodman. Last year I read her beautiful novel "Kaaterskill Falls" which was a deserving National book Award finalist. In that work, which was a much more serious one than this earlier book, she depicted in beautiful detail the struggles within a small Jewish religious community. This has sent me back to her earlier books. "Total Immersion" is her first, a collection of short stories which Ms. Goodman published at the age of 21. To put it quite simply, I am just astounded at the talent and insight into a broad range of human types and settings which this writer has shown at the tender age of 21! She writes with total maturity and self-assurance. In these stories she again explores the world of small (mostly Jewish) communities in a variety of settings, mainly in Hawaii of all places! The stories are light in touch and always a pleasure to read. The characters and conflicts are well drawn and all balloons of pretension are mercilessly punctured by the author's delightful wit. Ms. Goodman has also included an extremely handy glossary at the back of her book with all the Jewish and Hawaiian terms used in her stories. Now I can't wait to read "The Family Markowitz" (her next collection) and I am eager to see what she will produce to follow the wonderful "Kaaterskill Falls".
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11 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars a good first book, November 13, 2000
By A Customer
This review is from: Total Immersion (Paperback)
I loved Goodman's Kaaterskill Falls, which I thought was truly magical. I was not as pleased with this book. I felt that the stories were disjointed and the characters not particularly well-developed. I was hard pressed to hear the beautiful voice Goodman fashioned for herself in her later works.
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7 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars I'm amazed..., November 17, 2001
By A Customer
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Total Immersion (Paperback)
Did she really write these stories at 21? I'm seething with envy. Allegra Goodman is everything the back cover promised - gifted, brilliant, swift to get to the truth of things. She's also full of gentle irony and very, very perceptive. I must, however, say that the fact that the stories in the book deal with almost exclusively Jewish characters may somewhat hinder its being enjoyed by readers unfamiliar with that religion and background. But, all in all, it is a wonderful collection of stories both intelligent and tremendously funny.
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Inside This Book (learn more)
First Sentence:
Dr. Friedell, This is to apologize if I offended you in class a few weeks ago, though I realize you probably forgot the whole thing by now. Read the first page
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
variant text
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Emily Ann, Oahu Prep, Barbara Ruth, New York, Rabbi Siegel, Bet Knesset, Clare Cahen, Yom Kippur, Tiki Sofer, Betsy Sugarman, Long Beach, Yaffa Yehuda-Yardeni, Jonathan Collins, Margo Bettleheim, Me'ah She'arim, Rabbi Liebowitz, Rosh Hashanah, Shavian Studies, Terence Glueck, Armistead Buchsbaum, Middle East, Ruth Katz, Sarah Markowitz, Todd Sherwin, Arnold Bogner
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