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THE PUSHCART PRIZE 2004 XXVIII

Name: THE PUSHCART PRIZE 2004 XXVIII
Author: Bill Henderson
ISBN: 1-888889-36-5

edited by Bill Henderson ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 1, 2004

Some of the pieces here are merely fashionable and as such ephemeral; others promise to endure beyond a few literary...

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The 2004 iteration of the longstanding best-of series, as always, scours the literary journals for outstanding new fiction, poetry, creative nonfiction, and memoirs that ordinary readers might otherwise have missed.

Some of the pieces here are merely fashionable and as such ephemeral; others promise to endure beyond a few literary seasons. Established writers are heavily represented, and there are wonderful entries from the likes of Evan S. Connell, who, perhaps in accidental homage to Stanley Elkin, imagines a curmudgeonly businessman adrift in history and given to dyspeptic griping about all sorts of things (“the republic would be better off if Nixon had spent a couple of decades mumbling and raving in the jug”); Joyce Carol Oates, who conjures up bookish nerds of the 1950s; and the normally hyperurbane George Steiner, who turns in a violent little tale from the drug wars (“Pablo Escobar? You want to know about Escobar? He was a turd. A mother-fucking turd”). Younger writers also figure, notably Valerie Laken in a nicely mannered debut work of short fiction. Pushcart publisher and author Henderson (Tower, 2000, etc.) proclaims that “this glorious collection . . . should give us all faith that in the age of American Empire—when money, machines, and machinations seem to rule—the still quiet voice of inspiration and individuality is alive and thriving.” A little self-serving, that, but he’s on the right track, emerging with another in a long line of good books.

Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2004

ISBN: 1-888889-36-5

Page Count: 608

Publisher: Pushcart

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2003

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE PUSHCART PRIZE XLVIII
edited by Bill Henderson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE PUSHCART PRIZE XLVII
edited by Bill Henderson

- BOOK REVIEW
PUSHCART PRIZE XLVI
edited by Bill Henderson

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.