Point Books Supposing A Permanent Member of the Family
| Original Title: | A Permanent Member of the Family |
| ISBN: | 0061857653 (ISBN13: 9780061857652) |
| Edition Language: | English |
Russell Banks
Hardcover | Pages: 240 pages Rating: 3.59 | 1265 Users | 227 Reviews
Chronicle Concering Books A Permanent Member of the Family
A masterly collection of new stories from Russell Banks, acclaimed author of The Sweet Hereafter and Rule of the Bone, which maps the complex terrain of the modern American familyThe New York Times lauds Russell Banks as "the most compassionate fiction writer working today" and hails him as a novelist who delivers "wrenching, panoramic visions of American moral life." Long celebrated for his unflinching, empathetic works that explore the unspoken but hard realities of contemporary culture, Banks now turns his keen intelligence and emotional acuity on perhaps his most complex subject yet: the shape of family in its many forms.
Suffused with Banks's trademark lyricism and reckless humor, the twelve stories in A Permanent Member of the Family examine the myriad ways we try—and sometimes fail—to connect with one another, as we seek a home in the world. In the title story, a father looks back on the legend of the cherished family dog whose divided loyalties mirrored the fragmenting of his marriage. In "Christmas Party," a young man entertains dark thoughts as he watches his newly remarried ex-wife leading the life he once imagined they would share. "A Former Marine" asks, to chilling effect, if one can ever stop being a parent. And in the haunting, evocative "Veronica," a mysterious woman searching for her missing daughter may not be who she claims she is.
Moving between the stark beauty of winter in upstate New York and the seductive heat of Florida, A Permanent Member of the Family charts with subtlety and precision the ebb and flow of both the families we make for ourselves and the ones we're born into, as it asks how we know the ones we love and, in turn, ourselves. One of our most acute and penetrating authors, Banks's virtuosic writing animates stories that are profoundly humane, deeply—and darkly—funny, and absolutely unforgettable.
Russell Banks is one of America's most prestigious fiction writers, a past president of the International Parliament of Writers, and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. His work has been translated into twenty languages and has received numerous prizes and awards, including the Commonwealth Writers' Prize. He lives in upstate New York and Miami, Florida.
Itemize Appertaining To Books A Permanent Member of the Family
| Title | : | A Permanent Member of the Family |
| Author | : | Russell Banks |
| Book Format | : | Hardcover |
| Book Edition | : | Anniversary Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 240 pages |
| Published | : | November 12th 2013 by Ecco |
| Categories | : | Short Stories. Fiction. Literary Fiction |
Rating Appertaining To Books A Permanent Member of the Family
Ratings: 3.59 From 1265 Users | 227 ReviewsJudgment Appertaining To Books A Permanent Member of the Family
These ordinary lives are fraught with danger and uncertainty. Life is both too much and not enough. Any action or incident or word--performed or aborted, begun or forgotten, said or left dangling, large or trivial--anything and everything can start the dominos falling down.Parallels and divergences, connections and losses, all are chillingly recognizable. The language is not fancy, but the details are etched in mind's eye and echo in memories that linger in a very familiar way."He knows how sheI received this book courtesy of Goodreads First Reads. I adored this book of simple, elegant vignettes. The writing is simplistic, but never fails to tell the reader what needs to be said. The simple writing worked with these stories because it left so much up for audience interpretation.Every story begins by throwing the reader headfirst into the character's life directly before an important life event. Things may seem bland and normal at first, but the story moves from a slow simmer of
Russell Banks short stories dont rely on fireworks and bells and whistles; theres no hint of post-modernism or genre bending in them. Theyre deceptively simple and straightforwardeven dispassionate in tone. Yet in many ways, they are morally complex; certainly, they pack a wallop.Most of them focus on men of a certain age time-tested, time-broken men who have struggled through broken dreams and damaged relationships. In the eponymous story the story of a post-divorce family the aging dog is
Meh: Wouldnt recommend but didnt hate it. It was very easy to pick up and read for short periods; and felt like very real-life characters and true stories, rather than a fictional world like most novels. At first I thought it was neat/interesting how hes constantly leave you hanging in the lurch and coming up with your own conclusions, which I enjoyed for some of them. But others just seemed pretty pointless, space fillers. The chapters I enjoyed were: Former Marine, Transplant, and Looking For
Portraits of families or individuals that are struggling in some way, with sometimes devastating consequences. Highly recommended.
Russell Banks has written some great novels (Continental Drift is still my favorite). But I think he is also a great short story writer. Many of his stories are about people on the boundary, not making it and not completely defeated either.Ventana in the story Blue is a good example -- having saved $3500, she is ready to buy a used car. She has passed by the lot countless times on her way home from work. The day finally arrives when she can actually buy. She's a nothing to the sales people --
Each of these great short stories describes the deterioration, loss, or the end of a relationship. In doing so, we learn about the gossamer threads that maintain the fabric of relationships - a dog in one story. Sons don't really know the father who they see often. Sudden fame disrupts whatever kept one couple together and in others it is slow motion destruction. I found one story particularly haunting. A man's life is saved because of a transplant. The surviving partner of the donor wants to
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