Introduction to Literary Context: American Short Fiction

February 1, 2014

This latest in the series covers U.S. and Canadian "short fiction," from middle and high school standby authors such as Stephen Crane, Edgar Allan Poe, and Jack London and a diverse group of 20th-century writers including Raymond Carver, Margaret Atwood, William Faulkner, Ursula K. Le Guin, and T.C. Boyle. The volume begins by addressing the early history of American short fiction. Each of the 40 six- to eight-page entries that follow covers an individual story and includes a detailed synopsis and analysis according to historical, societal, religious, scientific, and biographical context. All entries close with a bibliography, discussion questions, and essay ideas. Some have a "Symbols and Motifs" analysis, although many cover this in the synopsis; selected entries have a brief "For Further Study" list. The material throughout is illustrated with black-and-white stock images. Though it includes an admirable variety of authors and works, this title is hampered by inconsistency: the entries, written by different authors, vary in quality of writing and analysis. Their approaches to a seemingly uniform format differ, especially in the story synopses--some entries detail their story's plot, while others assume reader familiarity. Moreover, Salem's definition of short fiction is confusing, as the book covers not only short stories and novellas but an approximately 200-page novel, Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House. VERDICT This volume is optional for high school collections. Some of the stories (e.g., Max Apple's "Vegetable Love") are too mature for younger readers, while college students will be frustrated because there is no credited editor and the individual authors, though named, have no listed credentials.--Robert Mixner, Bartholomew Cty. P.L., Columbus, IN

Copyright 2014 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 1, 2014

Gr 9 Up-With too many typos, this set is ill-prepared and unclear in its purpose. Ostensibly an introduction to "short fiction," it includes Shirley Jackson's novel The Haunting of Hill House, and Faulkner's novel-esque collection of intertwined stories, Go Down, Moses, while also devoting an entry to "The Bear" (a story from that same collection). The typos (geometry instead of geography, for example, and stating that Faulkner received the 1949 "Novel Prize") are clearly accidents, not reflective necessarily of any intrinsic weakness in the book, but certainly they are reflective of a lack of editorial care that is sadly also apparent in the very rudimentary level of some of the articles. The discussion of Flannery O'Connor's "A Good Man Is Hard to Find" barely touches the surface of the work's profound theological and moral dimensions. To dismiss the "Misfit" as a devil-like representation of hypocrisy without pressing further presents a cursory reading of the story at best. Each entry includes a general synopsis, along with a discussion of symbols and motifs and the historical, societal, religious, scientific and technological, and biographical contexts present in the story. While the writing is clear and easy to follow, the discussion questions at the end of each entry will be helpful to teachers and reading-group organizers, and the list of essay ideas of use to students and teachers, the volume as a whole is lacking.-Herman Sutter, St. Agnes Academy, Houston.

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 15, 2014
American Short Fiction is the latest entry in Salem Press' Introduction to Literary Context series, which was designed to place literature in its historical, societal, scientific, and religious context while accompanying the main Critical Insights series. In this volume, 40 short stories by nineteenth- and twentieth-century American authors are analyzed by showing how they reflect their time periods. The works are arranged alphabetically by the title of the story. The essays do an excellent job bringing out the context of the stories. Each six- to eight-page essay has six sections: Content Synopsis summarizes the story; Historical Context relates it to the time period; Societal Context describes the role of society in the story; Religious Context explains how religion influences the work; Scientific and Technological Context explains how science affects the story; and Biographical Context gives insights into the author's life. Each essay ends with a list of discussion questions, essay ideas, and a list of works cited. Of the 40 stories, 15 are by nineteenth-century authors, with 9 of those by Edgar Allan Poe. Although Nathaniel Hawthorne, Jack London, Stephen Crane, Kate Chopin, and Ambrose Bierce are included, Washington Irving, Mark Twain, Herman Melville, and Henry James are not. The divergent group of twentieth-century authors includes John Cheever, Margaret Atwood, Flannery O'Connor, Jamaica Kincaid, J. D. Salinger, and more, but F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway are missing. Fewer stories by Poe and more from other authors would make it more inclusive. This volume will be helpful to literature teachers, students, and fiction readers by giving information that supplements other literary criticism. A recommended purchase for public, school, and college libraries.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)

March 15, 2014
Postmodernism is a term that defies simple definition. Generally, it is understood to refer to changes in social and economic structures that have resulted in no one set of standards, be they moral, aesthetic, or political, having general applicability and validity. Postmodern literature, therefore, is characterized by its rejection of traditional narrative viewpoints and structural forms in favor of a variety of values and techniques. This collection covers 37 notable postmodernist American and Canadian novels published between 1960 and 2000. Each essay runs six to eight pages in length, and all adhere to the same format. A summary of the novel's plot is followed by sections that place the work in its historical, societal, religious, and scientific and technological contexts. A brief biography of the author is also provided. The essays conclude with discussion questions and suggested topics for term papers. Selected authors include Margaret Atwood, Judy Blume, Sandra Cisneros, Don DeLillo, Philip Roth, John Updike, and Kurt Vonnegut Jr. Choosing the novels could not have been an easy task. A review of the list of authors suggests that care was taken to ensure that ethnic, religious, and gender diversity were reflected in the choices. The content, simply presented and accessibly written, will be a helpful resource for students as they begin to explore the world's literary output. Recommended for libraries serving high-school students and college undergraduates.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)