tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2046663689477874544.post1349772809914720548..comments2023-11-05T05:01:58.563-05:00Comments on Ward Six: David Bezmozgis's "The Proposition"Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2046663689477874544.post-66453062633186692782007-08-14T12:02:00.000-05:002007-08-14T12:02:00.000-05:00Yeah, that's true. One of my favorites is a sort ...Yeah, that's true. One of my favorites is a sort of novella nobody ever seems to mention--"My Life," about a hippie-ish back-to-the-land ne'er-do-well and the father he is disappointing. A great family argument scene at the end.<BR/><BR/>Chekhov! Good god, I'm certainly glad James Wood didn't compare him to me. What a horrid curse--one is doomed never to measure up.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2046663689477874544.post-6140697861152417712007-08-14T11:42:00.000-05:002007-08-14T11:42:00.000-05:00Pete -- Chekhov is really really funny. You will l...Pete -- Chekhov is really really funny. You will like him. His greatness comes from his personality.<BR/><BR/>The most well-known stories are the less funny ones, for some reason.rmellishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03133206908895131438noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2046663689477874544.post-40280877664448707452007-08-14T09:21:00.000-05:002007-08-14T09:21:00.000-05:00I still haven't read any Chekhov (that sound you h...I still haven't read any Chekhov (that sound you hear is me slapping my own face) but did read Bezmogis' debut collection. Suffice it to say that if Wood's assessment is at all accurate, I won't bother getting around to Chekhov anytime soon.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2046663689477874544.post-47835666602169743532007-08-14T07:10:00.000-05:002007-08-14T07:10:00.000-05:00The reason I did it was the subject matter of the ...The reason I did it was the subject matter of the book--it took place on a failing ranch. I wanted the dialogue to seem like just another part of the landscape--for it to blend in with the narrative.<BR/><BR/>Also if you like Ulysses, you like the dashes, and I like Ulysses. Was that the first time anybody did that?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2046663689477874544.post-85599305789924354002007-08-13T22:02:00.000-05:002007-08-13T22:02:00.000-05:00I find reading Cormac McCarthy, Frank McCourt, et ...I find reading Cormac McCarthy, Frank McCourt, et al, attractive because of no quotation marks. If you can follow the story, and it's well done — the writing, not your dinner — you eventually stop expecting them. And speaking of em-dashes Jonathan Carroll uses them quite a lot, however, in many cases it irritates me. And now I'm terrified to sign as I usually do, because I have a silly habit of putting an em-dash before the T in my name, followed by a really pointless period.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com