The Fun Stuff: And Other Essays

Wood, James

ISBN 10: 0374159564 / ISBN 13: 9780374159566

Published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2012

Seller Inventory # 0374159564-3-33614881

Synopsis:

Following The Broken Estate, The Irresponsible Self, and How Fiction Works--books that established James Wood as the leading critic of his generation--The Fun Stuff confirms Wood's preeminence, not only as a discerning judge but also as an appreciator of the contemporary novel. In twenty-three passionate, sparkling dispatches--that range over such crucial writers as Thomas Hardy, Leon Tolstoy, Edmund Wilson, and Mikhail Lermontov--Wood offers a panoramic look at the modern novel. He effortlessly connects his encyclopedic, passionate understanding of the literary canon with an equally in-depth analysis of the most important authors writing today, including Cormac McCarthy, Lydia Davis, Aleksandar Hemon, and Michel Houellebecq. Included in The Fun Stuff are the title essay on Keith Moon and the lost joys of drumming--which was a finalist for last year's National Magazine Awards--as well as Wood's essay on George Orwell, which Christopher Hitchens selected for theBest American Essays 2010. The Fun Stuff is indispensable reading for anyone who cares about contemporary literature.

About the Author:

James Wood is a staff writer at The New Yorker and a visiting lecturer at Harvard University. He is the author ofHow Fiction Works, as well as two essay collections, The Broken Estate and The Irresponsible Self, and a novel, The Book Against God, all published by FSG.

Bibliographic Details

Title: The Fun Stuff: And Other Essays
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Publication Date: 2012
Binding: hardcover
Condition: Good