The Mandarin

Kunin, Aaron

ISBN 10: 1934200093 / ISBN 13: 9781934200094

Published by Fence Magazine, Incorporated, 2008

Pages intact with possible writing/highlighting. Binding strong with minor wear. Dust jackets/supplements may not be included. Stock photo provided. Product includes identifying sticker. Better World Books: Buy Books. Do Good. Seller Inventory # 40593426-6

Synopsis:

"The Mandarin" does at least pretend to be an ordinary novel. It is set in places that no longer exist in Minneapolis - houses and apartments where one of the characters used to live, businesses and restaurants that have closed or moved elsewhere. Its narrator, Willy, writes boring novels that put everyone to sleep. The plot develops recursively rather than progressively, as a kind of theme-and-variations; usually one of the characters is in a house or a room, and the others are outside trying to get in. "The Mandarin" is written almost entirely in dialogue; as a result, actions and events tend to occur within a nimbus of uncertainty. Consciousness tends to be communal rather than personal. "The Mandarin" preserves the conventions of the novel: the speakers are individualized characters speaking in an identifiable situation. This means that, at any moment, the characters might stop talking and start doing something. Of course, they won't, but this option is always available to them.

About the Author: AARON KUNIN is a poet, critic, and novelist. He is the author of Folding Ruler Star (Fence Books, 2005), a collection of small poems about shame. He lives in California, where he is an assistant professor of negative anthropology at Pomona College.

Bibliographic Details

Title: The Mandarin
Publisher: Fence Magazine, Incorporated
Publication Date: 2008
Binding: Soft cover
Condition: Very Good