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 -- which range over such crucial writers as Thomas
Hardy, Leo 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, and Aleksandar Hemon.
Included in The Fun Stuff
is 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
the Best 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 in English and American literature at Harvard. Previously he
taught literature with Saul Bellow at Boston University and, in 1994,
served as a judge for the Booker Prize. He is the author of How Fiction Works, several essay collections, and the novel The Book against God.
NOTE: Factory Sealed. Remaindered (bar code has been marked over).