HOBART

I’m gonna try to read one of these The Stories of John Cheever stories everyday, and maybe write a little something about it, or find a photo to pair with an excerpt, or…something:

dailycheever:

Mr. Hartley was a good skier. He was up and down the slope, his skis parallel, his knees bent, his shoulders swinging gracefully in a half circle. His wife was not as clever but she knew what she was doing, and she enjoyed the cold air and the snow.

— John Cheever, “The Hartleys”

(This para isn’t necessarily the most “indicative” of the story, but I love that use of “clever.” Also, the story, as with most (all?) of Cheever is East Coast but I know the west, so the pic is Crystal Mountain in WA.)

5 notes
See Post tags #Cheever #John Cheever #The Hartleys #short story

It is true of even the best of us that if an observer can catch us boarding a train at a way station; if he will mark our faces, stripped by anxiety of their self-possession; if he will appraise our luggage, our clothing, and look out of the window to see who has driven us to the station; if he will listen to the harsh or tender things we say if we are with out families, or notice the way we put our suitcase onto the rack, check the position of our wallet, our key ring, and wipe the sweat off the back of our necks; if he can judge sensibly the self-importance, diffidence, or sadness with which we settle ourselves, he will be given a broader view of our lives than most of us would intend.

— John Cheever, “The Summer Farmer”

i think i read this paragraph at least a half a dozen times last night and this morning. so good.

8 notes
See Post tags #Cheever #john cheever #The Summer Farmer #New Yorker #Darjeeling Limited #Bill Murray #short story #trains

I remember when I found out Pat was gonna do some of the Dollar Store Tour and I was like, “Holy shit, the dude that wrote ‘Trouble and the Shadowy Deathblow?!?’”

recommendedreading:

“The Deathblow: Sometimes I think about my life in two phases: Before I knew about the shadowy deathblow, and after I knew about the shadowy deathblow. I do not want to give away too much of this ingenious creation, but there is a spectacularly surprising sentence halfway through this story that involves the deathblow and a certain appendage. I still think about that sentence, whenever I believe I have written something smart and humorous. Is it as funny as that? I ask myself. Usually the answer is no.”

Hannah Tinti, editor-in-chief of One Story, writes in the editor’s note of Recommended Reading that there are 5 reasons to read Patrick Somerville’s story “Trouble and the Shadowy Deathblow.” Read the other reasons (and the story) tomorrow morning at Recommended Reading.

---

---

25 notes
See Post tags #patrick somerville #trouble and the shadowy deathblow #lit #prose #fiction #short story #one story #hannah tinti

heheheheheheheeheheheehehe:

chart re The Contemporary Short Story, a craft class by Tao Lin in Sarah Lawrence’s MFA in fiction program

not sure what to make of this, but i kinda want to print it out super huge and really just take it all in…

501 notes
See Post tags #Tao Lin #chart #short story #lit #books #Sarah Lawrence