It was an amazing group, where we all made meaning together. The group was wisely curated and led by David and his friend Al Filreis who are both committed to bringing out the thoughts of the participants. No right answers, just a deepening discussion. Great stories are essential--so are gifted hosts/discussion leaders. Thank you!
Um, hard no. Novels are a moon shot. Short stories, while gem-worthy, can merely maybe break the sound barrier. Nabokov excelled at both. That said Cheever's collected is an exception, as is the aforementioned [baker's] Dozen. Having suffered and won in the big leagues (USA Today Best Seller, home slice) I can tell you that nothing, but nothing, is like a novel. It's so hard to do well. It is the analog to the complete game of pitching baseball which Koufax called the longest orgasm known to man and (sic) the hardest. As for group conversations, I know not. But feel free to try Bar Maid by Daniel Roberts! I will join the talk. :-) Also George Palimpseston attended my Press magazine parties. About non fiction he was most impalimpsest.
I never said novels were overrated, just that short stories were underrated. I'm guessing that the amount of time a serious reader spends reading novels is many multiples the time spent reading short stories. I'm suggesting that whatever that multiple may be, it should be a bit less.
Thank you for this reflection, David.
Enjoyed your use of the word palimpsest
Thanks! Not a word that often fits.
It was an amazing group, where we all made meaning together. The group was wisely curated and led by David and his friend Al Filreis who are both committed to bringing out the thoughts of the participants. No right answers, just a deepening discussion. Great stories are essential--so are gifted hosts/discussion leaders. Thank you!
Um, hard no. Novels are a moon shot. Short stories, while gem-worthy, can merely maybe break the sound barrier. Nabokov excelled at both. That said Cheever's collected is an exception, as is the aforementioned [baker's] Dozen. Having suffered and won in the big leagues (USA Today Best Seller, home slice) I can tell you that nothing, but nothing, is like a novel. It's so hard to do well. It is the analog to the complete game of pitching baseball which Koufax called the longest orgasm known to man and (sic) the hardest. As for group conversations, I know not. But feel free to try Bar Maid by Daniel Roberts! I will join the talk. :-) Also George Palimpseston attended my Press magazine parties. About non fiction he was most impalimpsest.
I never said novels were overrated, just that short stories were underrated. I'm guessing that the amount of time a serious reader spends reading novels is many multiples the time spent reading short stories. I'm suggesting that whatever that multiple may be, it should be a bit less.
I wonder how this argument holds up if you replace short story with movie and novel with multi-season tv show. There are some parallels here!
I always preferred short stories in school. It allowed you to really become intimately familiar with all aspects of the story for analysis.