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Dorothy Parker, more than any of her contemporaries, captured the spirit of her age in her writing. The decadent 1920S and 1930s in New York were a time of great experiment and daring for women. For the rich, life seemed a continual party, but the excesses took their emotional toll. With a biting wit and perceptive insight, Dorothy Parker examines the social mores of her day and exposes the darkness beneath the dazzle. Her own life exemplified this duality, for a while she was one of the most talked-about women of her day, she was also known as a "masochist whose passion for unhappiness knew no bounds". As philosopher Irwin Edman said, she was "a Sappho who could combine a heartbreak with a wisecrack". Her dissection of the jazz age in poetry and prose is collected in this volume along with articles and reviews.
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Her husband had telephoned her by long distance to tell her about the leave. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
Her husband had telephoned her by long distance to tell her about the leave. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
26 of 27 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Dorothy Parker uses her own indomitable style to observe in a dry, precise manner the intricate, and often misunderstood, relationships between the sexes and the classes. This book is inspirational, tragic, comic and far too close to home even now, up to seventy years after some of the material was first written. Parker's own sad life is reflected in each page of ascerbic social comment and I cannot recommend it enough. For anyone who has been more keen on a lover than they were upon one, read 'The Telephone' with a familiar heart - from there on in I guarantee you will be hooked. The poems are quite short, the theatre and book reviews can be scathing and the language/ terminology is somewhat dated, but none of this detracts from Mrs Parkers vast talent for accurately dissecting the human condition in all of its guises. This collection of her work will leave the reader feeling like they have found a very prickly friend, who is well worth taking the time to become familiar with.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
"Sweet Violets
You are brief and frail and blue-
Little sisters, I am, too.
You are Heaven's masterpieces-
Little loves, the likeness ceases."
Dorothy Parker is one of my favorite authors; an author I have come to consider a 'close friend', as her words filled with heartbreak and wisecrack are as powerful and contemporary today as they were during her tempestuous lifetime. This is a fascinating collection of poems, short stories, and book and theatre reviews, which are so characteristic of her work and her worldview.
This collection includes some of her best poems. She wrote more then 300 poems for New York newspapers and magazines and she published some of these poems in three poetry collections; "Enough Rope", "Sunset Gun", and "Death and Taxes". These are the poems that are published in this book.
Her biographer, John Keats said that her wonderful short stories "are easily as good as some of O'Hara and Hemingway"; I disagree, they are much better. Of course she would never compare her work with theirs, as she never took herself seriously enough to even dare, and that is probably what makes her such a great writer. Her short stories, most of which are published in this collection, are personal and honest because she is so generous, giving so much of herself. It is clear that she was behind every heartbroken, self sarcastic character she describes, whether that is a young girl praying to God for a telephone call from her elusive lover, a desperate woman after a suicide attempt, or a war correspondent in Spain.
This collection also includes her book reviews from "The New Yorker" of which she was a founding member, and from "Esquire". Also her theatre reviews from "Vanity Fair" and from "The New Yorker". Her reviews apart from being valuable documents are delightful to read.
The book includes an excellent and informative introduction by Brendan Gill, some of her uncollected articles and an index of Titles of Stories and Titles and First Lines of Poems. The rest of her poems that were not published during her lifetime can be found in The Uncollected Dorothy Parker.
In total, an amazing collection of Dorothy Parker's writings. Highly recommended!
You are brief and frail and blue-
Little sisters, I am, too.
You are Heaven's masterpieces-
Little loves, the likeness ceases."
Dorothy Parker is one of my favorite authors; an author I have come to consider a 'close friend', as her words filled with heartbreak and wisecrack are as powerful and contemporary today as they were during her tempestuous lifetime. This is a fascinating collection of poems, short stories, and book and theatre reviews, which are so characteristic of her work and her worldview.
This collection includes some of her best poems. She wrote more then 300 poems for New York newspapers and magazines and she published some of these poems in three poetry collections; "Enough Rope", "Sunset Gun", and "Death and Taxes". These are the poems that are published in this book.
Her biographer, John Keats said that her wonderful short stories "are easily as good as some of O'Hara and Hemingway"; I disagree, they are much better. Of course she would never compare her work with theirs, as she never took herself seriously enough to even dare, and that is probably what makes her such a great writer. Her short stories, most of which are published in this collection, are personal and honest because she is so generous, giving so much of herself. It is clear that she was behind every heartbroken, self sarcastic character she describes, whether that is a young girl praying to God for a telephone call from her elusive lover, a desperate woman after a suicide attempt, or a war correspondent in Spain.
This collection also includes her book reviews from "The New Yorker" of which she was a founding member, and from "Esquire". Also her theatre reviews from "Vanity Fair" and from "The New Yorker". Her reviews apart from being valuable documents are delightful to read.
The book includes an excellent and informative introduction by Brendan Gill, some of her uncollected articles and an index of Titles of Stories and Titles and First Lines of Poems. The rest of her poems that were not published during her lifetime can be found in The Uncollected Dorothy Parker.
In total, an amazing collection of Dorothy Parker's writings. Highly recommended!
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Dorothy Parker has been up there in my top ten writer list since I was 19. Her writing is crisp, sharp, witty, ascerbic and can pierce like an arrow, there is also a timelessness about many of her characters and plots. The girl waiting by the phone could be in 1940 or 2010 as could Big Blonde, Dusk Before Fireworks etc. Lolita is the most perfect short story I have ever read (was John Marble gay?) and Clothe the Naked actually hurts me to read. Too sad, too painful
Her background in journalism had maybe perfected her crisp economical style of writing and her turn of phrase is exquisite, I can imagine writers quaked in their boots when their tome hit the desk of a certain Mrs Parker to be reviewed. I just wish she had written more - the small paperback book I have read and re-read over many years is just not enough. I am surprised by how few people have heard of her never mind read her articles and stories. A true treat.
Her background in journalism had maybe perfected her crisp economical style of writing and her turn of phrase is exquisite, I can imagine writers quaked in their boots when their tome hit the desk of a certain Mrs Parker to be reviewed. I just wish she had written more - the small paperback book I have read and re-read over many years is just not enough. I am surprised by how few people have heard of her never mind read her articles and stories. A true treat.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Big fan
Big fan of Dorothy Parker. This book is great. A mixture of short stories and poems. Stuff that everyone can understand, a great starting point for those who want to read more... Read more
Published 21 months ago by Rebecca
Great collection but should be sampled in small doses
Dorothy Parker is better known for her caustic wit and verse than her short stories and this collection is unlikely to change things. Read more
Published 22 months ago by John Fitzpatrick
a great book from a great woman
what can i say? this comprises some of the best work written in this catergory, and all by one woman! Read more
Published on 6 Sep 2001 by Mr Nicholas John Greef
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