- Paperback: 399 pages
- Publisher: Vintage Books USA; Reprint edition (2 Dec 2008)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0307387259
- ISBN-13: 978-0307387257
- Product Dimensions: 13.2 x 2.2 x 20.3 cm
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,731,277 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Product details |
More About the Author
Product Description
Product Description
In these journals, the experiences of one of the most renowned twentieth-century American writers come to life with fascinating, wholly revealing detail.John Cheever's journals provide peerless insights into the creation of his novels and stories. But they are equally the record of a complex, often dark, always closely observed inner world. No American writer of comparable stature has left such an unreservedly revealing and moving account of himself: his family life, his literary life, and his emotional life. The final word from one of modern America's great writers, The Journals of John Cheever provides a powerful and beautiful capstone to a towering oeuvre.
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organise and find favourite items. |
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
There are no customer reviews yet on Amazon.co.uk.
5 star
4 star
3 star
2 star
1 star
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
2 reviews
19 of 20 people found the following review helpful
Psalms for the Modern Man
27 July 2009
Format:Paperback
I devour published journals, diaries, notebooks, sketchbooks and even letter collections like no other category in literature. When they're good and not merely dull notation - "Supped at 7:30 and went to bed early," BLAH! - there's nothing quite like them. To me, they're the hidden ground of consciousness, the unpretentious flashpoint of self-understanding and creation. Of the (by this time) hundreds I've read, Cheever's journals lead the pack. For sheer honesty, beauty of perception and phrase, he transcends the genre.
John Updike wrote a review of the book complaining that there wasn't enough context, no footnotes to make sense of the entries. Respectable as he is, Updike got it wrong. No context is needed, because from beginning to end, Cheever maintains a singular perspective, a transparent love of the world in all its complexity that illuminates even the murkist turn of events. He called it the "CAFARDE," that downward-spiraling sense we sometimes get of the trap, the uselessness of it all. The home we can ill-afford and the relationship that requires more giving than receiving. And as much as he dodges it, the big let-down is STILL a thing of beauty, an invitation to be awed by life.
It's the small, gritty, real things that he loves the most and notes with an obsessive joy.
Cheever was a husband, father, a veteran, thinker, artist, bisexual, homeowner, traveler, charmer and comedian. All of this comes through in prose as light and essential as thought itself. If you are at all interested in the cartography of another person's soul, this will become an essential text for you, as it has for me.
I never met John Cheever in person, but it hardly matters. With this book, I have met him in a way that would have been forbidden, even impossible, at some random cocktail party. He knew what he was doing, writing these words. He was reaching across the decades, generations and the arbitrary change of style, reaching toward an unknown hand. I hope you'll take it and feel the warmth that, through Cheever's distinctive genius, hasn't cooled one degree since the words were typed.
John Updike wrote a review of the book complaining that there wasn't enough context, no footnotes to make sense of the entries. Respectable as he is, Updike got it wrong. No context is needed, because from beginning to end, Cheever maintains a singular perspective, a transparent love of the world in all its complexity that illuminates even the murkist turn of events. He called it the "CAFARDE," that downward-spiraling sense we sometimes get of the trap, the uselessness of it all. The home we can ill-afford and the relationship that requires more giving than receiving. And as much as he dodges it, the big let-down is STILL a thing of beauty, an invitation to be awed by life.
It's the small, gritty, real things that he loves the most and notes with an obsessive joy.
Cheever was a husband, father, a veteran, thinker, artist, bisexual, homeowner, traveler, charmer and comedian. All of this comes through in prose as light and essential as thought itself. If you are at all interested in the cartography of another person's soul, this will become an essential text for you, as it has for me.
I never met John Cheever in person, but it hardly matters. With this book, I have met him in a way that would have been forbidden, even impossible, at some random cocktail party. He knew what he was doing, writing these words. He was reaching across the decades, generations and the arbitrary change of style, reaching toward an unknown hand. I hope you'll take it and feel the warmth that, through Cheever's distinctive genius, hasn't cooled one degree since the words were typed.
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful
The Journals of John Cheever: A Mini-Review
11 May 2009
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
The sheer, physical elegance of John Cheever's stories, and novels, is equally on display in his journals. The journals, of course, is a more intimate look into the inner life of a fine writer, with all of Cheever's craftsmanship on display. The journals give you a full picture of Cheever's spirit and mind, in the pure, and eloquent language Cheever worked hard at.
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
