Memoir From Antproof Case
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Product Description
Product Description
From Mark Helprin, acclaimed author of "A Soldier of the Great War" and "A Winter's Tale," comes a miraculous song of the twentieth century.
In a mountain garden in Brazil, an old American is writing his memoirs, placing the pages carefully in his antproof case. As he reminisces we learn he was a World War II ace who was shot down twice, an investment banker who met with popes and presidents, a multimillionaire, a man who was never not in love. He spent his adolescence in an insane asylum in Switzerland; he was the thief of the century, a murderer, and a protector of the innocent. And all his life, he waged a valiant, losing, one-man battle against the world's most insidious enslaver: coffee. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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First Sentence
CALL ME OSCAR Progresso. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
CALL ME OSCAR Progresso. Read the first page
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Concordance
Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Helprin starts by recalling Melville, "Call me Oscar Progresso..." and then lets us know we are in for a wild ride, "Or, for that matter, call me anything you want, as Oscar Progresso is not my real name.Nor are Baby Supine, Euclid Cherry, Franklyn Nuts, or any of the other aliases that, now and then over the years, I have been foced to adopt". In a book with flights of fancy that soar every bit as high as those in the bestselling "Winter's Tale", but infinitely funnier and less grandiose, Helprin charts a course few writers dare.
Giving away the story is betrayal to the reader, so suffice it to say that Helprin's newest hero is defined by his hatred for the "evil bean that enslaves half the world", coffee. His life struggles put him in harms way and at the top of the world. He knows riches and love, he knows betrayal and poverty. I laughed out loud continuously while reading our hero's
description of his fall from corporate grace, defined by the ever changing quality of the art hanging in his office. Helprin has always been a comic writer, his "serious" works had a deftly comic touch, but this is his first work of pure comedy, and of course as all of Helprin's books are, it is a morality play of sorts and an exploration of life's abusrdities.
But don't let that thought deter you, this a funny, brilliant, eccentric, even dazzling book. Read Antproof Case and let this extravagantly gifted author take you where he will.
Giving away the story is betrayal to the reader, so suffice it to say that Helprin's newest hero is defined by his hatred for the "evil bean that enslaves half the world", coffee. His life struggles put him in harms way and at the top of the world. He knows riches and love, he knows betrayal and poverty. I laughed out loud continuously while reading our hero's
description of his fall from corporate grace, defined by the ever changing quality of the art hanging in his office. Helprin has always been a comic writer, his "serious" works had a deftly comic touch, but this is his first work of pure comedy, and of course as all of Helprin's books are, it is a morality play of sorts and an exploration of life's abusrdities.
But don't let that thought deter you, this a funny, brilliant, eccentric, even dazzling book. Read Antproof Case and let this extravagantly gifted author take you where he will.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Mark Helprin quite literally is a genius at work, he rescues the english language from the monontony of every day life.This book isn't only a great literary piece it is also histerically funny, imaginative and is a great form of escapism.If you enjoyed this book please read Soldier of the Great War, it's a wonderful read.By the way when is Mark visiting Ireland, he's my hero!
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Helprin's novels tend to be luminous picaresques. This one hasn't the grand sweep of "Winter's Tale" or "A Soldier of the Great War" but is nonetheless beautifully written, funny, colourful and absorbing. I was quite happily bobbing along in the absence of any real plot when one quite suddenly arose towards the end - and a very interesting plot it was too. But plot isn't the issue with Helprin - read him to be reminded of, and at best filled with, the joy of life.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
This is a must read!!!!!!!!
This is the most complete book I have ever read. By this I mean that it's characters are interesting, it has a labyrinthine plot, and the writing style is extremely interesting. Read more
Published on 7 July 1999
A lyrically written, masterfully crafted tale.
Mark Helprin writes with mastery. His anonymous character is wonderfully eccentric--yet just enough to reveal humankind's own inherent eccentricities. Read more
Published on 26 May 1999
A journey into captivating insanity
I first picked up the book because the cover was rather interesting, but reading further and further into this engrossing novel, I became further and further a part of the world... Read more
Published on 7 Feb 1999
Humorous yet deeply moving.
If you have passion and humor in you, a sentiment for earlier parts of this century, a sense of justice or if you have ever been hurt by an insult, you will like... Read more
Published on 10 Jan 1999
Good but a slow start.
The novel was a fun romp through many different adventures and situations. The central character was interesting and had a unique outlook on life but the novel started slowly,... Read more
Published on 5 Jan 1999
Read every book ever written by Mark Helprin. NOW!
You will be very happy you did. It doesn't matter what order you read them in. Once you read one, you will come back for more. Read more
Published on 26 Dec 1998
Mark Helprin is a gifted lyric writer, but not a novelist
This man's style is amazing. His gift at making a beautiful sentence with a gripping image is something every would-be writer should study carefully. Read more
Published on 14 Dec 1998
Helprin's MEMOIR FROM ANTPROOF CASE stunning!
Mark Helprin is capable of such captivating stories, and this is no exception. Memoir from Antproof Case is funny, moving, engaging, exciting, and truly entertaining. Read more
Published on 11 Dec 1998
Helprin is brilliant, sensitive and hysterically funny.
I have read nearly everything Helprin has written. All his books are absolutely stunning; but Antproof may top them all ... Read more
Published on 11 Oct 1998
It is classic and contemporary; engulfing
I was carried in to a world of great mistique and intrigue. Intrigue mostly with the life of a man that I have never met. Read more
Published on 9 Oct 1998
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