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More About the Author
Product Description
Review
"In the short story, Malamud achieved an almost psalmlike compression. He has been called the Jewish Hawthorne, but he might just as well be thought a Jewish Chopin, a prose composer of preludes and noctures."--Mark Shechner, "Partisan Review"
"There are thirteen stoires in "The Magic Barrel "and every one of them is a small, highly individualized work of art. This is the kind of book that calls for not admiration but gratitude."--Richard Sullivan, "The Chicago Tribune "
"There are thirteen stoires in "The Magic Barrel "and every one of them is a small, highly individualized work of art. This is the kind of book that calls for not admiration but gratitude."--Richard Sullivan, "The Chicago Tribune "
Book Description
The Magic Barrel was chosen out of all the American fiction of its year to receive the National Book Award of 1959 - an honour which had only once before been accorded to a book of short stories, those of William Faulkner. Malamud's great gifts as a writer are his humour, his profound concern for all human life and his ability to transmute common things and people into a strange poetry - as the New York Herald Tribune said 'He is master of an alchemy whereby the grossest reality is converted to the most imaginative uses. He transcribes everyday life and yet the result glows with lights never seen on land or sea.'
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Since this book won the 1959 National Book Award, and I had not read it, I found a copy and was amazed at the power of the stories. I usually am not too enamored of short story collections, since I don't appreciate starting anew every few pages in a book. But this book is an exception. I was amazed at how quickly one became caught up in each story. The first story is The First Seven Years, and is a most touching story, setting the reader up most felicitously for enjoyment of each of the following 12 stories.
1 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
The parcel was well sealed and arrived very quickly.The book was older than I had expected, but was nevertheless very adequate for my needs. Thank you.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
14 reviews
12 of 14 people found the following review helpful
This book is a sheer jewel
21 May 1999
Format:Paperback
Since this book won the 1959 National Book Award, and I had not read it, I found a copy and was amazed at the power of the stories. I usually am not too enamored of short story collections, since I don't appreciate starting anew every few pages in a book. But this book is an exception. I was amazed at how quickly one became caught up in each story. The first story is The First Seven Years, and is a most touching story, setting the reader up most felicitously for enjoyment of each of the following 12 stories.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Simple, powerful stories
13 Dec 2007
Format:Paperback
It was such a pleasure to read these stories. Each story grabs you quickly, and makes its narative thrust accessible. His stories don't stray from his simple narratives; there is very little excess or digression.
The stories are very personal and moral without being preachy. He knows how to capture people's moral ambivalence without judging them or resorting to stereotypes.
I found this book to be both an easy read and very moving.
The stories are very personal and moral without being preachy. He knows how to capture people's moral ambivalence without judging them or resorting to stereotypes.
I found this book to be both an easy read and very moving.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Wonderful Stories Covering a Surprising Range of Emotions
23 July 2000
Format:Paperback
This set of stories surprises one with breadth of understanding which it exhibits. From the first story ("The First Seven Years") which deals with a father's desire to provide the best for his daughter through the last story ("The Magic Barrel")which provides an interesting contrast to the first, all of these stories expand on the single theme of human experience.
The frustration built upon in "The Key" and "The Last Mohican" if offset nicely by the humor in "A Summer's Reading" and "The Lady of the Lake". "Take Pity" and "The Mourners" offer great insigth into growing old and dealing with lonliness. While "Angel Levine" is probably the most off beat of the set it still manages to increase hope, whereas "The Prison" causes an equal loss of faith in the human race.
The 12 stories here provide a wonderful evening's reading, however if your looking for more they are included in the books of his complete stories.
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