The Law of averages
Oct. 28th, 2009 01:04 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rainbowunicorn_readsEverything reminds me of everything.
"The Law of Averages", short stories by Frederick Barthelme
I am in the middle of reading "The Law of Averages", short stories by Frederick Barthelme. The book blurbs mention that it's postmodern Americana, whatever that means. Maybe that means it's similar to sad, introspective American films like American Beauty, or Gigantic. It bears a silent elegance, and I am afraid of disturbing the quiet. Each story leaves me puzzled, with no clear resolution, but with heady words strung neatly, like so:
Above her the sky is going very dark , and the rain is no longer a suggestion, it is a promise. This makes her excited and nervous at once--like a child, she is seduced by the prospect of passing the rainstorm outside, in the splashing mud of the hole, in the cold water on her skin. Like an adult, she is apprehensive about getting out of the hole, about tracking the mud into the house, about the scrubbing that now seems inevitable.
From "Domestic", Frederick Barthelme, The Law of Averages
It actually reminded of Karen Russell's collection of short stories, St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves, which I just had to own at the usual expensive bookstore price, only to find out that a much cheaper (and hardbound!) copy could be found at my usual cheapo bookstore haunt. Le sigh. Barthelme's stories are similar to Russell's stories since they're mostly open-ended tales. In SLHFGRBW (whew) though, the incidents are of the fantastical sort: Giant seashells as a tourist attraction, A camp for people with sleeping problems, the title story (self-explanatory), etc. This made it more enjoyable for me, since it read like some hybrid of science fiction and fairytale. I'd want some sort of closure though, for Russell's stories. The buildup was fantastic, only to leave me wanting at the end. I'm not expecting happy endings here, just a resolution. Something Atwood-like, perhaps, where even just a phrase or a movement of the hands would seal the deal.
In "The Law of Averages", true enough, incidents are more realistic, more...average. Settings would include a high-end area of the mall, the poolside at a girl's 17th birthday and a porch, for example. I kept expecting something dramatic or sinister to happen, but to my disappointment the book was just like one of those hipster indie talkie movies, where everyone talks to make you understand their subconscious desires but I just ended up getting bored, mostly. I won't give up so easily though. Will give the other stories a go, maybe there's a gem there somewhere. Nice usage of words though, that much I can say.
What I think: 3 unicorns
Highlight of the week, thus far:
♥ Finished a book on my TBR list in less than three days for my 30 before 30 list. That book is "Oranges are not the only fruit" by Jeanette Winterson. My introduction to Jeanette Winterson came in the form of this book. Many years ago a queer lj friend of mine recommended it and then a few months after I saw a book by Winterson: "Written on the body", at the young adult section of the used books department of National Superbranch Cubao, no less. It cost me Php40. That was where I also bought Tipping the Velvet and Fingersmith by another beloved author, Sarah Waters, but that's another story. The rest is history. Thus started my love affair with Jeanette, who writes heartbreaking lines like "Why is the measure of love loss?" and sometimes other stories that are just too awesomely incomprehensible for my teensy brain, but I love her nonetheless.
"The Law of Averages", short stories by Frederick Barthelme
I am in the middle of reading "The Law of Averages", short stories by Frederick Barthelme. The book blurbs mention that it's postmodern Americana, whatever that means. Maybe that means it's similar to sad, introspective American films like American Beauty, or Gigantic. It bears a silent elegance, and I am afraid of disturbing the quiet. Each story leaves me puzzled, with no clear resolution, but with heady words strung neatly, like so:
Above her the sky is going very dark , and the rain is no longer a suggestion, it is a promise. This makes her excited and nervous at once--like a child, she is seduced by the prospect of passing the rainstorm outside, in the splashing mud of the hole, in the cold water on her skin. Like an adult, she is apprehensive about getting out of the hole, about tracking the mud into the house, about the scrubbing that now seems inevitable.
From "Domestic", Frederick Barthelme, The Law of Averages
It actually reminded of Karen Russell's collection of short stories, St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves, which I just had to own at the usual expensive bookstore price, only to find out that a much cheaper (and hardbound!) copy could be found at my usual cheapo bookstore haunt. Le sigh. Barthelme's stories are similar to Russell's stories since they're mostly open-ended tales. In SLHFGRBW (whew) though, the incidents are of the fantastical sort: Giant seashells as a tourist attraction, A camp for people with sleeping problems, the title story (self-explanatory), etc. This made it more enjoyable for me, since it read like some hybrid of science fiction and fairytale. I'd want some sort of closure though, for Russell's stories. The buildup was fantastic, only to leave me wanting at the end. I'm not expecting happy endings here, just a resolution. Something Atwood-like, perhaps, where even just a phrase or a movement of the hands would seal the deal.
In "The Law of Averages", true enough, incidents are more realistic, more...average. Settings would include a high-end area of the mall, the poolside at a girl's 17th birthday and a porch, for example. I kept expecting something dramatic or sinister to happen, but to my disappointment the book was just like one of those hipster indie talkie movies, where everyone talks to make you understand their subconscious desires but I just ended up getting bored, mostly. I won't give up so easily though. Will give the other stories a go, maybe there's a gem there somewhere. Nice usage of words though, that much I can say.
What I think: 3 unicorns
Highlight of the week, thus far:
♥ Finished a book on my TBR list in less than three days for my 30 before 30 list. That book is "Oranges are not the only fruit" by Jeanette Winterson. My introduction to Jeanette Winterson came in the form of this book. Many years ago a queer lj friend of mine recommended it and then a few months after I saw a book by Winterson: "Written on the body", at the young adult section of the used books department of National Superbranch Cubao, no less. It cost me Php40. That was where I also bought Tipping the Velvet and Fingersmith by another beloved author, Sarah Waters, but that's another story. The rest is history. Thus started my love affair with Jeanette, who writes heartbreaking lines like "Why is the measure of love loss?" and sometimes other stories that are just too awesomely incomprehensible for my teensy brain, but I love her nonetheless.