Where I'm Calling From: Selected Stories
by Raymond Carver
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Read in May, 2008
Have you ever had one of those Blair moments when after weeks of being nice to everyone you have to finally make a decision which means that enemies are made as they see a must have dismissed? Well this is one of those moments. I have been struggling with Raymond Carver’s “Where I'm Calling From” a collection of thirty-seven stories chosen from several previous collections published over 20 odd years which should therefore be an ideal introduction to his work. And… wait for it… I am g...more
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Instead of a review I'll write a story that you then have to multiply by several factors of ten to understand how good his writing is.
MIDNIGHT LIBRARY
Carver’s ‘what we talk about when we talk about love’-I read it this morning, it made me feel drunk. When I got home tonight- smashed- decided to read it again. Sat on my step under the light, smoking and drinking. Ended up reading it three or four times. Read it out loud, quietly- with the words partially catching in ...more
MIDNIGHT LIBRARY
Carver’s ‘what we talk about when we talk about love’-I read it this morning, it made me feel drunk. When I got home tonight- smashed- decided to read it again. Sat on my step under the light, smoking and drinking. Ended up reading it three or four times. Read it out loud, quietly- with the words partially catching in ...more
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Read in April, 2002
recommends it for:
men, modern literature fans, people who haven't read any Carver
A band I loved in high school -- Peter Parker, of course -- had a song named "Where I'm Calling From," which was based on the title of this book, so I was implored to pick it up.
I started read it there and then, and while I think some of the brilliance was hard for my young mind to grasp, there was plenty of it that I could appreciate, despite my naivete. "What We Talk About When We Talk About Love" is one of my runaway favorites - I tried to do my own short story tribute...more
I started read it there and then, and while I think some of the brilliance was hard for my young mind to grasp, there was plenty of it that I could appreciate, despite my naivete. "What We Talk About When We Talk About Love" is one of my runaway favorites - I tried to do my own short story tribute...more
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Read in July, 2008
recommends it for:
anyone wanting to see how effective the short story form can be manipulated
I read a few Carver stories in college but was time restricted and couldn't really focus on them the way I wanted to. Having now come back to them, I must say that my initial impressions have changed somewhat. I always admired Carver because his stories pack a punch in the way that a well-taken photo can and for the way he focuses on quality rather than quantity. He sculpts language to mould his stories and does this exceptionally well, especially to convey the intensity of feeling of his ch...more
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Read in March, 2008
Stories about people who are unhappy, will be unhappy, don't know they're unhappy, or are just getting over being unhappy and are almost always drunk or drinking either way. That's a generalization, but a pretty fair one. If you haven't read Raymond Carver before, you should.
Too much at one time and their tone becomes a dirge, and some stories are so Carveresque that they read like parodies of themselves (i.e. 'One More Thing', 'Little Things', and 'A Serious Talk'), but for the most past t...more
Too much at one time and their tone becomes a dirge, and some stories are so Carveresque that they read like parodies of themselves (i.e. 'One More Thing', 'Little Things', and 'A Serious Talk'), but for the most past t...more
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I had somehow not heard of Raymond Carver prior to last week, but this injustice has now been set straight. I'm not sure how I'd managed to overlook him. The guy is an undisputed god of modern fiction; he structures his stories like Hemingway and grits his teeth like Bukowski. This book is a sort of greatest hits collection, arranged, for the most part, chronologically. It's great because you can really see his signature style develop. Even though they're still about divorce and alcoholism and d...more
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Read in December, 1998
this review will provide a review, at least for the time being, to all his books listed on my profile. because i'm lazy. but i love his stories and his poetry but his stories especially. they are about people who are on their way down, or who are there or have been there and wondering when things will turn their way. because these people are either just coming to terms with the fact that not everything in life is in their control or they have met that reality. they are not just alcoholics, ...more
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I read most of the stories in here about six years ago, but I'm rereading "What We Talk About When We Talk About Love" right now, and then maybe some others. It's because of this article from the New Yorker:
http://www.newyorker.com/repor...
and the version of that story that's also included that is supposedly Carver's preferred draft. The relationship between him and his editor is awfully ...more
http://www.newyorker.com/repor...
and the version of that story that's also included that is supposedly Carver's preferred draft. The relationship between him and his editor is awfully ...more
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Read in June, 2008
Like the Alice Munro stories, this is another book I've read I don't know how many times, but one Flaky Genius and I are reading as part of her master's classes. Carver is always unsettling, always interesting. A bit of a downer to read, though, Carver's stories are almost across the board about broken, damaged people who are failing or about to fail in their lives. Rarely leavened with humor (such as Bukowski's stories, which at least break up the monotony of damaged people fucking up with a wi...more
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Has a copy to sell/swap
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Read in February, 2007
Yeah, so I guess it's impossible to read Carver and not have a certain amount of respect, for his brevity, his style, his subtlety. But in the end, I do so HATE his characters. It's wonderful to be honest and all, but what a fucking pity party. I guess Carver didn't believe in redemption. Or if he did I am a dolt because I missed it. These are extremely subtle stories that tend to highlight conflicts/problems, but I don't usually get the feeling the character might evolve and thereby find any so...more
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Read in November, 2006
I picked this up because a blurb on Big Bad Love compared Mississippi author Larry Brown to Raymond Carver. Something about "unflinching fidelity."
Sure. I usually don't have much patience for short stories, but I'll pick up Big Bad Love every few years if I'm not reading much else. Most of the stories in Big Bad Love detail the dysfunctional lives of functional alcoholics. After reading this Raymond Carver collection, I agree that the reviewer draws an apt comparison. It's ...more
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Read in January, 2004
Miles Davis once said, when asked why he played such minimalist, modal melodies when his contemporaries were going for the more fevered, manic sound of be-bop, "I try to only play the notes that matter."
That's Raymond Carver. Sparse, deceptively simple, and capable of tearing your soul out by hitting the right notes, consistently, and with purity.
Some of these stories sometimes didn't even strike me as I read them. I'd put the book down, walk away, and hours later, not be abl...more
That's Raymond Carver. Sparse, deceptively simple, and capable of tearing your soul out by hitting the right notes, consistently, and with purity.
Some of these stories sometimes didn't even strike me as I read them. I'd put the book down, walk away, and hours later, not be abl...more
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Read in January, 1992
If I've ever suggested a book to you, chances are it is this collection of stories from Raymond Carver. I found this guy when I was a teenager. I was fascinated by the adults in Carver's stories because they contrasted so sharply with what I thought being an adult would be like and what I saw in the media. These people are sad, regretful, drink too much, love too little, mess up relationships, and lose jobs. Carver's simple, straightforward style captures the emotions of these people beautif...more
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Read in July, 1987
recommends it for:
lovers of literature
If you've never read any Raymond Carver, treat yourself to this, a wide-ranging example of some of his fine short-story work. This is by way of being a "best of" sort of volume, but without the usual associations of "the rest of it's not worth reading." Rather, think of it as a sample of Carver's writing, his fine feel for people, and off-beat, sometimes "quirky" way of looking at the individuals that make up society. Without encompassing a "societal view,"...more
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Read in October, 2007
The first Carver I've read and I loved it. I think that high school taught me that in every short story, somebody has to die, or there has to be a twist ending, so this book was a very pleasant smack in the face.
I love how he keeps hashing the same stuff out over and over and over. I know this is low-level analysis, but in five of these stories, the big pivotal event is when friends have friends over for dinner, and some shit goes down. Some very, very subtle shit goes down. What happene...more
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Funny how my head keeps on coming back to Carver stories. I first read these and thought "oh, that was nice..." and moved on, but these stories are persistent, they just don't go away.
The men that stay on their fishing trip after finding the body of a young girl, the couple circling each other in the empty rooms of a motel they own, the couple that sneak around their neighbors apartment that they're house sitting for, the old man and the young girl dancing on the lawn between his ...more
The men that stay on their fishing trip after finding the body of a young girl, the couple circling each other in the empty rooms of a motel they own, the couple that sneak around their neighbors apartment that they're house sitting for, the old man and the young girl dancing on the lawn between his ...more
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Read in March, 2007
This collection traces the arc of Mr. Carver’s remarkable career, from his stark, minimalist beginnings to his (comparatively) lush later years. One sees, in the latter half of his literary output, a fusing of the economy of prose approach that garnered him such acclaim (and opprobrium, in certain circles) with an attention to plot and character that results in a fictional fullness lacking in his earlier writing. Much merit is evident in everything Mr. Carver wrote, but many of these later s...more
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Did you know that Raymond Carver's editor, Gordon Lish, may have been uniquely responsible for creating the signature 'Carveresque' style? It gives one pause to think and, perhaps, raise a glass (of ginger ale for all those now on the wagon) to good editors. But regardless, Carver writes pitch perfect short stories almost every single time. (With the notable exception of "Why Don't You Dance" he always knows when his stories are finished and really captures single moments without getti...more
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Read in October, 2001
recommends it for:
Lovers and practicioners of the short story
What can I say? This man was born to write short stories. His touch and talents are flawless and effortless. There's an electric current of menace and mischief flowing beneath these perfectly crafted pieces.
Study this man if you aspire to write. Tobias Wolff said that reading his stories gave him a sense of floating, of levitating. He said it was because the words spring so shockingly to life before you on the page. I wonder some times what it must have been like to be able to write ...more
Study this man if you aspire to write. Tobias Wolff said that reading his stories gave him a sense of floating, of levitating. He said it was because the words spring so shockingly to life before you on the page. I wonder some times what it must have been like to be able to write ...more
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Read in January, 2008
Like most other MFA students, I'm in love with this guy. This book collects the best from his previous collections and includes seven uncollected stories. A few of these stories are lacking, but the ones that hit, hit hard. It's clear in these later stories that Carver found an easy niche. His style is smooth and less awkward.
The final pages "A Small, Good Thing" previously from Cathedral reads like poetry. It's like looking at a picture. And makes you want hot rolls.
This book is ...more
The final pages "A Small, Good Thing" previously from Cathedral reads like poetry. It's like looking at a picture. And makes you want hot rolls.
This book is ...more
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