Jim's review
The Portable Dorothy Parker (Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition) by Dorothy Parker
I started reading Parker's book reviews in the back of the book and was caught by how much more they were than what they seemed.
At first they look to be just smart remarks without much depth about things Parker did and didn't like. There's nothing there that would get her an A in her English class.
After a few, you begin to see that the reviews are really the story of her reading and writing life, not an impartial evaluation of an author's achievement:
"Somewhere, there, is an analogy, in a small way, if you have the patience for it. But I guess it isn't a very good anecdote. I'm better at animal stories." (From a review of a self help book called Happiness)
"Pick up a newspaper (it would be just like you to pick up the Wall Street Journal and make a fool out of me) and there, snug on an inside page, you will find one of the jolly brotherhood bubbling away about the good times he and his buddies have been having." (From "The ...more
At first they look to be just smart remarks without much depth about things Parker did and didn't like. There's nothing there that would get her an A in her English class.
After a few, you begin to see that the reviews are really the story of her reading and writing life, not an impartial evaluation of an author's achievement:
"Somewhere, there, is an analogy, in a small way, if you have the patience for it. But I guess it isn't a very good anecdote. I'm better at animal stories." (From a review of a self help book called Happiness)
"Pick up a newspaper (it would be just like you to pick up the Wall Street Journal and make a fool out of me) and there, snug on an inside page, you will find one of the jolly brotherhood bubbling away about the good times he and his buddies have been having." (From "The ...more
