Robert Coover
Autore di Il gioco di Henry: romanzo
Sull'Autore
Robert Coover is a midwesterner who has earned a reputation as one of the most innovative of contemporary writers of fiction. Coover likes to experiment with an abundance of differing styles. The Origin of the Brunists (1966), his first novel, is a religious parable heavily loaded with symbolism mostra altro and mythical parallels. It deals with the rise following an Appalachian coal-mine disaster of a sect of worshipers made up of fundamentalists and theosophists whose leader, Giovanni Bruno, is less a preacher than a silent enigma. The principal analogue is apparently meant to be the founding of the Christian religion, but Coover's extensive irony requires that he reverse many of the traditional features of the Christian legend. The Universal Baseball Association (1968), Coover's most accessible novel to date, is also dominated by religious symbolism. Over the years, J. Henry Waugh, a middle-aged bachelor and accountant, has developed an elaborately structured game, which he plays with dice. His game is based on the mathematical probabilities of baseball. Every evening Henry plays his game and maintains his extensive record books. J. Henry Waugh is a surrogate for God, and the participants in his imaginary baseball league seem almost to come to life, raising as they do age-old questions about fate and free will, success and failure, games and religions. Coover's Pricksongs and Descants (1969) is a collection of 20 short pieces and a theoretical "Prologo" in which the author states his belief that contemporary fiction should be based on familiar historical or mythical forms. Most of the stories in this volume, which was well received by critics, are based on biblical episodes or classical fairy tales retold in startling new ways. The Public Burning (1977) is based on the controversial trial of the Rosenbergs. With the exception of a novel, A Night at the Movies (1992), Coover's publications in recent years have consisted mainly of shorter works, written at various stages of his career, published in limited editions to appeal to collectors. Coover is one of the founders of the Electronic Literature Organization. In 1987 he was chosen as the winner of the Rea Award for the Short Story. Coover is indeed one of the foremost short story writers of the postmodern period, as exemplified by the "Seven Exemplary Fictions" contained in his 1969 book Pricksongs and Descants. (Bowker Author Biography) mostra meno
Serie
Opere di Robert Coover
Vampire 3 copie
The Waitress 3 copie
Nighttime of the City 2 copie
The Colonel's daughter 2 copie
Matinée 2 copie
A Pedestrian Accident 2 copie
You Must Remeber This {story} 1 copia
Seaview: A Novel (Rediscovery) 1 copia
Last One 1 copia
The End of Books 1 copia
Invasion of the Martians 1 copia
Grandmother's Nose 1 copia
Opere correlate
Spells of Enchantment: The Wondrous Fairy Tales of Western Culture (1991) — Collaboratore — 565 copie
For the Love of Books: 115 Celebrated Writers on the Books They Love Most (1999) — Collaboratore — 452 copie
You've Got to Read This: Contemporary American Writers Introduce Stories that Held Them in Awe (1994) — Introduzione — 380 copie
McSweeney's Issue 24 (McSweeney's Quarterly Concern): Trouble/Come Back, Donald Barthelme (2007) — Collaboratore — 280 copie
A Convergence of Birds: Original Fiction and Poetry Inspired by Joseph Cornell (2001) — Collaboratore — 193 copie
Field of Fantasies: Baseball Stories of the Strange and Supernatural (2014) — Collaboratore — 44 copie
Antaeus No. 64/65, Spring/Autumn 1990 - Twentieth Anniversary Issue (1990) — Collaboratore — 12 copie
The Review of Contemporary Fiction: Robert Coover Festschrift: Spring 2012 (2012) — Collaboratore — 4 copie
Etichette
Informazioni generali
- Nome legale
- Coover, Robert Lowell
- Data di nascita
- 1932-02-04
- Sesso
- male
- Nazionalità
- USA
- Luogo di nascita
- Charles City, Iowa, USA
- Istruzione
- Southern Illinois University
Indiana University (BA - Slavic Studies, 1955)
University of Chicago (MA - General Studies in the Humanities, 1965) - Attività lavorative
- writer
- Organizzazioni
- Electronic Literature Organization (Co-founder)
United States Navy
American Academy of Arts and Letters (Literature, 1987) - Premi e riconoscimenti
- Lannan Literary Award (Fiction, 2000)
Rea Award for the Short Story (1987)
American Academy of Arts and Letters Academy Award (Literature, 1976)
Utenti
Recensioni
1 
baswood | 2 altre recensioni | Feb 7, 2024 |
baswood | 2 altre recensioni | Feb 7, 2024 | 
An enduring classic for anyone who has every spent hours rolling the APBA dice (or Strat-O-Matic, etc.) Accountant J. Henry Waugh has become so immersed in the baseball simulation he has created that then when the unthinkable--an extremely rare play--occurs, well...let's just say it gets weird from that point. Truly brilliant and unique. I suppose this could be about any obsession, but there's really no obsession like a baseball simulation, is there? :-)
1st UK edition, added mylar jacket wrapper. Purchased after Kevin Goldstein mentioned it in a fangraphs chat, and it sounded vaguely familiar.
I am certain I read this during my 'living at the library' stage - maybe 10 to 15 years old? There is some mush in the middle at an imaginary wake, and the concluding chapter is very weird as in the future the simulation seems to take over the novel.
That said, a fun, fast read.
I am certain I read this during my 'living at the library' stage - maybe 10 to 15 years old? There is some mush in the middle at an imaginary wake, and the concluding chapter is very weird as in the future the simulation seems to take over the novel.
That said, a fun, fast read.
This neat little novella of surrealistic noir by Coover illustrated with appropriately grotesque illustrations by Spiegelman is an entertaining piece of fiction with a subtext of cultural criticism. It’s an expertly executed tale of law and disorder.
Liste
Premi e riconoscimenti
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Autori correlati
Statistiche
- Opere
- 63
- Opere correlate
- 43
- Utenti
- 5,068
- Popolarità
- #4,937
- Voto
- 3.6
- Recensioni
- 98
- ISBN
- 198
- Lingue
- 11
- Preferito da
- 18
None of us noticed the body at first. Not until Roger came through asking if we'd seen Ros.
It is Ros who is laying on the floor still bleeding from a knife sticking out of her chest. Somebody calls the cops, but the party goes on; everybody is out on their feet. It seems that all the men at the party have had sex with Ros at some time and tales are told. Inspector Pardew arrives looking like something out of a 1930's movie and starts his investigation and it is only when he removes the knife and hands it round for the partygoers to look at, that I realised this was going to be a blacker than black comedy. Roger hopelessly infatuated with Ros stumbles back into the room and throws himself on top of Ros: he has to be dragged off the body. The investigation goes on, more cops arrive Ros's clothes are removed pictures are taken and someone wants to re-create the crime scene, meanwhile Gerald has the hots for Allison and is searching the house to find her, while his wife is calmly preparing more food or clearing up the mess.
Gerald is constantly interrupted; either in his search for Allison or dealing with other issues. People are arriving, blocking doorways, having sex in various rooms, Geralds young son is wandering around and a teenage girl is desperately wanting to have sex with Gerald, the upstairs toilette is blocked and one of the women can't stop poohing, people are trying to clean her up. There are more murders and something is going on in the basement, but Gerald can't get down there. He lurches from one crisis to another never managing to see anything through. His house is wrecked, people are stealing things and he hardly bats an eye and one of the cops hands him a gun to finish off one of the guests who has been shot, but is taking too long to die.
The party seems to go on forever; 330 pages of forever and I found it an exhausting read. There are graphic descriptions of bodily functions and different types of sexual intercourse, police brutality of course and extreme drunk behaviour. I get the black comedy and the irony of rich people behaving very badly and in many ways it is a brave and technically impressive novel which sometimes lurches into social commentary, but just not for me and so 3 stars.… (altro)