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jasonchambjasonchamb: JR’s Picks: I’m a big fan of the good review, and I think it sells books, but you actually… http://goo.gl/fb/BCBZG
23 hours ago
melissarosatimelissarosati: @JonathanEvison You're welcome. I'll let you know when I post the review. Enjoy the holiday weekend!
2 days ago
jasonchambjasonchamb: New Stories From The South edited by Amy Hempel: Algonquin’s 25th Anniversary Edition of… http://goo.gl/fb/alIit
2 days ago
dhthreeguysdhthreeguys: The galley to get: Open City by Teju Cole, Random House
3 days ago
willywaldowillywaldo: RT @AlgonquinBooks: WEST OF HERE by @JonathanEvison is a 'Sleeper: Top 20 hand-sell from Indies for Fall': http://bit.ly/cDVB34
4 days ago
readandbreathereadandbreathe: RT @AlgonquinBooks: WEST OF HERE by @JonathanEvison is a 'Sleeper: Top 20 hand-sell from Indies for Fall': http://bit.ly/cDVB34
4 days ago
AlgonquinBooksAlgonquinBooks: WEST OF HERE by @JonathanEvison is a 'Sleeper: Top 20 hand-sell from Indies for Fall': http://bit.ly/cDVB34
4 days ago
LJBookReviewLJBookReview: Another big winner in 10/1 issue of LJ: @JonathanEvison's West of Here. "Sometimes a Great Notion meets Citizen Vince." http://bit.ly/bmsOjT
4 days ago
willywaldowillywaldo: Another big winner in 10/1 issue of LJ: @JonathanEvison's West of Here. "Sometimes a Great Notion meets Citizen Vince." http://bit.ly/bmsOjT
4 days ago

The Happiest I’ve Been by John Updike – Olinger Stories

I was trolling around somewhere online and heard a ton of people say that these early stories of Updike’s were his best.  I’m listening to the Rabbit books right now on audio, and they’re nothing short of amazing. I’ve had this ARC of The Early Stories sitting on my shelf for more than ten years, every time I move I seem to take it with me, I just can’t bring myself to get rid of it, why I’m thinking of doing that is beyond me.

In the opening pages of this story I see an increased level of detail, more than what Rabbit says or sees, this is a grand examination of a time and place that no longer

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You’ll Never Know, Dear, How Much I Love You by John Updike – Olinger Stories

This isn’t a story so much as it is a tale about what happens when the carnival comes to town, and no one knows about luck and chance, and what happens when you bet your money, hoping that luck and chance collide over your head like a storm cloud.

Updike swears dangerously close to a meditation on what it means to be young, willfully unknowing, and somehow brave enough to risk what little money there is on a game that is rigged only to take it.  It’s the cynic in me that keeps my son away from the boardwalk, as my money will soon be separated from my wallet if we aren’t careful.  Ben, the pint-sized hero

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Friends From Philadelphia by John Updike – Olinger Stories

In this wafer-thin missive, Updike brings us through the working class suburb of Olinger. Johnny shows up at his neighbor’s house with an interesting proposition: he’d like for the Lutz family to go down the street to buy him a bottle of wine. Johnny isn’t any older than sixteen and when he approaches the apartment screen door, he spies the bare leg of Thelma, a girl he knows from around the neighborhood.  This refreshingly honest approach to the story makes me think that there is nothing wrong with Johnny, except he just wants a bottle of booze to help him waste away the day. I remember when I was that age, booze seemed like a good idea

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