james purdy (1914 - ????)
here is a short story by james purdy (i've put it here for an easier reading experience) from his 1st book color of darkness (1957) which was rejected in america then published in the UK, then published a year later, i think, in america
according to carol sklenicka's biography of raymond carver (see quote) gordon lish used grace paley and james purdy as models 'when he began to impose a style,' as carver's editor, on carver's stories; gore vidal wrote about james purdy in the 'new york times' in 2005 but (compared to, say, richard yates, the 'richard yates' revival that seems to have happened) the article seems to have not, i feel, caused many people to become interested, or have renewed interest, in james purdy
i think many of james purdy's books are different, i read 2 of his other story-collections and it is different, i read his novel malcolm (1959) and liked it, it is less 'realistic' than color of darkness which is the book i like most by him so far and made me feel surprised how it was like an extreme version of 'kmart realism' 15-20 years before people started calling people 'kmart realists,' i recommend it for people who like distortions by ann beattie, joy williams, 'or kafka, even'
a book of criticism published in 1975 that i am looking at says his second novel the nephew (1962) is realistic, his third novel cabot wright begins (1964) is a satire set in the publishing industry about a 26-year-old wall street broker turned rapist ('The reason Cabot rapes over three hundred women and girls,' says the book, 'nearly all of whom seemingly do not resist him, is the complete and utter boredom that Cabot experiences in his Wall Street position.'), and his fourth novel jeremy's version (1970) is like his second novel but nostalgic and 'his best novel to date,' the book said in 1975
relevant links: 3 interviews (from 2nd interview: 'i always resent when people, though i do it too, to writers, i say what is it about, what's your book about...my books aren't about anything, they just are, they exist, you could ask a person what he or she is about, what is your meaning'), the james purdy society, more james purdy info on this blog
according to carol sklenicka's biography of raymond carver (see quote) gordon lish used grace paley and james purdy as models 'when he began to impose a style,' as carver's editor, on carver's stories; gore vidal wrote about james purdy in the 'new york times' in 2005 but (compared to, say, richard yates, the 'richard yates' revival that seems to have happened) the article seems to have not, i feel, caused many people to become interested, or have renewed interest, in james purdy
i think many of james purdy's books are different, i read 2 of his other story-collections and it is different, i read his novel malcolm (1959) and liked it, it is less 'realistic' than color of darkness which is the book i like most by him so far and made me feel surprised how it was like an extreme version of 'kmart realism' 15-20 years before people started calling people 'kmart realists,' i recommend it for people who like distortions by ann beattie, joy williams, 'or kafka, even'
a book of criticism published in 1975 that i am looking at says his second novel the nephew (1962) is realistic, his third novel cabot wright begins (1964) is a satire set in the publishing industry about a 26-year-old wall street broker turned rapist ('The reason Cabot rapes over three hundred women and girls,' says the book, 'nearly all of whom seemingly do not resist him, is the complete and utter boredom that Cabot experiences in his Wall Street position.'), and his fourth novel jeremy's version (1970) is like his second novel but nostalgic and 'his best novel to date,' the book said in 1975
relevant links: 3 interviews (from 2nd interview: 'i always resent when people, though i do it too, to writers, i say what is it about, what's your book about...my books aren't about anything, they just are, they exist, you could ask a person what he or she is about, what is your meaning'), the james purdy society, more james purdy info on this blog
10 Comments:
good post on james purdy... more james purdy! for all
i first read james purdy due to mike young, good job
rising exponentially
"He continues to dictate to a small team of devoted friends, and ascribes his continued intellectual vigor to the drinking of green tea and the avoidance of alcohol and tobacco."
Sounds like a Monk
it seems we have a lot of his book at the school library.
i should get them and hoard them.
i get to keep books for so long because im an adjunct.
hi tao.
hi kelly
you should buy a locker somewhere and hoard them there instead of in your room
tao,
that's a good idea.
i'd really like a locker "somewhere"
i like the idea of "somewhere"
thanks you for introducing me to purdy. i liked the story alot.
I like this post, Tao. I've not read James Purdy (in fact, I hadn't heard of him until now), but I admire and appreciate this post for all of the information you've incorporated.
Post a Comment
<< Home