Raymond Carver's first major collection gathers short stories about working-class Americans in the Pacific Northwest. A man goes to the airport to meet his brother, a husband and wife argue after a hunting trip, a couple in a cheap flat ask what has gone wrong, a bored young man takes a job, and people drink too much and cannot say what they feel. The stories are written in plain sentences, and the drama sits in what is left unsaid.
The collection suits readers who like minimalist short fiction and want to see where Carver began. It is also a model of how to suggest a whole life in a few pages. Several pieces are only a few pages long, so it works well for readers who want a quick sample of American short fiction in the late twentieth century.
Deep, inward-looking, open-ended and thought-provoking; a moderate read.
Best for readers like The Wisdom Collector. Which reader are you?
- Published
- 1976
- Language
- EN
