Comments on: ‘The Stories of John Cheever,’ a Titan Among Past Winners of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction http://oneminutebookreviews.wordpress.com/2007/04/15/the-stories-of-john-cheever-a-titan-among-past-winners-of-the-pulitzer-prize-for-fiction/ Janice Harayda Reviews Fiction, Nonfiction and Poetry for Adults and Children Sun, 26 May 2013 02:21:51 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ By: 1minutebookreviewswordpresscom http://oneminutebookreviews.wordpress.com/2007/04/15/the-stories-of-john-cheever-a-titan-among-past-winners-of-the-pulitzer-prize-for-fiction/#comment-1468 Fri, 04 May 2007 13:58:01 +0000 http://oneminutebookreviews.wordpress.com/2007/04/15/the-stories-of-john-cheever-a-titan-among-past-winners-of-the-pulitzer-prize-for-fiction/#comment-1468 And rarely has a book deserved its bestsellerdom more than The Elements of Style. What a great guide for writers!

]]> By: QuoinMonkey http://oneminutebookreviews.wordpress.com/2007/04/15/the-stories-of-john-cheever-a-titan-among-past-winners-of-the-pulitzer-prize-for-fiction/#comment-1466 Fri, 04 May 2007 06:50:54 +0000 http://oneminutebookreviews.wordpress.com/2007/04/15/the-stories-of-john-cheever-a-titan-among-past-winners-of-the-pulitzer-prize-for-fiction/#comment-1466 Just a last tidbit – when I was researching a post, I saw the Elements of Style on a 1959 Bestsellers list. It hit a homerun, even in it’s day.

]]> By: 1minutebookreviewswordpresscom http://oneminutebookreviews.wordpress.com/2007/04/15/the-stories-of-john-cheever-a-titan-among-past-winners-of-the-pulitzer-prize-for-fiction/#comment-853 Wed, 18 Apr 2007 11:02:52 +0000 http://oneminutebookreviews.wordpress.com/2007/04/15/the-stories-of-john-cheever-a-titan-among-past-winners-of-the-pulitzer-prize-for-fiction/#comment-853 That’s a great line — “books are the greatest mentors.” You could develop a whole essay on that subject. I’d bet that almost every writer has at least one book that was his or her mentor. I probably have a half dozen, starting with one shared by a lot of other writers, The Elements of Style.

]]> By: quoinmonkey http://oneminutebookreviews.wordpress.com/2007/04/15/the-stories-of-john-cheever-a-titan-among-past-winners-of-the-pulitzer-prize-for-fiction/#comment-852 Wed, 18 Apr 2007 02:40:21 +0000 http://oneminutebookreviews.wordpress.com/2007/04/15/the-stories-of-john-cheever-a-titan-among-past-winners-of-the-pulitzer-prize-for-fiction/#comment-852 Oh, as I re-read that last comment, I realized I needed to clarify – by all 3 in attendance, I mean the good graces of their books. Books are the greatest mentors.

QM

]]> By: quoinmonkey http://oneminutebookreviews.wordpress.com/2007/04/15/the-stories-of-john-cheever-a-titan-among-past-winners-of-the-pulitzer-prize-for-fiction/#comment-851 Wed, 18 Apr 2007 02:38:25 +0000 http://oneminutebookreviews.wordpress.com/2007/04/15/the-stories-of-john-cheever-a-titan-among-past-winners-of-the-pulitzer-prize-for-fiction/#comment-851 Hmmm. I didn’t know Cheever had a son. So I looked him up after you mentioned him. I found this essay, The Writing Life on the web. It’s from quite a while ago, 1999. But it still has some good things to say:

“Reading and writing are similar exercises. They both require time, they both require silence. And here’s the tricky part: They both require a surrender of self.

Plus a book needs a reader and writer both. I like the sound of one hand clapping. I like better the sound of two hands clapping, which has the distinct advantage of being a sound.”

He seems to have the wit of John Cheever. And by the photo, he looks like him, too. Here’s the link to the full essay:

The Writing Life
http://www.randomhouse.com/boldtype/0499/cheever/essay.html

Yes, wouldn’t it be engaging to take a writing class where all 3 Cheevers were in attendance?

QM

]]> By: 1minutebookreviewswordpresscom http://oneminutebookreviews.wordpress.com/2007/04/15/the-stories-of-john-cheever-a-titan-among-past-winners-of-the-pulitzer-prize-for-fiction/#comment-849 Mon, 16 Apr 2007 16:47:55 +0000 http://oneminutebookreviews.wordpress.com/2007/04/15/the-stories-of-john-cheever-a-titan-among-past-winners-of-the-pulitzer-prize-for-fiction/#comment-849 Great to hear that the Cheever stories are being used in a writing program. That book, though beloved by so many of us, is old enough now that I’d wondered if it was still being taught. Cheever’s son, Ben, also writes. Wonder if any writing programs use books by all three of the writing Cheevers?

]]> By: quoinmonkey http://oneminutebookreviews.wordpress.com/2007/04/15/the-stories-of-john-cheever-a-titan-among-past-winners-of-the-pulitzer-prize-for-fiction/#comment-848 Mon, 16 Apr 2007 15:37:49 +0000 http://oneminutebookreviews.wordpress.com/2007/04/15/the-stories-of-john-cheever-a-titan-among-past-winners-of-the-pulitzer-prize-for-fiction/#comment-848 Thanks for reminding me – I read John Cheever for the first time last year as part of a year long writing Intensive I did with Natalie Goldberg in Taos. I loved the detail in his stort stories. We read the Susan Cheever memoir, Home Before Dark, in tandem. The juxtaposition was haunting.

Reading his daughter’s memoir brought to life a different side of Cheever’s life. It’s good to get a sense of the whole of what it sometimes takes from people to write. We all deal with the dark and lonely aspect of writing in different ways. Cheever was a great writer. I’ll look forward to seeing who makes the new Pulitzer list.

QM

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