Short Story Wednesday: A Manual for Cleaning Women, Lucia Berlin "Dr. H.A. Moynihan"

 Now I am getting ads when I click through to your comments. What an evil world.

This was one of the books chosen as the 100 Best Books of the 21st century. It's been sitting on my shelves since its publication. I even remember buying it at the Barnes and Noble on the Upper West Side in New York. 

All of Berlin's stories are somewhat if not entirely autobiographical. In this second one in the collection, as a punishment for striking a nun, our narrator had to work in her grandfather's dental office every day of the summer. He was an eccentric man who rarely spoke to his granddaughter. He was widely disliked but was the best dentist (west Texas) in the area. He was especially adept at making false teeth and treated it like art. As the summer went on, there were less and less patients and he spent more and more time making false teeth. Eventually he makes a set for himself. He takes his granddaughter down to the office on a Sunday night and has her pull all of his teeth so he can see how beautiful the false set sits in his mouth. This is both amusing and horrifying. 

Looking forward to slowly making my way through this collection. 

George Kelley

Jerry House 

Kevin Tipple 

TracyK

Monday, Monday

I rewatched SHATTERED GLASS last night after being very impressed with Peter Sarsgard's performance in the series PRESUMED INNOCENT and yes, he was a good actor then too. He did a lot of acting with his eyes and mouth. Perhaps it's natural to him. This was a very good movie, which I saw at the theater on its release. Steve Glass was a reporter for THE NEW REPUBLIC in the 1990s and invented the majority of his stories.

I saw musician, Dave Bennett at Meadowbrook Hall last Wednesday. Meadowbrook Hall was the palatial home and grounds of the Dodge/Wilson Family (110 rooms). Now its the site of the hall, concerts, a good theater, a golf course, and on the campus of Oakland University. Dave Bennett does rock, jazz, bluegrass, etc.

On Thursday, another group of friends and I went to Cranbrook Art Museum and saw an interesting exhibit on Cuban Art from the revolutionary period. We also walked their beautiful grounds. Cranbrook is an art school, a museum, a K-12 school, an expansive garden, a science museum, etc. 

Watching DCI BANKS again on Kanopy. I like the two-45 minute episode format. And their crimes are not as grisley as other series. Peter Robinson was the perfect writer for my taste. 

Watched the doc FAYE, about Faye Dunaway. Great actress but a difficult person as she admits herself.  She did some amazing work in the sixties and seventies.

Very worried Trump is going to dump Vance in favor of Nikki Haley. What do you think? Vance seems to be the wrong choice by any standards. The cat lady remarks did not go over well.

Good weather. 

Finished JAMES (Percival Everett) and about to begin ????

What's new in your neck of the woods?

FFB: THE STORIED LIFE OF A.J. FIKRY Gabrielle Zevin

This was a most enjoyable book that I listened to rather than read. The narrator did a good job although his reading was a bit too formal for my taste. It is the story of a recent widower who owns a book store on an island and is fast becoming the town misanthrope. And then a baby is left on his doorstep and the little girl quickly changes him, allowing him to live a much fuller life. The romance in the book, which occupies a large space early on, is given short shrift once they are together. Which I guess explains why so many TV shows keep their central love interest separated for so long. But all of the characters are nicely developed. I especially enjoyed A. J.s best friend, the local police chief.

Short Story Wednesday: THE COLLECTED STORIES OF ERNEST HEMINGWAY

 (reviewed by Ed Gorman)

 

 

The Collected Stories of Ernest Hemingway

If you grew up in the Forties or Fifties it was impossible to imagine that the literary luster of Ernest Hemingway would ever dim. I've never known of a writer as imitated (usually badly) as ole Papa.

He loved it. He carefully crafted the public persona of adventurer and man's man the press and the people loved. Novels such as A Farewell To Arms and For Whom The Bell Tolls outsold the books of his contemporaries.

But time and taste caught up with him and we now see that Hemingway's novels weren't quite as good as we once thought. He certainly had no Gatsby to brag of nor even a Grapes of Wrath by the despised Steinbeck; Papa believed he was a terrible writer. For me the only novel of his worth reading now is The Sun Also Rises. It's not a great novel but it's fascinating one and much truer to the real Hemingway than the novels he wrote afterward.

But then there are the short stories. Back in the day his collected stories were referred to with great reverence as The First Forty-Nine.
Many of them were reprinted dozens if not hundreds of times around the world, textbooks included. They still deserve the reverence paid them back then.

From his story of death and dying ("A Clean, Well-Lighted Place") to his sad and ironic tale of a soldier who came back from the First World War too late for the parades ("Soldier's Home:) to the stories set in Upper Michigan this is American literature at its finest. This was Hemingway before he became Papa--the confused boy-man who went to war and then set himself up in Paris to write.

In numerous stories here he proves himself the equal of Faulkner (whom he saw as his main competition--he'd already arrogantly written off his old friend (and the guy who got him his Scribner contract) Fitzgerald) in experimenting with point of view. The line, as several critics
mentioned at the time, went from Stephen Crane to Mark Twain to Hemingway, that pure American voice. If you read Crane's "The Blue Hotel"
before you reading Hemingway's Collected Stories you'll hear the echoes throughout start the book.

For readers and writers alike, this is one book that should be in every serious collection. There was no more vital and powerful voice than
Hemingway's in his early stories (and I don't include The Old Man And The Sea, which I never much liked: way too self-consciously Important). Today they're just as pure and perfect as they were when first published. All hail Hemingway.

George Kelley

Jerry House

Kevin Tipple/Earl Staggs review 

Monday, Monday

 

WIDOW CLIQUOT is the story of the first female champagne -maker in France. It was pretty to look at but concentrated too heavily on her husband's opium addiction when it should have been more about her court case to claim ownership of the vineyards. Too bad. I am trying to support a local theater that is taking a chance on foreign and indy films but some of them aren't great either.

Finishing up JAMES by Percival Everett and THE STORIED LIFE OF A.J. FIKRIE, which Tracy talked about last week. Enjoying both.

On TV, started CRACKERS (again). I saw it the first time when we were living in Manchester so it is bringing back a lot of memories from 1994-95. And even '97 when we watched another season in Amsterdam. I wish it was a better copy of the series. We forget how much better TV shows look now. Also watching PRESUMED INNOCENT. Great acting but the plot is all over the place. One left.

A lot of nice weather this last stretch. Mid-eighties mostly, which is summer. 

Went down to see the restoration of Michigan Central-which as they said was Michigan's Ellis Island. They did a great job, but it looks like an office building and not a train station (which is what it now it. Ford did a great job on detailing the story for visitors. They decided to keep some of the graffiti that was everywhere for many years. It's part of its history too. 

What about you?

FFB: FLIGHT TO DARKNESS, Gil Brewer

 

  https://billcrider.blogspot.com/2009/12/forgotten-books-flight-to-darkness-gil.html

"This is How It Begins" DARK YONDER

 

Short Story Wednesday: "Alaska" from POTATO TREE by James Sallis

 A collection of all of James Sallis fiction (BRIGHT SEGMENTS) is coming out in November. I have always greatly admired his writing-and there is much of it to admire. His Lew Griffin detective series is one of my favorites. So too his John Turner trilogy. But his short stories are something even more special to me. He understands perfectly what the reader needs to know and he gives them exactly that. He captures both the horror and beauty of the world. There is never a boring sentence and his characters come alive in so few words.

"Alaska" takes place in a medical unit where a woman Tony (our protagonist) has known is brought in with a bird's beak sunk into her cheek. While a surgeon is brought into do a surgical procedure to remove it, Tony and Susan mete out the sparse details that led to their earlier breakup. Details of the medical unit are interspersed with their love story, along with the removal of the bird's beak, how does he get it so right? Multiple pain fills the page. Not a wasted word. Brilliant. 

Todd Mason

George Kelley 

TracyK 

Jerry House 

Casual Debris

Monday, Monday

 And for the first time, I won't be looking for a post from Steve. He was such a nice if very quiet guy. He had read virtually every book you could name, and seen every movie of any merit. We only met up half a dozen times (he lives a mile or two away) and there was no romance about it at all, but I always enjoyed his company. Rest well, Steve. 

 I watched CHINATOWN the other night to remember Robert Towne. I watched an interview with him on you tube. He talked a lot about tuna fishing and darn if it wasn't mentioned in the first scene of CHINATOWN. I didn't know his brother was also a screenwriter. I hadn't seen CHINATOWN in years but it was as good as I remembered. Filmed so beautifully and with great dialog. I have never been a particular fan of Jack Nicholson or Faye Dunaway, but they both did great work in this one. It was strange how B list the cast was beside from them (and John Houston). 

Hoping LADY IN THE LAKE (Laura Lippman's book) on Apple is good because there is so little on right now. I tried to watch RESPONDER with Martin Freeman on Brit Box and I could see it was well done, but just too depressing and dark for me. And I loved Martin Freeman. I also am trying to watch PRESUMED INNOCENT, but eight episodes to tell the story seems excessive. It was a two-hour movie I think

I ride right between shows that are too light and ones that are too dark. My comfort zone is LEWIS, where the crimes weren't too grisley, but they were not humorous. And I like to know the cops solving the crimes. 

I may have to watch FRASIER for the fourth time. 

What about you?

Reading JAMES by Percival Everett and it is terrific. 

Going to Ann Arbor to see a play today. Always enjoy my little play group who supports this tiny, tiny theater.   

Thanks to Juri Nummelin for publishing a third collection of my stories in Finland.

 

FFB: EASY RIDERS, RAGING BULL, Peter Biskind

 

Whenever there is a list of the greatest books on film, this one is at the top five along with PICTURES AT A REVOLUTION, CITY OF NETS, ADVENTURES IN THE SCREEN TRADE, HITCHCOCK/TRUFFAUT. And so many more. Looking at a list now, I have read so many of these books over the years. 

This one's thesis is the revolution going on in the late sixties and early seventies in other aspects of American culture began to affect the films being made too. Biskind dates the changes from the year 1971 and begins with Martin Scorsese. The body of work dating from that period is undeniably some of the greatest films to ever be made. They employed a new group of young directors, young actors, young editors, young musicians. And this changed movies almost overnight. 

Anyone who loves movies has probably read this book but just in case, here it is. It is a long, dense book--the kind of book I don't seem to have the concentration for anymore. Apparently there is a film but it doesn't seem to be streaming anywhere. Too bad.

R.I.P. Steve Oerkfitz

 

Obituary for Steven A. Oerkfitz

Steven A. Oerkfitz, age 76, passed away unexpectedly on July 8, 2024, at his residence. Steve had lived in Royal Oak since 2017, previously being a longtime resident of Pontiac. He attended Michigan State University and received a bachelor's degree from Oakland University.
Steve worked as a letter carrier in Royal Oak. After leaving the post office, he was employed as a librarian at the Pontiac library, and later at the Birmingham Bookstore until it sold. He then worked as a landscaper at Tru Green until his retirement. A lifelong lover of books and reading, Steve collected rare books and had a profound love for movies and music, especially alternative music and modern rock. Known for his photographic memory, he had extensive knowledge about many topics due to his love of reading. He enjoyed socializing at Barton Towers and played a competitive game of Wii Bowling.
Steven was the loving father of Kim (Rick) Price, Sean Oerkfitz, and Brittany Oerkfitz. He was a proud grandfather of Lauren, Sidney, Gavin, Zach, Damon, Caine, Ashlee, Alyssa, Damien, Skylar, Kimora, and Kamren. He had five great-grandchildren that he adored Rowan, Graham, Mason, Grayson, and Theodore. He was also the dear brother of Leslie (Tom) Tanghe. Uncle of Josh and Jack Tanghe.
No public services will be held at this time. Share your memories at www.sullivanfuneraldirectors.com >.

Short Story Wednesday: From Taffy Brodesser Aknew

 https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/07/magazine/kidnapping-long-island.html

 

I know her novel (LONG ISLAND COMPROMISE) will be great, but it would be hard to top this story and what it tells us about the attempt to overcome trauma of any kind.  Hold onto your seat....

George Kelley

Jerry House

R.I P Steve Oerkfitz

I am so very sorry to have to tell you that Steve Oerkfitz apparently died. I was about to email him to see why we hadn't heard from him and I went on facebook to check if he'd been active there and there was a note from one of his daughters that he had died. I know Steve always expected to die young from childhood diabetes but this is quite a shock. That is all the information I have but I will check again to see if she posts more.  I believe Steve was 76. He was a manager at both Borders and Barnes and Noble over the years. He had a B.A. in English from Oakland University (MI) and was an avid reader and movie fan. He was a kind man who delighted in his children, grandchildren and a great grandchild.

Monday, Monday

 

A quick one as it took us five hours to do a three hour drive from Canada to home. We never quite figures out why the last three miles took 90 minutes to do.

So it is eleven and I am weary. Really loved SOMETHING IS ROTTEN-and liked LA CAGES AUX FOLLES. Both theaters were bursting with play-goers and these are large venues. Very nice to be with some of my family. 

Reading ANGEL by Denis Johnson.

THE BEAR is disappointing as everyone has said. Sad to have finished FRIDAY NIGHT DINNER, which was consistently good for six seasons. 

What about you?

                                            Taking a break. See you Monday.

Short Story Wednesday: "The Void" from NORMAL RULES DON'T APPLY by Kate Atkinson

 

 In "The Void," the first story in the collection, one family experiences five minute periods where people outside fall down dead. Those inside are untouched. And animals, except for insects and birds, go too. Of course, what makes Atkinson shine in a story like this one is how beautiful the writing is and how her two characters come to life so fully--even as they go to their death. I guess all of the stories in this collection will share elements like these. She never feels any need to explain it and I didn't need to know. Goody. What a talent for so many years now. 

Todd Mason

George Kelley 

Jerry House 

TracyK

Monday, Monday

 

I saw THELMA with a bunch of my fellow senior citizens and enjoyed it. June Squibb should

have been a leading lady a long time ago because she can carry a movie. And Richard Roundtree, since died, was as gorgeous as ever. Lots of fun. Rewatched POSTCARDS FROM THE EDGE, which was better than I remembered. Also watching NORTHERN LIGHTS (Britbox, okay but not great), GRANTCHESTER, THE BEAR (HULU) THE LETDOWN, an Australian show on NETFLIX. 

Still working on HORSE. Can't really get into all the info about horse racing but some of the other strands are better. Megan talked me into buying ANGELS by Denis Johnson and I have to begin JAMES by Percival Everett for my second book group. Megan also sent me a collection of stories by Kate Atkinson. I think when I tell her I am reading HORSE week after week, she worries.

Going with Josh, Julie and Kevin at the end of the week to Stratford to see: LAS CAGES AUX FOLLES and SOMETHING'S ROTTEN. If I don't get an entry on MONDAY, MONDAY next week, I will at least post it for you guys to use.

I almost had a haiku published. The editor said I got three of the four votes I needed. So I will keep trying. Haiku is a funny thing. Some of the ones I read are so simple as to seem banal and other so complex they seem impenetrable. I think I am still not reading them correctly. I will have a story in DARK YONDER imminently. I will give you a link when I have one. I think sports fans will like this one as it deals with 1968 Pennsylvania sports teams. 

*Whoopy, I just had a haibun accepted. Seven hundred drafts apparently paid off. 

So what about you?