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Collecting Himself: James Thurber on Writing and Writers, Humor and Himself Kindle Edition
James Thurber spent most of his career at the New Yorker magazine, drawing cartoons and writing essays and stories. Collecting Himself is a one-of-a-kind compilation of James Thurber's vintage writings, featuring previously unanthologized articles, essays, interviews, reviews, cartoons, parodies, as well as Thurber's reflections on his work in theater and at the New Yorker. An eclectic body of work that offers a glimpse into Thurber the man, the philosopher, and the critic.
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherHarperCollins e-books
- Publication dateMay 31, 2011
- File size9317 KB
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Product details
- ASIN : B0049B22R0
- Publisher : HarperCollins e-books; 1st edition (May 31, 2011)
- Publication date : May 31, 2011
- Language : English
- File size : 9317 KB
- Text-to-Speech : Enabled
- Screen Reader : Supported
- Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
- X-Ray : Not Enabled
- Word Wise : Enabled
- Print length : 335 pages
- Best Sellers Rank: #379,566 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #278 in American Literature Anthologies
- #441 in Essays (Kindle Store)
- #609 in Biographies & Memoirs of Authors
- Customer Reviews:
About the authors
James Thurber (1894–1961) created some thirty volumes of humor, fiction, children's books, cartoons, and essays in just about as many years. A founding member of The New Yorker staff, Thurber wrote and illustrated such enduring books as The Thurber Carnival and My Life and Hard Times, which have appeared in countless editions and dozens of languages throughout the world.
Greetings and thanks for welcoming me into your home. Since I write books for both young readers and adults, I've cooked up two long-winded paragraphs.
Kids first: So, I'm the author of some six dozen books for children of all ages. New titles include THE TALE OF RESCUE, a tale of adventure and bravery that features a cattle dog who saves a family stranded in a blizzard. There's also: THE FOREVER FLOWERS; MY DOG! A Kid's Guide to Keeping a Happy & Healthy Dog (the ideal go-to dog guide for families); a pop-up book with Robert Sabuda, CHANUKAH LIGHTS, winner of the Sydney Taylor Award; and three books of haiku on dogs, birds, and THE MAINE COON'S HAIKU and Other Poems for Cat Lovers.
For over 35 years, ever since working as a counselor, water-safety instructor, and art teacher at local community centers, I've been engaged with young children, their parents and teachers. As a visiting author, in-service speaker, and workshop leader, I frequently travel to schools and conferences around the nation, sharing stories, poems, creativity, and humor.
Several of my books here show my work as editor/anthologist or illustrator. It has been my privilege to have enlisted hundreds of other authors and artists to create 15 philanthropic books that aid in the fight to end childhood hunger through Share Our Strength's national efforts, or that offer care to less fortunate companion animals through The Company of Animals Fund, a granting program I administered for a dozen years.
Now, for adults. I can start by saying I'm a poet. I went to Columbia from 1979-1981, and received my MFA there. Poems are now collected in three volumes, which are all featured here at Amazon. Moving home to Ohio, I worked as an illustrator (while in NYC, I began selling spot illustrations to The New Yorker and Gourmet magazines); one of my first real clients was The Thurber House, the soon-to-be-restored home of Columbus's native son, James Thurber. For almost twenty years, I helped to restore the home, develop the programs there, and edit much of Thurber's uncollected work. (Those volumes are also featured here.) It was there, I began to edit short story anthologies, commission great writers to contribute to books about dogs, horses, and even VW Beetles. That's also where I started Mirth of a Nation, a three-volume humor biennial that constitutes almost 2,000 pages of the best contemporary humor.
Otherwise, my Website has a good deal about my life on the 100-acre farm I share in Central Ohio. Thanks again for reading along with me.
You'll see in the video section, two new videos of me reading poems from my new book, Every Species of Hope. They're shot and illustrated with photos from here.
www.fidosopher.com
Customer reviews
Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them.
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Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonCustomers say
Customers find the book's intellectual content interesting and enjoyable. They appreciate the author's writing style and wit. The book provides valuable insight into Thurber's work and is worthwhile for fans.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
Customers find the book's intellectual content engaging. They appreciate the collection of essays and reviews about literature and theater. The friendly essay about Groucho Marx is worth reading and provides a better insight into his work than biographies.
"These writings by Thurber himself will give you a better insight into his work than biographies about him and reading his superb essays," Read more
"...that are very good in this book are some serious and semiserious essays about literature and the theater...." Read more
"...As an exploration of his non-humorous work, this has intellectual appeal and places him in a much earlier time, but unless his contemporaries are..." Read more
"...This book is what it was billed as, a collection of essays and reviews and such. Maybe I was really in the mood for something else." Read more
Customers enjoy the book. They find it worthwhile and interesting, though some mention there are too many references to other writers.
"I am enjoying this book very much. It's written in a way you can read it in snatches. Enjoyable" Read more
"I've read quite a bit of Thurber, but this book I missed. It's a pleasure! Glad I bought it, please put more Thurber on the Kindle." Read more
"...There is a very friendly essay about Groucho Marx which is worth reading...." Read more
"...This book is interesting, but there are so many references to writers and other people who have vanished into history that it wasn't the best read..." Read more
Customers enjoy the writing style. They find it witty and easy to read in short sections.
"I am enjoying this book very much. It's written in a way you can read it in snatches. Enjoyable" Read more
"James Thurber was a gifted writer and artist. I sought out his thoughts on writing and was delighted to discover this collection by Mr. Thurber...." Read more
"...Thurber presents a crystalline view of thurber's aesthetic and writing style...." Read more
Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on May 9, 2013These writings by Thurber himself will give you a better insight into his work than biographies about him and reading his superb essays,
- Reviewed in the United States on October 29, 2014I am enjoying this book very much. It's written in a way you can read it in snatches. Enjoyable
- Reviewed in the United States on April 24, 2013I've read quite a bit of Thurber, but this book I missed. It's a pleasure! Glad I bought it, please put more Thurber on the Kindle.
- Reviewed in the United States on March 27, 2018James Thurber was a gifted writer and artist. I sought out his thoughts on writing and was delighted to discover this collection by Mr. Thurber. His work is succinct, clear, creative and masterful.
- Reviewed in the United States on November 20, 2013For the general reader the posthumous publication of favorite writers incomplete work may leave you wistfully wishing the author could've lived just a little longer. The incomplete 21st Aubrey Maturin novel by Patrick O'Brian and the collected pieces published under the name: The Salmon of Doubt by Douglas Adams are two examples. Collecting Himself: James Thurber on Writing and Writers, Humor and Himself; edited by Michael J Rosen is not one of those books. If you are new to James Thurber please skip this book. If you are looking for a typical whimsical collection of the usually gentle James Thurber this is not it. If you are a James Thurber scholar and determined to have everything he ever wrote there are many fine examples of James Thurber as a serious as well as a satirical author in this collection. My sense is that the editor/author Michael Rosen in choosing to call this book Collecting Himself brought together pieces James Thurber would never have placed in one cover and a few pieces he never intended for publication.
Among the things that are very good in this book are some serious and semiserious essays about literature and the theater. There is a very friendly essay about Groucho Marx which is worth reading. There is a reply he wrote to a John Steinbeck editor who objected to Thurber sharp criticism. Thurber stands his ground and reinforces the depth of his outrage with a beautiful concluding remark. His earlier review was described as a slap in the face to John Steinbeck. Thurber "apologizes" for the slap in the face with the comment:" I did not know my hand was open".
All the pieces do not read as well. There is a brilliant satire of Henry James which goes on too long. There is rewrite of the night before Christmas in the style of earnest Hemingway that is very clever but again goes on to long. I count myself a fan of James Thurber cartoons but I did not find any included in this volume funny. And so it goes. There are some individual selections that are insightful some that are funny and others that may have served some point at the time they were published but I regarded them as a waste.
Learning that James Thurber could write thoughtful and even the learned essays came as a pleasant surprise. Some of the lighter pieces did bring a smile to my face. Overall my recommendation is that there are other books by James Thurber that better represent what he wished to be collected and published in a single cover.
- Reviewed in the United States on December 13, 2013Since I like Thurber, I was interested in reading his other pieces we're not familiar with. As an exploration of his non-humorous work, this has intellectual appeal and places him in a much earlier time, but unless his contemporaries are already known, one is likely to spend quite a bit of googling to learn who they are.
- Reviewed in the United States on February 18, 2013This collection of essays and cartoons of james Thurber presents a crystalline view of thurber's aesthetic and writing style. Michael Rosen is a judicious and sensitive editor who did not get in
The way of the true star of this piece:
Thurber's wit and prose .
- Reviewed in the United States on June 21, 2013I have loved James Thurber (despite some racism in his stories, reflective of the time they were written) since I was a kid. This book is interesting, but there are so many references to writers and other people who have vanished into history that it wasn't the best read for me. Thurber does display his usual wit and wisdom. If you are already a Thurber fan, it is worthwhile, but it isn't a good introduction to his writing unless you are very familiar with writers and writing from the 20s and 30s. Other than F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway and Gertrude Stein, I didn't recognize the writers he was wrote about.Some good insights to his own process.