Free Books Online The Portable Dorothy Parker

Describe Books Conducive To The Portable Dorothy Parker

Original Title:	The Viking Portable Library: Dorothy Parker
ISBN:	0140150749 (ISBN13: 9780140150742)
Edition Language:	English

The Portable Dorothy Parker

Dorothy Parker

Paperback | Pages: 610 pages

Rating: 4.34 | 11111 Users | 537 Reviews

Particularize Regarding Books The Portable Dorothy Parker

Title	:	The Portable Dorothy Parker
Author	:	Dorothy Parker
Book Format	:	Paperback
Book Edition	:	Revised and Enlarged Edition
Pages	:	Pages: 610 pages
Published	:	December 9th 1976 by Penguin Books (first published May 1944)
Categories	:	Poetry. Short Stories. Fiction. Classics. Humor. Writing. Essays

Interpretation In Pursuance Of Books The Portable Dorothy Parker

Dorothy Parker, renowned wit, critic, poet and short-story writer. Take note of that order.

Picasso once said of Cézanne that he was 'the father of us all'. Well, in similar terms, Dorothy Parker is my biological mother. Which makes me Picasso I guess, which I'll take.

Parker's book reviews are the finest of the form. She was truly the queen of mean. As 'The Constant Reader' she praised and demolished the latest novels with such wit and grace that oftentimes the review was better than the work is discussed. She often filled her reviews with stories of her personal life or stray observations on society. Despite dying in 1967, her vicious tongue has never been equalled. I view Dorothy Parker as my greatest influence. As many people light candles in front of the Sacred Heart, I follow a similar regime with Parker, muttering incantations in front of her image and never gazing too long into her eyes.

Thus The Portable Dorothy Parker is a volume which I believed would be a fitting replacement for the Holy Book. Which it somewhat is. In that it only gets really good near the end and you spend most of your time skipping over the bad bits.

You see The Portable Dorothy Parker would be better titled The Short Stories of Dorothy Parker, interspersed by her Poetry with a paltry sampling of her Criticism, Reviews, Letters and Interviews.

I am first to admit that I am not a huge fan of Parker's short stories. Don't get me wrong, she had many wonderful stories: Big Blonde, Arrangement in Black and White, The Waltz, From the Diary of a New York Lady and The Game are some shining examples. But almost five-hundred pages of this six-hundred page volume are dedicated to her stories, many of which are just not good. There's a reason why we don't immediately think 'short story writer' when we hear Parker's name.

I feel the term 'hit and miss' was coined specifically for her short fiction. Those that hit are blinding critiques of early-20th century society, full of one-liners and characters which are equally as devastating. The misses are unreadable. Nothing much being written about nothing much. Therefore at time this volume is an absolute pain to get through, whilst at other times you want to rip each page out and frame them along a staircase.

Most of my praise for this volume comes from the measly hundred pages dedicated to her non-fiction. This is where Parker Comes Alive! Such glittering meanness from the mouth of the poison Madonna. It depresses me so much. I'll never be her. The best I can do is plagiarise, which has served me quite well for many years. Sometime during my twenties I'll probably get a Dorothy Parker quote tattooed onto my skin, right next to my stigmata.

Overall The Portable Dorothy Parker is a somewhat skewed collection of her finest writings. There is absolute gold in here, but one must sift through the mud first. Perhaps it is one for the fans.

Rating Regarding Books The Portable Dorothy Parker

Ratings: 4.34 From 11111 Users | 537 Reviews

Discuss Regarding Books The Portable Dorothy Parker

I can best describe this book as a brick; in physical size and in emotional weight. I went into it expecting simple stories laced with a sarcastic sense of humor that would rival my own. What I ended up with at times was overwhelming waves of disgust that dripped with feelings of melancholy towards the human condition. Depth and insight that cut to the bone with sarcasm and humor as a shot of vodka to numb the spirit; what a breathtaking combo.After reading a sampling of her stories, reviews and



Dorothy Parker, renowned wit, critic, poet and short-story writer. Take note of that order.Picasso once said of Cézanne that he was 'the father of us all'. Well, in similar terms, Dorothy Parker is my biological mother. Which makes me Picasso I guess, which I'll take.Parker's book reviews are the finest of the form. She was truly the queen of mean. As 'The Constant Reader' she praised and demolished the latest novels with such wit and grace that oftentimes the review was better than the work is

Well, I know just how she feels, which might be why I don't always enjoy this stuff so much. Reading Parker is a bit like having an IM conversation with myself, if I were a lot smarter, a much better writer, and a way bigger alcoholic.

I have a major literary crush on Parker. I'm a sucker for a funny line, and Parker had a lot of those.

I am so glad that I read this book!I have read some of Dorothy Parker's verse (who has not?), and some anecdotes from her life and was intrigued by her. This volume includes verse (she did not consider her writings "poetry"), short stories, magazine articles, book and theatre reviews and a collection of letters. The short stories were my favorite part! Her style is very heavy on dialogue, including internal dialogue, and not very narrative. I feel like it gives her stories a unique rhythm and

I think I'll finally move this over to the "read" shelf. I didn't read every single page of this book. I love Dorothy Parker and think she is witty and clever. But reading every single thing she ever wrote was a bit wearing and started to feel repetitive and her humor even started to seem a bit mean.