2014 PUSHCART PRIZE XXXVII: BEST OF THE SMALL PRESSES Edited by Bill Henderson

pushcart prize 2014
I’ve been reading the Pushcart Prize series since it started in 1976. As the years went by, the volume grew and grew. This 2014 edition is 653 pages! As usual, I found the poetry awful. I can’t recommend any of the poems. The fiction in this volume is mediocre. But the essays are great! I loved “Human Snowball” by Davy Rothbart where Rothbart travels to Buffalo, NY to try to reconnect with his high school sweetheart. Charles Baxter’s “What Happens in Hell” tells the disasterous story of Baxter’s trip to L.A. “The Healing” by Howard Norman centers around the murder/suicide that occurred in Norman’s house. “Father of Disorder” by Jessica Wilbanks interweaves entropy with the author’s dysfunctional family. Andre Dubus III’s “Writing & Publishing a Memoir: What the Hell Have I Done?” relates what happens on Dubus’ book tour (it isn’t pretty). Hal Crowther writes “Out of Date: The Joys of Obsolescence” that captures what every 60-year-old feels. Finally, “The Gentleman’s Library, A Nowaday Redux” by Bill Cotter describes a dream job: building a private reading library for a patron. Marvelous! So I can only recommend about a third of this collection. But, your mileage may vary.

8 thoughts on “2014 PUSHCART PRIZE XXXVII: BEST OF THE SMALL PRESSES Edited by Bill Henderson

  1. Patti Abbott

    I wonder why the fiction is so blah. That’s disappointing. Have you always found it to be mediocre or is this volume unusual?

    Reply

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