“A writing course in a box.” That’s the way I would market this fabulous box set of interviews on the craft of writing. Ernest Hemingway, T.S. Eliot, Kurt Vonnegut, Elizabeth Bishop, Richard Price, Joan Didion, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Philip Larkin, James Baldwin, Toni Morrison, Stephen King, Robert Lowell, Ralph Ellison, Joyce Carol Oates, Raymond Carver, Salman Rushdie, Martin Amis, Maya Angelou, Haruki Murakami, Paul Auster, Marilynne Robinson, and many more writers discuss how and why they write. It doesn’t get much better than this. Who wouldn’t want this wonderful set as a holiday gift? GRADE: A
Sounds good to me, George. I really enjoy reading interviews with writers, who do tend to be more articulate than the average celebrity.
You will really enjoy these volumes, Jeff. As you point out, writers tend to be pretty sharp. The insights in these interviews are priceless!
I do want it. Right now, too. But can I afford it?
I picked my set up on AMAZON for $40, Patti. And free shipping!
This looks great. The price seems fair. My only concern is: where will I find the time to read it, since I’m NOT one of the read-a-book-in-an-hour-or-three people. Plus, this probably isn’t the sort of thing I’d read straight through anyway. I wonder if the library will have it in the separate volumes? Have to check that…… well, they have the first volume (of what they call a 3-volume set), 448 pages, paperback. Does that match the first of this set, George?
Yes, Rick. Last Christmas they issued the 3-volume set. The fourth volume has been recently published so this Christmas Penguin brought out the 4-volume set. Trust me, you’ll read these interviews. There’s plenty of fascinating conversation here!