Object Lessons: The Paris Review Presents the Art of the Short Story
“Hyperinteresting shoptalk from some of literary culture’s best shops, and best talkers.”—Kathryn Schulz, New York Magazine (Top 10 Books of 2012)“The stories are indeed varied in their style, as the editors’ note promises, but many of them left me with the same feeling: devastation.”—The Christian Science Monitor“Object Lessons[is] my new favorite gift book.”—Elizabeth Taylor,The Chicago Tribune“This thoughtful book will make you look at short fiction with new eyes.”—Minneapolis Star Tribune“As the ‘Best American’ anthologies begin their annual take-over of bookstore shelf space this month, short story fans should look past those displays to find this collection curated from the archives ofThe Paris Review.”—The Cleveland Plain Dealer“The editors call this a guide for young writers and readers interested in literary technique, and the book achieves that purpose while also serving as a tribute to the roleThe Paris Reviewhas played in maintaining the diversity of the short story form. The collection reminds us that good stories are always whispering into each other’s ears.”—Publishers Weekly“A compendium ofThe Paris Review’sshort story hits, curated with the ambitious, aspiring writer in mind. … Jeffrey Eugenides’ discussion of Denis Johnson’s “Car Crash While Hitchhiking” captures that story’s heartbreak and serves as an essay on the virtues of the form itself. … A smart showcase of a half-century’s worth of pathways in fiction.”—Kirkus