Members with This Book
Most Helpful Reviews
see all reviews
Liked It1 of 1 members found this review helpful “Full disclosure - Mark Helprin writes straight to my heart, and for me, that's all there is. /also, being a single mom desperate for intellectual, sensual, cultural nourishment, I have a predeliction for short . |
Newest Reviews
see all reviews-
“Very interesting collection of short stories and a novella (Ellis Island) with themes including death, love, nature and the nature of humanity. The stories are set in a variety of places and times: U.S., Israel, Germany, out at sea.
Liz C wrote this review Monday, November 16 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
In the first few stories nature dominates as a character in the stories. In these stories the writing style feels as if it belongs to a much earlier time than they were written in. It's interesting that despite the fact that the author appears to be of Jewish heritage, one of the stories is set in Israel and the novella revolves around Jewish characters, there is absolutely no mention of the Holocaust---my book group disagreed whether there was any possibility of oblique reference in "Letters from the Samantha." (which we did agree seemed to be directly influenced by Moby Dick.)
"A Vermont's Tale" seemed the most authentically written of the stories and "Ellis Island" a wonderful sprawling tale with elements of magical realism that should delight the reader.
Halprin is a skillful writer, but one requiring more careful attention than many writers of narrative stories demand of their readers for a cursory understanding of the story. There are some wonderful quotes such as:
"Before you become a professor, you have to write a book which is boring enough so that even you cannot bear to read it over. Once you have done this, you are free to write as you please, but can't." (p.77 A Vermont Tale)
"And, I thought that I would finally get to see the American Talking Chicken, who, it was believed in my village (why not), possessed the mildly atlruistic trait of sitting down with you just before he was to be cooked, to determine the best recipe. I imagined that such a discussion would be both candid and touching." (p. 135, Ellis Island)
{God speaking to a rabbi who fears bees}"I created bees the same day that I created music and humor. I made it so that bees are the visual manifestation of both. Transcribing symphonies into bees, and vice versa, is most amusing, and a good joke is nothing more than a bee in disguise. Can't you see that?" (pp.175-176 Ellis Island)
The novella also contains an amusing rendition of an immigrant right off the boat being tricked by someone who appears to be wealthy and benevolent---leaving the penniless immigrant with the bill for a sumptuous meal in a fancy restaurant. An amusing bit from this scene: "Just as I was thinking that I had never seen a steer as big as this, a waiter came over, pointed to the mammoth sizzling carcass, ans asked if we would like any of the special roast rabbit. I'll say it's special, I thought to myself. It must have weighed at least two tons. (p. 153)
These are stories akin to good meals, that one must ponder and savor to enjoy to the fullest. I highly recommend this collection to book groups. In one of those months that doesn't allow much reading a group might ask that members start with "Ellis Island" and "A Vermont Tale." "Letters from the Samantha" provoked much discussion as well. (Some members of my book group had a paperback version with a Jane Austinesque painting on the front cover. We agreed that that designer was most likely unemployed and seemed to be pimping the popularity of Jane Austen movies when that edition was published, as the image has NOTHING to do with any of the stories, IMHO!)
”1 of 1 members found this review helpful“Full disclosure - Mark Helprin writes straight to my heart, and for me, that's all there is. /also, being a single mom desperate for intellectual, sensual, cultural nourishment, I have a predeliction for short .
Marianne F wrote this review Saturday, January 19 2008. ( reply | view 1 replies | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
My copy of this book is currently out on loan, so, this too will be short.
Two stories stand out for me - "Perfection" comes down to 2 words - Jews and Baseball - 1958 New York City, the Yankiis are in a slump; a boy, a refugee from the Holocaust
who has some sort of divine gift of prayer, becomes their angel of salvation, mercy. Pretty lofty, and even better, the scene with Stengle, Berra,and Mantle arguing about Hayseeds and Hadids. lol Baseball, divinity, schlock - Huzzah!”
“Lyricism: The Fine Line between Singing and Screaming
AlissaNielsen wrote this review Wednesday, August 15 2007. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
by Alissa Nielsen
Ellis Island and Other Stories
by Mark Helprin
Dell Publishing Company, 1976
It is always very interesting when I read an author whose attributes are the same as his flaws. I think this happens when writers are too aware of their strengths and rely a bit too much on them as a crutch. This is the case in Mark Helprin’s short story collection Ellis Island and Other Stories. I like Helprin’s stories fine, but what makes them really resonate for me is his use of language. There are so many beautiful sentences that I just devour in this book. But there are times where Helprin goes a little too far with the “poetry” and it makes my guts clench.
When done right, Helprin’s sentences are not only lyrical but accentuate the story and character. In the story “The Schreuderspritze” the protagonist has decided to drop out of his comfortable, happy life and dedicate himself to climbing a dangerous mountain. The importance of this journey, which Helprin does a excellent job leading the reading through, is: when everything that matters is stripped away, what can one physically endure? Many of the lyrical lines in this story enforce this underlining theme. For example, “If the storm continued, he would die. It would whittle him into a brittle wire, and then he would snap”(29) and “The zippers on his parka, the harness, the slings and equipment, all gave off musical tones, so that it was as if he were in a place with hundreds of tormented spirits” (29). Both of these sentences have a certain lyricism to them that describes what the character is feeling and what is going on, each reinforcing the theme of isolation and endurance.
The story “Ellis Island” is full of examples of overly-lyrical, too-poetic lines. The story is written from a first person POV of an arrogant writer, so I assume many of these phrases are intentional, but it really didn’t work for me. I think writing from an arrogant character POV can work well for certain stories, Catcher in The Rye, for example, but it has to be done pretty obviously and with the right tone. If Helprin is going for this, which I’m not sure he is, I don’t think it’s being done successfully.
The setting of the story is turn-of-the century New York and the protagonist arrives at Ellis Island along with other Jewish immigrants. When he is inspected, an agent labels him as an anarchist and he is sent off with other undesirables to be deported. He is saved from his situation by a red-haired Scandinavian beauty (p.s. all women are “beauties” in this book). “An endless file of immigrants moved slowly on the stairs, but then, as the line progressed, I saw the flash of warm color – the long and beautiful red-blond hair of a young woman in a group of Norwegian immigrants. There was something so steady about her bravery in ascension that everyone who saw her took courage...This was an angel to follow, and follow we did”(133). There are times, like the above quote (which is even cut a bit in the middle), where if Helprin stopped it would be fine, but he just keeps going and suddenly these singing lines become obnoxious screams. “Snow batted down against the ship’s windows and white dragons leapt into the air as breakers struck the bow. When lightning bombarded the waves through the driving snow, its fractured light illuminated the shadowed snowflakes and made them seem like endless numbers of angels propelled and directed in a dreamlike war”(129). Some of the worst kind of telling is “poetic” telling, somehow it feels even more insulting to the reader.
Aside from some sentences/metaphors feeling a little off in this book, I mostly enjoyed Helprin’s use of language. I also think he has a great grasp on leading a reader through a story and introducing time and place in a subtle way. It was interesting to dissect the sentences that I loved and the sentences I loathed in this book, I feel like I learned a good deal from both. ”
Displaying 1-3 of 3
