Back in the World
New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1985. First Edition, First Printing. Hardcover. Fine. Item #5206
ISBN: 9780395354162
A First Edition, First Printing signed by the writer Tobias Wolff across the title page. Full number line present. Still sharp edges with no discernible flaws; a book in absolutely beautiful condition given it was published over four decades ago. Dust jacket with price intact in upper right corner of front flap. Shows signs of shelf wear along the edges and a small quarter inch closed tear to the front panel close to the spine. Both book and dust jacket are still yet in collectible condition for a literary library.
Modern short stories are experiencing a resurgence, with echoes of a previous renaissance led by authors such as Tobias Wolff, whose works reinvigorated the American short story genre. Wolff, renowned for his collections like "In the Garden of the North American Martyrs," was critically acclaimed for his writing style and his role in revitalizing the modern realist short story.
In this title, Wolff's characters explore the disillusionment and alienation of being "back in the world" after the Vietnam war, as well as the numbing challenges of everyday reality. The NYT's Michiko Kakutani reviewed this title in 1985: "Woolf is a masterful storyteller, a natural raconteur...what really makes the finest of the stories so compelling is the author's sympathy for his characters, his clear-eyed but generous sense of their weakness, their frustrations or disappointments. Most of the people in 'Back in the World' are losers or lapsed dreamers, weary people who have passively allowed circumstances and blind chance to dictate the shape of their lives....There is not a lot of hope for these people, but Mr. Wolff suggests the promise of some kind of redemption in their fumbling efforts to connect with one another."
Price: $75.00 other currencies