Margaret Atwood's The Tent
October 1st 2006 04:05
The Tent is a collection of fictional essays by Margaret Atwood. It's a small compilation, the hardcover edition I read extends to only 155 pages and took less than an hour to read. It's also sparsely illustrated with sketches by Atwood herself. Many of the pieces have previously been published (Harper's Magazine etc).
It's no news that Canadian writer Margaret Atwood is brilliant, and prolific. She's written poetry, non-fiction, books for children, novels and short stories. In fact, she publishes so often that if you're not paying attention, her new books can slip onto the shelves without your notice, as was likely the case for many of her fans with this neat (2006) edition.
The Tent is a wonderful introduction to fictional essays and creates an appetite for more. Fortunately, Atwood has two other (older) collections in Murder in the dark and Good Bones. Fictional essay is a fascinating form, it's allowed the writer to articulate ideas using all the tools at the hands of the fiction writer to comment on matters usually left to the dustier columns of larger newspapers and unreadable (sorry) academic publications. For example, Time Folds and Post-Colonial offer fresh perspectives on otherwise tired ideas.
These essays are as whimsical as they are incisive and beg for re-reading. One of two poems in the book, The animals reject their names and things return to their origins, inspires photocopying and blu-tac.
Other highlights include:
Three novels I won't write soon - hilarious sketches of novel ideas that are (better) left unwritten.
Plots for exotics - if you're not going to be written about, you may as well write.
Life Stories - the first few chapters of biographies are vital though often boring - or at least that's my interpretation.
Look out for: Moral Disorder (just published) and Oryx and Crake, her 2003 novel, which was underrated.
It's no news that Canadian writer Margaret Atwood is brilliant, and prolific. She's written poetry, non-fiction, books for children, novels and short stories. In fact, she publishes so often that if you're not paying attention, her new books can slip onto the shelves without your notice, as was likely the case for many of her fans with this neat (2006) edition.
The Tent is a wonderful introduction to fictional essays and creates an appetite for more. Fortunately, Atwood has two other (older) collections in Murder in the dark and Good Bones. Fictional essay is a fascinating form, it's allowed the writer to articulate ideas using all the tools at the hands of the fiction writer to comment on matters usually left to the dustier columns of larger newspapers and unreadable (sorry) academic publications. For example, Time Folds and Post-Colonial offer fresh perspectives on otherwise tired ideas.
These essays are as whimsical as they are incisive and beg for re-reading. One of two poems in the book, The animals reject their names and things return to their origins, inspires photocopying and blu-tac.
Other highlights include:
Three novels I won't write soon - hilarious sketches of novel ideas that are (better) left unwritten.
Plots for exotics - if you're not going to be written about, you may as well write.
Life Stories - the first few chapters of biographies are vital though often boring - or at least that's my interpretation.
Look out for: Moral Disorder (just published) and Oryx and Crake, her 2003 novel, which was underrated.
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