Description: "Benét was a staple of junior high reading back in the day. Never as well-known as his American contemporaries (Fitzgerald, Stein, Faulkner, Wharton, Hurston, Hemingway, Wolfe, Buck) today, he is probably best known for "John Brown's Body" (1928), an epic poem which won the Pulitzer Prize. This collection of stories includes three well known works, 'The Devil and Daniel Webster', 'The Sobbin' Women' (later turned into the musical 'Seven Brides for Seven Brothers' (1954), and, perhaps most famously, 'By the Waters of Babylon'). 'Babylon', a classic (and early) post-apocalyptic depiction of a collapsed world society was written in response to the Fascist bombing of Guernica during the Spanish Civil War. At one point, the young narrator, after exploring the ruins of what was New York, recounts the advice of his father: "He was right—it is better the truth should come little by little. I have learned that, being a priest. Perhaps, in the old days, they ate knowledge too fast." - Martin Kalfatovic, Amazon .com "These stories were written in the 1930's and are similar in style and tone to stories of some great writers of that era: Pearl Buck, H.G. Wells, and Willa Cather. There is considerable art and composition in these stories, which address universal themes such as love, death, aging, crazy families, and charisma. I recall reading several of these stories while in junior high and high school, including By the waters of Babylon (an early and effective sci-fi holocaust story), The treasure of Vasco Gomez (a pirate is stranded with his gold on an island), and The Devil and Daniel Webster (a romp with a Bunyanesque character).I thought a lot about the qualities of these stories that made them suitable for school textbooks: the vocabulary and style were accessible, the ideas were imaginative, and there is a sense of adventure in them. No wonder they were among my favorites back then and I had a great time reading them 40+ years on." - Alan, Amazon .com Note: Discounts for combined shipping. Also, combined orders of $30 or more of books, CDs, DVDs, comics and/or other media mail items qualify for Free Shipping! Just request total from seller. Most items sent by media mail. If you want first-class or other shipping, contact seller in advance.
Price: 12 USD
Location: Quincy, Massachusetts
End Time: 2025-02-08T18:44:33.000Z
Shipping Cost: 5.25 USD
Product Images
Item Specifics
All returns accepted: ReturnsNotAccepted
Binding: Hardcover
Language: English
Author: Stephen Vincent Benet
Publisher: Farrar And Rinehart
Topic: Literature
Subject: Literature & Fiction
