ASwiminaPondintheRain

In "A Swim in a Pond in the Rain", George Saunders, the Booker Prize-winning author of "Lincoln in the Bardo" and "Tenth of December", shares his knowledge and insights gained from teaching a class on the Russian short story at Syracuse University for the last twenty years. This literary masterpiece is a collection of essays that explores what makes great stories work and what they reveal about ourselves and our world.

Paired with iconic short stories by Chekhov, Turgenev, Tolstoy, and Gogol, Saunders discusses the technical yet accessible aspects of the narrative functions, as well as the fundamental virtues that a writer must foster. Writing, Saunders argues, is a technical craft, but it is also a way of training oneself to see the world with new openness and curiosity.

Saunders encourages readers to ask the big questions posed by the seven fastidiously-constructed scale models of the world presented in the book: How should we live? What is our purpose? What should we value? How can we recognize truth? All of these questions, according to Saunders, fall under the aim of art - asking the big questions that are more relevant now than ever before.

In "A Swim in a Pond in the Rain", Saunders presents a deep exploration of how great writing works and how the mind itself works while reading. This collection is not only about the craft of writing but also presents how reading and storytelling make genuine connection possible. By offering his version of the Russian short story class, Saunders invites readers to join him in a literary journey that will guide them towards a deeper understanding of what makes great literature work.

作者简介

GeorgeSaundersisthe#1NewYorkTimesbestsellingauthoroftenbooks,includingLincolnintheBardo,whichwontheManBookerPrize;Congratulations,bytheway;TenthofDecember,afinalistfortheNationalBookAward;TheBraindeadMegaphone;andthecriticallyacclaimedshortstorycollectionsCivilWarLandinBadDecline,Pastoralia,andInPersuasionNation.Heteache...