How It Was

by Andrew Sean Greer

Book Overview

In the title story of this collection, neighborhood boys crouch in a backyard toolshed, and conspire to prove their piano teachers to be witches. In "Cannibal Kings," a disillusioned young man accompanies a troubled boy on a tour of prep schools through the Pacific Northwest, only to realize that he has lost his way in life. And in "Come Live With Me And Be My Love," a middle-aged gentleman looks back at his mannered early life as a Ivy Leaguer,...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312241267
• ISBN13: 9780312241261
• Release Date: April 2001
• Publisher: St. Martins Press-3PL
• Length: 224 Pages
• Weight: 0.25 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.5" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

Lyrical, lush, mysterious, wonderful

I really hate to use this word, since it's been permanently maimed for the language by the maudlin, sentimental and religious/spiritually superficial, but it describes Mr. Greer's book as a whole: ineffable. There is something unnamed (unnamable?), mysterious, huge and exciting quietly spiking through the well-positioned chinks in narrative. People in this book plot and work in interesting ways to circumvent the mundane while this ineffable...thing...swirls constantly in and out and all around. This is a very well done collection of stories. I heartily agree that Mr. Greer's writing borders on the very best poetry, reminding me somewhat of Seamus Heaney: lyrical and lush and mysterious.

Extraordinary

These stories are some of the finest I've read in years. I bought the book because I remembered a story Greer had published in Esquire a few years ago about twin boys that was brilliant. I was happy to see that that story is just one of a whole collection of phenomenal stories. Greer's ability to mine the complexities of human interaction and the lonliness and longing of childhood is masterful. I had the strong premonition reading these stories that Greer will go on to be an important writer; one who will have an impact on literature in the way that James or, more currently, Michael Cunningham or Howard Norman, has. Not only does he have an uncanny ability to translate very specific worlds, whether that be the middle-aged, opera-going upperclasses of the South, or the adolescent backyards of suburban Washington, but his concerns with the barriers of class, age, gender and sexuality all elevate these stories out of the category of merely good or accomplished, they are brilliant. There is a story at the end of the collection titled "Come Live With Me and Be My Love" that is simply one of the best stories I have ever read. I cannot recommend this book more strongly.

It Was Very Good For Me

Andy Greer's first book, "How It Was For Me," should be re-titled "Best American Short Stories 1996-2000." I've read his intensely fascinating stories in Esquire, Ploughshares, and Story, and was rewarded by being able to read them again in this collection, in addition to the new stories, each of which is an achievement, especially "The Art of Eating" and the marvelous "Life is Over There." Greer's subject is the unpredictable tenuousness and strength of affection between lovers, families, and strangers. These are important stories, and you should read them.

These stories have depth and beauty!

This is a fantastic collection of stories beautifully written. Some are funny and some are serious but all of them are touching and leave a lasting impression. Among my favorite stories are Titipu, Lost Causes, and Come Live with Me and Be My Love. Each is a gem of originality and beauty. There is a longing for connection to other people that allows us to relate to the narrator because we all have had these same desires. Ultimately this collection is about desire and connection and how it is fleeting for so many of us. Bravo! This is a beautiful book. I highly recommend it.

LYRICAL, LUXURIOUS....a wonder!

Andrew Sean Greer is a wonder. These stories made me hold my breath. They have the lyrical beauty of poems, and yet their characters are very real people...with compelling stories to tell. True literary fiction is rare these days. I applaud Andrew Sean Greer for showing me that you can write a story that is as beautiful as poetry. Perhaps Greer is a writer's writer, but I hope that every reader will allow themselves the chance to be put under his spell. After reading How it Was for Me, I looked at my whole world a little differently, and was reminded of the fragility of the human heart.