About this title: Barthelme encapsulates ideas about the meaning of fathers and fatherhood in this parabolic tale of a son, his wife, and his 'brothers' who drag and tow a gargantuan 'father' to his final resting place. Although 'dead,' the father is quite talkative, and on the long journey he engages his sons on their shortcomings and solidifies his criticisms with "A Manual for Sons," which he carries in his hollow leg.
Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Description: Good. Light shelf wear and minimal interior marks. Millions of satisfied customers and climbing. Thriftbooks is the name you can trust, guaranteed. Spend Less. Read More. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Pocket
Date Published: 1978
ISBN-13:9780671823054ISBN:0671823051
Description: Acceptable. MAY HAVE COVER WEAR, SPINE CREASES, HIGHLIGHTING, UNDERLINING & PAGES YELLOWED FROM AGE. FASTER SERVICE FROM US! ! ! read more
Binding: Trade paperback
Publisher: Penguin Books
Date Published: 1986
ISBN-13:9780140086676ISBN:0140086676
Description: Very good. No dust jacket as issued. VERY GOOD READING COPY; BIT OF WEAR, TIGHT, CLEAN. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 192 p. Contemporary American Fiction. Audience: General/trade. read more
Edition: First Quokka Edition
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Quokka Books-Pocket Books, New York, New York, U.S.A.
Date Published: 1978
ISBN-13:9780671823054ISBN:0671823051
Description: Good. 12mo-over 6¾"-7¾" tall. Moderate cover, edge wear. Pages good, few w/underscore. Barthelme encapsulates ideas about the meaning of fathers and fatherhood in this parabolic tale of a son, his wife, and his 'brothers' who drag and tow a gargantuan 'father' to his final resting place. Although 'dead, ' the father is quite talkative, and on the long journey he engages his sons on their shortcomings and solidifies his criticisms with "A Manual for Sons, " which he carries in his hollow leg. ... read more
Binding: Trade paperback
Publisher: Penguin Books
Date Published: 1986
ISBN-13:9780140086676ISBN:0140086676
Description: Very good. No dust jacket as issued. unmarked abit of sticler residue on back. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 192 p. Contemporary American Fiction. Audience: General/trade. read more
Description: Pocket Books, New York, 1976; Good+; no d/j; First Pocket Books Edition, First Printing; Previous owner name wriiten acroos top page edges. read more
Description: Reader copy. Ex-public library. COVERS AND PAGE CORNERS SHOW HEAVY WEAR. TIGHT BINDING. COFFEE STAIN ON RIGHT CORNER. ALL TEXT IS CLEAR. Library stamps & stickers. SAVE A TREE-BUY USED! ! read more
"To understand my rating, you need to do some basic math.
Most of the book, I thought was a 3-star deal, mainly because I found some of the sections (particularly the long moments when Emma and Julie talked to each other) to be borderline incomprehensible, and while I'm sure Barthelme knew exactly what he was doing, it was one of those situations where I was holding a book in my hands and processing words and then feeling stupid. And maybe I was too dense to understand what was going on, but regardless of reasons or my level of denseness, point is there were about 15-20 pages in here that I didn't understand at all. But that which I understood was funny and smart and interesting and well-done. So, 3 stars.
But, the 30 (ish) page Manual for Sons inset about 3/4 of the way through was so awesome, I give that 7 stars.
"Barthelme continues to be one of my favorites. His writing is very much surrealistic and experimental, but he manages to keep from sounding pedantic or pretentious, and rather maintains a classic voice. His experiments are also done with clear purpose; one rarely finds himself confused to a point beyond understanding.
What is amazing about the writing of The Dead Father is the very much real-world subjects and emotions that Barthelme evokes through such bizarre, surreal imagery. The plot of TDF is wildly strange: a group of people ("sons") drag on a long cord the Dead Father, a dead-but-living, three-story tall figure with both the wisdom of age and a child's curiosity. Through this situation, and through a 40 page tangent that divulges the contents of "The Manual for Sons," Barthelme explores all aspects of fatherhood and sonhood. Quite an appropriate book to finish on Father's Day."
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