monday, September 25, 1978
daily nebraskan
page 9
Fiction anthology in Redbook tradition
By David Wood
Redbook's Famous Fiction, Number II
$1. 95.
Many of us think of Redbook-as that
"How-To" magazine for bored, pre4iber
ated housewives-not exactly fine litera
ture, that is.
book review
Yet when Redbook began-75 years ago
this year- it was for fiction alone. Then it
noticed among its buyers a largely
untapped audience of semi-literate females
who are bound to their home-life and fem
inine stereotype. Redbook started stitch
ing in articles on domestic technique so as
to more appealingly fit that body of read
ers. It never shared off all the fictional
material though. Lately it is even taking
unabashed pride in its faithful tradition
of short stories and longer stories that it
boasts as "full-length novels".
In the wake of the boom in women's
literature -Redbook now prints an annual
anthology of its fiction.
In Number II there are pieces by such
fixtures as Carson McCullers and Joyce
Carol Oates. And there are things by many
women authors who are getting their
first appearances in print.
Some amateurs
The amateurs stunt the quality, but at
the same time make Redbook one of the
most attractive publications for would
be writers looking for their break. For
them this anthology is also valuable for
appraising a side of the market for fiction.
The stories come from all sorts of places
-geographically, experientially, and in
their sophisitication. That somewhat makes
up for those that are not written with so
much art as to make them bigger expres
sions than they tell.
The pieces are typically about some
worthy and sensitive weakling who is
usually assertively named "I". Their moral
normally is some emotional enlightment
that follows some frustration from
ordinary factors in their regular lives. Their
morality is standardly Pu at best, just
cautiously modern enough to recognize
feminist sensibilities and the presence of
sex other than between man and wife for
the purpose of children.
Their theme is too often self-congratulation.
In one dreadful story, the author
absurdly cites a busy morning's coping,
meant to somehow convince, her
unappreciative husband perhaps, that she
is, as the title says, The World's Best Wife
and Mother.
Limited perspectives
Yet for all their amateumess, these
certain stories whose perspective is limited
to the writer's ego can offer insight into
common defensive delusions. They are at
least better than the fiction by amateurs
who attempt to write outside of them
selves only to fall into the traps of cliche
glorification and formula-like one that is
a Romeo-andJuliet-ization about two
whales who communicate in King James
English.
There are likewise in the anthology,
stories that are only patent, facile mani
pulation of the authors' own history.
like 6:27 P.M. It is a wise slice-of-life
story which lends an ambiguous unity to
the dotty bopping of a frowsy hair-dresser
who is agonized by the male-dependent
role that is all she knows.
Symbolic psychology
And death in another thoughtful piece,
is discovered by a child's symoblic
psychology, Scarecrow in the Garden is
poetically stained into a talisman to ran
dom fatal violence in our big world.
Or Miss Bird and I has a tone as quaint
and quiet as a meow. It is about a senile
spinster who believes she speaks with
animals. In the story she meets an old
man who is too eccentric even for her.
He says he communes with the spirits
of dead pets.
Though most of the stories might
never survive to a second printing, Red
book's Famous Fiction can be good
quick entertaining reading - say if one is
stranded at a bus-station that only sells
magazines. And to the novelless novel
ists out there, it might help them take
heart that there is a chance.
AXStfFJ TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE
PU IR A P IE TflA T T A ChTE
into Kimball's world of
live cftfcftainiiiciit
Buy tickets to four or more events and save 20
'
Andre-Michel Schub-P ano
Paula Robison Flute
Janes Starker Cello
Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra
Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra
Aeolian Chamber Players
The Acting Company m
Romeo and Juliet &
Antigone
Mummenschanz Mime
Martha Graham Dance Company
Joffrey II Dance Company
Individual tickets now available for these events
Andre-Michel Schub, Piano
October 8 8 pm
Mozart Mendelssohn
Chopin Schubert
Pagannini Liszt
Ttrese performances supported by earnings from
Je'mek Est?
Aeolian Chamber Players,
20th Century Music
October 19
Sheldon
Martha Graham
Dance Company
October 31 8 pm
November 1 8 pm
This residency supported by grants from the
Nebraska Arts Council and the National Endow
ment tor the Arts
C
UNL Opera Theatre Season
Werthcr by Massenet
based on Goethe's epic romance
October 26-30
Individual tickets to
Wcfther now available
An Evening of Americana
Two short opeas based on
plays by American Authors
December 15
Buy the Series and Save!
Out to the Wind
A New Musical Composed by
Robert Beadell based on a Willa
Cather short story
February 1-4
An Evening with Gtstav Hoist
Two short operas by this British
composer
May 4
S rPL
( OjuHE
Lincoln's Quality Tj
Adult Theater fi
"IF YOU
HONLY SEE
ONE
ADULT
FILM,
P MAKE IT
Exploring pkjk?
r bin La:
twin
Rated XXX
(Plus 2nd Feature
'Head of the
Class"
in color
Must be 18-Have I.D.
Continuous from 1 1am
I73U O ?. 497-6042 J
TTTTTTTTTL7
HAROLD A j ......
STUDIO
THEATRE
12th & R
Lincoln
472-2073
October 3,4,5,6,7 & 8
Tickets $3 & $4
asce it m
WITH
I )
41
TEQUILA
GOl D Ofi SnVfB
S" i Ou S MC tie oo
COMMUTER
incfflopeawwivwoMf metoccyctc &m5r root ensavwtpswB aoatw
too t Bonn lAm may Vyma'O imtne lar uou, C-L
kf" Bw eei fuch ne xr muer Choonn elhm rich Lusty Vatow
b-jn6t miieap up Jo ISC MG o prwie aAani SMwar
JOSHUA MOTOR SPORTS
20?h and V Streets 4779600
f
0B
