In Which Four Russians Give a Master Class on Writing, Reading, and Life
eBook, 432 pages
English language
Published April 13, 2021 by Random House.
For the last twenty years, George Saunders has been teaching a class on the Russian short story to his MFA students at Syracuse University. In A Swim in a Pond in the Rain, he shares a version of that class with us, offering some of what he and his students have discovered together over the years. Paired with iconic short stories by Chekhov, Turgenev, Tolstoy, and Gogol, the seven essays in this book are intended for anyone interested in how fiction works and why it’s more relevant than ever in these turbulent times.
In his introduction, Saunders writes, “We’re going to enter seven fastidiously constructed scale models of the world, made for a specific purpose that our time maybe doesn’t fully endorse but that these writers accepted implicitly as the aim of art—namely, to ask the big questions, questions like, How are we supposed to be living down here? …
For the last twenty years, George Saunders has been teaching a class on the Russian short story to his MFA students at Syracuse University. In A Swim in a Pond in the Rain, he shares a version of that class with us, offering some of what he and his students have discovered together over the years. Paired with iconic short stories by Chekhov, Turgenev, Tolstoy, and Gogol, the seven essays in this book are intended for anyone interested in how fiction works and why it’s more relevant than ever in these turbulent times.
In his introduction, Saunders writes, “We’re going to enter seven fastidiously constructed scale models of the world, made for a specific purpose that our time maybe doesn’t fully endorse but that these writers accepted implicitly as the aim of art—namely, to ask the big questions, questions like, How are we supposed to be living down here? What were we put here to accomplish? What should we value? What is truth, anyway, and how might we recognize it?” He approaches the stories technically yet accessibly, and through them explains how narrative functions; why we stay immersed in a story and why we resist it; and the bedrock virtues a writer must foster. The process of writing, Saunders reminds us, is a technical craft, but also a way of training oneself to see the world with new openness and curiosity.
A Swim in a Pond in the Rain is a deep exploration not just of how great writing works but of how the mind itself works while reading, and of how the reading and writing of stories make genuine connection possible. (source)
To read a Russian short story and then analyze it with a teacher is such a fantastic format for a book. For anyone who likes short stories, this is for you!
This book was extraordinary. It is structured around seven short stories by Russian authors (Tolstoy, Chekhov, etc.), and Saunders follows each story with a discussion of the author's technique and how we, as readers, can look for clues and ask questions about the author's intent. The book is based on a course that Saunders teaches in the creative writing program at Syracuse, and reading it feels like being in the course, as Saunders guides us through the works, considers things from different angles, admits where there are some unanswerable questions, and so on. An outstanding book to help the reader better analyze fiction, whether Russian or not. I'll be carrying the lessons learned here around with me for a long time in my reading. I cannot recommend this book highly enough if you are interested in learning more about fiction -- Saunders writes in an engaging, conversational style that is …
This book was extraordinary. It is structured around seven short stories by Russian authors (Tolstoy, Chekhov, etc.), and Saunders follows each story with a discussion of the author's technique and how we, as readers, can look for clues and ask questions about the author's intent. The book is based on a course that Saunders teaches in the creative writing program at Syracuse, and reading it feels like being in the course, as Saunders guides us through the works, considers things from different angles, admits where there are some unanswerable questions, and so on. An outstanding book to help the reader better analyze fiction, whether Russian or not. I'll be carrying the lessons learned here around with me for a long time in my reading. I cannot recommend this book highly enough if you are interested in learning more about fiction -- Saunders writes in an engaging, conversational style that is perfectly suited to the material.
Something about the juxtaposition of these dark, gorgeous Russian short stories and Saunders's upbeat cheerful American craft examination of what makes them tick ... it just works.
Something about the juxtaposition of these dark, gorgeous Russian short stories and Saunders's upbeat cheerful American craft examination of what makes them tick ... it just works.
Lovely for craft appreciation, I probably would bounce off most of the Russian short stories without the commentary, which sets a path for writing of selecting and questioning and following every choice and voice towards some truth, true to your character or your whim? Complications and deeper connections to how to live creep in, but this is mostly about finding the good in writing.
It's so good that it's hard not to view all creative writing practice conversations through Saunders' lense.
It's so good that it's hard not to view all creative writing practice conversations through Saunders' lense.
Great course
Deep dive into six complex short stories written by renowned Russian writers. There’s a couple, The Nose and The Master and Man, which I didn’t love but found useful for instructor. George has a wonderfully of peeling back the layers and getting to the structure and technical aspects of how the story works in an approachable and non pretentious manner.
This is an example his type of advice that I found encouraging:
“We can reduce all of writing to this: we read a line, have a reaction to it, trust (accept) that reaction, and do something in response, instantaneously, by intuition.”
Happy reading and writing!!!
If George Saunders' goals were to make me want to (a) read more Russian literature and (b) retroactively study literature in university then job well done because you nailed it sir.
If George Saunders' goals were to make me want to (a) read more Russian literature and (b) retroactively study literature in university then job well done because you nailed it sir.
I haven't read a writing book this good in a long time. Ranks up there with Ron Carlsen writes a story, Nabokov's Lectures on Literature, and Kundera's The Art of the Novel. I highly recommend this to anyone who pushes words around in their spare or professional time.
I haven't read a writing book this good in a long time. Ranks up there with Ron Carlsen writes a story, Nabokov's Lectures on Literature, and Kundera's The Art of the Novel. I highly recommend this to anyone who pushes words around in their spare or professional time.
I want to take a class taught by George Saunders! If you're a reader this book will make you appreciate everything you read. If you're a writer, this book is indispensable!
I want to take a class taught by George Saunders! If you're a reader this book will make you appreciate everything you read. If you're a writer, this book is indispensable!
