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E. S. GOLDMAN'S THE PALMER
METHOD
When a highly respected writer of short fiction, especially a writer in his eighties, puts together a collection of stories that will represent his entire literary career, quite often the result is a large book, with stories that span decades, showing the writer's changes--attitudinal and stylistic--through life's passages from youth to senior years. The reader can expect variety in the subject matter,versatility in the style. E. S. Goldman is a writer in his eighties. Although he has published a novel, Big Chocolate Cookies ("A delightful fictional memoir of a savvy street kid who becomes the richest man in the U.S., filled with expert, beautifully crafted comic writing" --Booklist), Goldman is best known--and indeed highly respected--as a short story writer. The Chicago Tribune called him "an electrifying talent [who] specializes in turning molehills into killer mountains in his stories." He has, according to C. Michael Curtis, Senior Editor of The Atlantic Monthly, published more stories in that magazine than any other writer in the past thirty years. He has also contributed many stories to the most prestigious literary quarterlies in America. Now E. S. Goldman has gathered together what he and his publisher have decided are the twenty stories that best represent the full range of his writing years. It's a hefty tome, and as one might predict, it displays variety in the subject matter and versatility in the style. The stories range from short-shorts to novellas. Some are dark and brooding, others light and comic. The narrators and protagonists come from all walks of life: financiers and fishermen, restaurateurs and retirees, small men trying to be big men, strong women standing up to City Hall, with supporting casts of assorted ghosts, angels, and even the Queen of England. The settings range from a Depression-era Pittsburgh clothing store to a Manhattan jazz club in the 1950s to the lawns of contemporary Cape Cod to a banana republic jail cell. The Palmer Method is a remarkable display of versatility. Michael Curtis, in his foreword, calls the collection "as striking a testament to the possiblities of the form as will likely be published in America for many a year." What will come as a surprise is that the strong literary career of this octogenarian spans only the last ten years. E. S. Goldman began writing fiction in his seventies, after retiring from two other successful careers (advertising, and retail). He began to write strong fiction late in life, as if he'd been practicing forever. It may be the perspective of age that makes the stories of E. S. Goldman (even his "early" stories) so rewarding in terms of wisdom and moral value. Goldman faces important issues like the consequences of hubris, the value of unsentimental but heartfelt love, and the nobility of ordinary people. The stories are equally rewarding in the arena of style: full of surprise and change and inevitable consequence, they propel the reader forward to the finish, slowing down only to marvel at the sparkling choice of words along the way. Be it well understood that E. S. Goldman takes his craft seriously. He chose for the title of his collection The Palmer Method, a reference to the penmanship exercise he practiced as a child, similar to the way he now writes in his eighties: over and over and over again until he gets it as right as it can be. As a result, the stories reward reading after reading. About the Author. Elliott Stanley Goldman is a native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and a graduate of the University of Wisconsin's Experimental College and the University of Pittsburgh. He skippered minesweepers during World War II, and he has had successful careers in advertising and retail. His fiction began with the novel Big Chocolate Cookies, published by John Daniel and Company, and stories in The Atlantic. His story collection Earthly Justice won the William Goyen Prize and was published by TriQuarterly Books. His anthologized stories range from Japanese language collections to The Best American Short Stories. He lives in South Orleans, Cape Cod. He is the grandfather of four, the father of two, and the husband of one. |
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The Palmer Method--Stories 320 pages 6" x 9" clothbound $22.95 320 pages 6" x 9" paperback $14.95 Fiction/ Short Stories For ordering information, click here or phone (800) 662-8351 |