Four for a Quarter: Fictions

by Michael Martone

Four is the magic number in Michael Martone’s Four for a Quarter.  In subject—four fifth Beatles, four tie knots, four retellings of the first Xerox, even the sex lives of the Fantastic Four—and in structure—the book is separated into four sections, with each section further divided into four chapterettes—Four for a Quarter returns again and again to its originating number, making chaos comprehensible and mystery out of the most ordinary. 

 

 

 

 

Genres: Short Stories

312 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

Michael A. Martone is a professor at the creative writing program at the University of Alabama, and is the author of several books. His most recent work, titled Michael Martone and originally written as a series of contributor's notes for various publications, is an investigation of form and autobiography.

A former student of John Barth, Martone's work is critically regarded as powerful and funny. Making use of Whitman's catalogues and Ginsberg's lists, the events, moments and places in Martone's landscapes — fiction or otherwise — often take the same Mobius-like turns of the threads found the works of his mentor, Barth.

Reviews

[Tara · Rating 5 out of 5]

No secret this is one of my favorite contemporary writers, and he doesn't disappoint in Four for a Quarter. Everything in this book deals with the number or quantity or concept of 4. I was worried it would be gimmicky. How much good writing can come from such a forced constraint? I should have known...Martone is one of our finest writers. He's a master of rhythm and words and setting. From "The Sex Life of the Fantastic Four" to the ethereal, lyrical recounting of a miscarriage in "Diagnostic Drift," this writer can entertain us, educate us, and illuminate our smallest, deepest, most personal moments.

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Martone is a master wordsmith; there's a lyrical sense to his short stories (subdivided into quarters), which range from quirky bits on the Beatles to a first-person account of a wife's miscarriages. Deeply affecting.

[Darrelyn Saloom · Rating 5 out of 5]

A rare, original, and clever collection of fictions. Martone’s “fours” are used to expose his character’s innermost lives, such as a woman painting and repainting the four walls of her living room: “And painting, the sheer act of painting, is a soothing contemplative exercise, an applied yoga of application, that allows her to meditate on the course of the affair, its ups and downs, her marriage, its lefts and rights.” Martone’s cleverness does not only apply to the book’s structure but to every sentence. It’s hard to pick a favorite chapter, but the last one, “Author’s Notes,” had me laughing out loud when he wonders “if there is a zodiac for the dying, a dead astrology, like the one that casts its influence over the newly minted.” Who else has ever wondered that?

[Brian Beatty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of course. I gave this book four stars for the obvious reasons, but also because Martone's literary brilliance can become a bit exhausting after a while. I recommend reading this book in small doses.

[Eric Susak · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a difficult book to rate because its parts are disjointed. The sections are related to each other only by the number 4, yet this structure is contrived in some sections.

It is undeniable that Martone has an aptitude for the rhythm of words and a control over the effect of sounds. There were some sections I had to read again because it was so beautifully done. However, other sections were convoluted to the point where I had no idea what the hell he was talking about.

I recommend this book to aspiring writers. You can learn about the art of magnifying-glass focus, how to look at the same picture from different perspectives.

[Gerry LaFemina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I couldn't resist giving this book 4 stars.

Martone's writing in this book spans the spectrum of what petite prose writing could be: microessays. short short stories, prose poems. Martone is a master of such writing--moving between exposition, lyricism, and narrative with his own zany take on American life. At their best these pieces lively and funny and smart. But at nearly 300 pages the book feels long.

[Colin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would have given this five stars, but in this case, four seems far more appropriate for a book of this caliber. This interview helps with thinking about structure in this books (http://www.thestoryprize.blogspot.com...) but you don't have to read it to enjoy these fictions.

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely love this book. It's the kind of writing that makes me want to write, if that makes any sense. Delight up on delight. Martone's work is quirky, brave, innovative, funny, and moving. A master.

[Perry Glasser · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clever and funny. Folks looking for short reads will love it.