A Reader's Guide to William Faulkner: The Short Stories

by Edmond L. Volpe

This R eader's Guide is a companion to Edmond L. Volpe's Reader's Guide to William The Novels, the most complete guide to the novels of Faulkner and hailed by critics as "a book to be read, studied, and returned to The new Guide—the first comprehensive book of its kind—offers analyses of all Faulkner's short stories, published and unpublished, that were not incorporated into novels or turned into chapters of a novel. Each of the seventy-one stories receives separate and detailed appraisal. This exacting approach helps establish the relationship of the stories to the novels and underscores Faulkner's formidable skill as a writer of short fiction. Although Faulkner often spoke disparagingly of the short story form and claimed that he wrote stories for money—which he did—Edmond L. Volpe's study reveals that Faulkner could not resist the application of his incomparable creative imagination or his mastery of narrative structure and technique to this genre.

332 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2004

About the author

Full name: Edmond Loris Volpe.

Reviews

[Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great reader’s guide, and much needed. Reading Faulkner's stories can be a daunting task. In 3 to 6 pages per story, the author gave a general outline of the story, and then discussed the meaning, the literary style, and how the story relates to Faulkner’s other works. I disagree with some of his assessments, believing that “Two Soldiers” and “Beyond” are much better than the author states. However, it is nice to know that the author is very discerning. Generally I agree about which stories are the great ones.

[Christian Kiefer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty much the best gateway into Faulkner's short fiction that I've been able to find.

[Neana Lueck]

A perfect companion guide to provide insight on Faulkner's writing style and earlier life.