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Quarrel & Quandary: Essays
Quarrel & Quandary showcases the manifold talents of one of our leading and award-winning critics and essayists.
In nineteen opulent essays, Cynthia Ozick probes Dostoevsky for insights into the Unabomber, questions the role of the public intellectual, and dares to wonder what poetry is. She roams effortlessly from Kafka to James, Styron to Stein, and, in the book's most famous essay, dissects the gaudy commercialism that has reduced Anne Frank to "usable goods." Courageous, audacious, and sublime, these essays have the courage of conviction, the probing of genius, and the durable audacity to matter.
In nineteen opulent essays, Cynthia Ozick probes Dostoevsky for insights into the Unabomber, questions the role of the public intellectual, and dares to wonder what poetry is. She roams effortlessly from Kafka to James, Styron to Stein, and, in the book's most famous essay, dissects the gaudy commercialism that has reduced Anne Frank to "usable goods." Courageous, audacious, and sublime, these essays have the courage of conviction, the probing of genius, and the durable audacity to matter.
272 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2000
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594 people want to read
About the author
Cynthia Ozick
109 books427 followersRecipient of the first Rea Award for the Short Story (in 1976; other winners Rea honorees include Lorrie Moore, John Updike, Alice Munro), an American Academy of Arts and Letters Mildred and Harold Strauss Living Award, and the PEN/Malamud award in 2008.
Upon publication of her 1983 The Shawl, Edmund White wrote in the New York Times, "Miss Ozick strikes me as the best American writer to have emerged in recent years...Judaism has given to her what Catholicism gave to Flannery O'Connor."
Upon publication of her 1983 The Shawl, Edmund White wrote in the New York Times, "Miss Ozick strikes me as the best American writer to have emerged in recent years...Judaism has given to her what Catholicism gave to Flannery O'Connor."
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
November 22, 2025
I thoroughly enjoyed the literary pieces on James as I did the considerations on Raskolnikov/The Unabomber. I felt uneasy with approach to the Biblical Job and things soon began to unravel. There were a few intriguing bits of autobiography but I felt removed.
A true indicator of impact was my immediate desire to read 2-3 of the mentioned stories by James. Edel as well, possibly some of the more recent scholarship. There’s a reflective turn where Ozick explores the anatomy of the essay, looking specifically to corporeal terms to characterize the distinction between article and essay and along the way consider potential distance from mere criticism especially the off the rack review. It was a nod to Barthes, perhaps as Ozick lards such with serial citation.
A true indicator of impact was my immediate desire to read 2-3 of the mentioned stories by James. Edel as well, possibly some of the more recent scholarship. There’s a reflective turn where Ozick explores the anatomy of the essay, looking specifically to corporeal terms to characterize the distinction between article and essay and along the way consider potential distance from mere criticism especially the off the rack review. It was a nod to Barthes, perhaps as Ozick lards such with serial citation.
February 14, 2019
Most of Ozick's essays are learned. I wasn't surprised at how erudite they are. I expected it. That anticipation of learning new perspectives and enjoying fine writing were my incentives to reading in the 1st place, and I was rewarded.
The collection includes what you might consider traditional subjects like Kafka and Dostoyevsky and Henry James. But she's not afraid to address more slippery writers like Gertrude Stein and W. G. Sebald. In fact, she frames her essays with an early entry on Sebald and a final one on New York City, both fueled by the adjective sublime. Along the way between Sebald and New York City she writes about public intellectuals, the nature of poetry, and the art of biography. My favorite is one called "The Ladle" in which she equates all of literature to a rich stew into which we're able to dip and scoop from lifetimes of memory, fetching time and again from the mental soup we've been simmering. I have to say my least favorites are what I consider personal essays, like "Lovesickness", a memory of her family's pharmacy in the Bronx, and one on a summer job. Perhaps the best known of these essays, and one I thought particularly fascinating because I don't have an easy familiarity with the subject, is that on the commercialism that's arisen around Anne Frank and her extraordinary work.
This is my 1st experience in reading Ozick essays, and I'm sure I'll return to her.
The collection includes what you might consider traditional subjects like Kafka and Dostoyevsky and Henry James. But she's not afraid to address more slippery writers like Gertrude Stein and W. G. Sebald. In fact, she frames her essays with an early entry on Sebald and a final one on New York City, both fueled by the adjective sublime. Along the way between Sebald and New York City she writes about public intellectuals, the nature of poetry, and the art of biography. My favorite is one called "The Ladle" in which she equates all of literature to a rich stew into which we're able to dip and scoop from lifetimes of memory, fetching time and again from the mental soup we've been simmering. I have to say my least favorites are what I consider personal essays, like "Lovesickness", a memory of her family's pharmacy in the Bronx, and one on a summer job. Perhaps the best known of these essays, and one I thought particularly fascinating because I don't have an easy familiarity with the subject, is that on the commercialism that's arisen around Anne Frank and her extraordinary work.
This is my 1st experience in reading Ozick essays, and I'm sure I'll return to her.
August 24, 2011
Quarrel and Quandary, a collection of essays, is the first book by Cynthia Ozick that I’ve read, and I finished it feeling impressed. Perhaps what stands out most strongly to me is her serious, firm, no-nonsense, occasionally devastating argumentation style. I would not ever want to be the subject of Ozick’s critique; she can be frighteningly effective when goes on the attack.
The essays cover a range of material. Many of them are literary in nature, including essays on Kafka, Dostoevsky, Sebald, Henry James, and others. Other essays explore broader literary phenomena such as the various adaptations of The Diary of Anne Frank and the treatment of the Holocaust in fiction. These last two are good examples of what I mean by her devastating argumentation style; she is angry at theatrical adaptations of the diary that downplay the horror of Anne’s fate in order to focus on the diary’s hopeful messages. In the essay on Holocaust fiction, she critiques Sophie’s Choice and Bernard Schlink’s The Reader for covering over some of the worst aspects of Holocaust history by focusing on exceptions and rare cases in the stories they tell. That essay (which you can read here) is a nuanced discussion of the tension between the right of authors to write about whatever they want and their responsibility to be ethical human beings.
Read the rest of the review at Of Books and Bicycles.
The essays cover a range of material. Many of them are literary in nature, including essays on Kafka, Dostoevsky, Sebald, Henry James, and others. Other essays explore broader literary phenomena such as the various adaptations of The Diary of Anne Frank and the treatment of the Holocaust in fiction. These last two are good examples of what I mean by her devastating argumentation style; she is angry at theatrical adaptations of the diary that downplay the horror of Anne’s fate in order to focus on the diary’s hopeful messages. In the essay on Holocaust fiction, she critiques Sophie’s Choice and Bernard Schlink’s The Reader for covering over some of the worst aspects of Holocaust history by focusing on exceptions and rare cases in the stories they tell. That essay (which you can read here) is a nuanced discussion of the tension between the right of authors to write about whatever they want and their responsibility to be ethical human beings.
Read the rest of the review at Of Books and Bicycles.
February 19, 2021
Very dry, but very insightful.
June 18, 2024
** 4.5 stars **
I purposely read this collection slowly in order to savor it and to give each essay my full attention while reading. While I didn't love all the essays equally, I really enjoyed the majority of them. Cynthia Ozick remains a personal favorite author of mine, due to her passion for her subjects and the depth of her thought. Among my favorite essays in this collection were "Dostoyevsky's Unabomber," "The Impossibility of Being Kafka," "The Impious Impatience of Job," "Who Owns Anne Frank?", "The Selfishness of Art," and "How I Got Fired from My Summer Job."
Would recommend to anyone who appreciates essays, careful thinking, and/or elegant prose.
I purposely read this collection slowly in order to savor it and to give each essay my full attention while reading. While I didn't love all the essays equally, I really enjoyed the majority of them. Cynthia Ozick remains a personal favorite author of mine, due to her passion for her subjects and the depth of her thought. Among my favorite essays in this collection were "Dostoyevsky's Unabomber," "The Impossibility of Being Kafka," "The Impious Impatience of Job," "Who Owns Anne Frank?", "The Selfishness of Art," and "How I Got Fired from My Summer Job."
Would recommend to anyone who appreciates essays, careful thinking, and/or elegant prose.
December 24, 2017
A bit dry at times, and it felt out of order. I enjoyed the personal essays far more than the criticisms, which often felt a bit like attacks.
The collection is front-loaded with longer essays, and essays of similar themes were grouped. I think it would have been more enjoyable if the long were mixed with the short, and the themes more evenly dispersed.
Orzick is on a first-name basis with more words than I am, but it feels like her writing is representative of how she speaks, rather than overly verbose for the sake of it.
The collection is front-loaded with longer essays, and essays of similar themes were grouped. I think it would have been more enjoyable if the long were mixed with the short, and the themes more evenly dispersed.
Orzick is on a first-name basis with more words than I am, but it feels like her writing is representative of how she speaks, rather than overly verbose for the sake of it.
March 10, 2020
I skimmed across the surface of this one like a dragonfly. It's been on my to read list forever, and in a former life I might have gobbled it up. At the moment, though, it felt a little too intellectual. It is a collection of essays to sink teeth into, but I only have the appetite to nibble. I enjoyed the "Imaginary People"one, though.
September 3, 2023
An excellent collection of essays from a wonderful writer, with "The Ladle" and "The Synthetic Sublime" being the most brilliant. The latter is a strong contender to EB White's ("Here is New York") for best essay ever written about New York City.
May 19, 2018
Amazing. Provocative. Insightful. Incisive. Near-perfect prose.
February 2, 2020
♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️
February 10, 2020
enjoyable company. some thought provoking ideas especially in the essays on anne frank and on public intellectuals.
August 10, 2010
A wonderful book of essays on literature, politics, the tension between reason and imagination, and the role(s) of the intellectual in society. It's nice to read someone who actually still thinks thoughtful writing is important. No surprise that hers turns out to be just that. I recommend "Imaginary People," "Public Intellectuals," "The Posthumous Sublime," and especially "The Impious Impatience of Job."
December 21, 2008
This is the first thing I've ever ready by Cynthia Ozich. Not sure that I have the background to make an assessment of Ozick's essays in this volume. She has more extensive knowledge of literature than I do. But her writing is interesting and she has some provocative things to say about writing and life.
January 1, 2009
The essay on Kafka is highly recommended.
June 14, 2012
haven't read this one specifically, but I've dipped into her nonfiction every once in a while. A very impressive prose stylist, but very little substance, and insufferably cynical (in my view).
April 3, 2013
One of my very favorite essayists. Ozick has a formidable intellect and wow, she can write. I rarely even care what she writes about, she can make any subject interesting to me.
March 24, 2016
Powerful, playful and close to perfection prose.
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February 21, 2019My faves from this book: Dostoevsky's Unabomber, A Drug Store Eden, The Synthetic Sublime, The Rights of History and the Rights of Imagination, Who Owns Anne Frank?, and Public Intellectuals.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews