Granta 1: New American Writing

Granta: The Magazine of New Writing #1

by Bill Buford (Editor), James Purdy (Contributor), Tillie Olsen (Contributor)

The first issue of the new Granta collects work by some of the most accomplished American writers of the seventies – many published for the first time in Britain. Contributors include William Gass, Joyce Carol Oates, Donald Barthelme and Susan Sontag.

In this issue:
William Warner: Interview with Theodore Solotaroff
John Hawkes: The Universal Fears
William Gass: The First Winter of my Married Life
Joyce Carol Oates: from Son of the Morning
Tony Tanner: Present Imperfect: Note on Walter Abish
Marc Granetz: Chuckle or Gasp: a note on the work of Leonard Michaels
Norman Bryson: Orgy...: A Note on the Work of James Purdy
Leonard Michaels: The Men’s Club
James Purdy: Summer Tidings
Tillie Olsen: Requa-I
Donald Barthelme: The New Music
D. D. Guttenplan: The Wor(l)ds of William Gass
Jonathan Levi: John Cheever in the Bourgeois Tradition
John Dugdale: Updike’s Nabokov
Stanley Elkin: from The Franchiser
Ronald Sukenick: from Long Talking Bad Condition Blues
Susan Sontag: Unguided Tour
Henry Davis: A Plug for Bukowski

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1979

About the author

William Holmes Buford is an American author and journalist. He is the author of the books Among the Thugs and Heat: An Amateur's Adventures as Kitchen Slave, Line Cook, Pasta-Maker, and Apprentice to a Dante-Quoting Butcher in Tuscany. Buford was previously the fiction editor for The New Yorker, where he is still on staff. For sixteen years, he was the editor of Granta, which he relaunched in 1979. He is also credited with coining the term "dirty realism".

Reviews

[Nikki in Niagara]

**Spoiler-Free Synopses**

This is the first issue of Granta, a British literary magazine, Autumn 1979, whose theme, funnily enough, is the new American writing scene. These are all new authors for me except a favourite author of mine, Joyce Carol Oates, and I've heard of Susan Sontag. There is a wide variety of experimental literature here, including lack of punctuation, fever dream, Q&A, no plot, etc. It's what some would call high-brow literature, but the topics of themes are more down to earth. This will not be for everyone and is certainly a literary workout.

1. **The Universal Fears by John Hawkes** - Diving into short fiction from magazines is an adventure, and this one did not disappoint. I had never encountered John Hawkes before, and I was thoroughly impressed. The story revolves around a teacher beginning his first day at a girls' prison school, only to be violently attacked by the 27 girls. It’s brutal, vicious, and dark—everything I enjoy. While the ending left me pondering, I'm intrigued by Hawkes and plan to explore more of his work. (4/5)

2. **The First Winter of My Married Life by William Gass** - This story felt overly long and, quite frankly, a bit dull. It’s bleak, which I typically appreciate, but the lack of engagement made my mind wander. It follows a couple during their first year of marriage in a duplex with paper-thin walls, resulting in an atmosphere of embarrassment and tension. A bit of a struggle to get through, honestly. (1/5)

3. **from Son of the Morning by Joyce Carol Oates** - A pack of wild dogs is wreaking havoc by killing livestock and injuring a boy. Amid this chaos, 22-year-old Ashton Vickery decides to take action. This is raw and powerful storytelling; Oates truly excels here. I found myself wanting to delve deeper into Ashton's psyche and future. (5/5)

4. **The Men's Club by Leonard Michaels** - A group of academics convene to form a men's club, inspired by the fact that women have their groups. The result is a humorous politically incorrect farce, rich with quotable moments. Michaels's writing is captivating, and I’m eager to explore more of his work. (5/5)

5. **Summer Tidings by James Purdy** - This charming story follows Galway, a Jamaican gardener for a millionaire, as he admires his work and visits the neighbours for a birthday celebration. It’s a delightful exploration of contrasts and the passage of time. (3/5)

6. **Requa-I by Tillie Olsen** - A young boy grapples with the sudden death of his mother in 1930s North Carolina and adjustment to life with his uncle. The narrative unfolds like a fever dream, experimental yet profoundly impactful. After finishing it, I found myself with a racing heart and deepened breath, clearly moved by the experience. (5/5)

7. **The New Music by Donald Barthelme** - This story defies conventional plotting, focusing instead on stylistic exploration. It begins with a simple Q&A format but evolves into a profound discussion about ageing, care for the elderly, and difficult choices. A deep and dark meditation that stays with you. (3/5)

8. **from The Franchiser by Stanley Elkin** - Here, a man checks into the hospital during a heatwave, sharing a room with someone else as they await test results. The character, an egotistical soft-serve franchise owner, isn’t particularly likeable, making it a lacklustre read for me. (2/5)

9. **from Long Talking Bad Conditions Blues by Ronald Sukenick** - A brief piece that features couples hiking in the snow, discussing communist politics and relationships. It didn’t resonate with me, and the lack of punctuation felt pretentious. (2/5)

10. **Unguided Tour by Susan Sontag** - This one left me a bit puzzled. It appears to involve three characters, with a woman documenting her Mediterranean travels alongside a male companion. Their differing views on vacation create an interesting dynamic, though I found the narrative hard to follow. (1/5)

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first Granta I owned was Granta #12: The True Adventures Of The Rolling Stones. I was touring England and saw it in a bookstore. I was a huge Rolling Stones fan at the time and so, I had to have it. In the end I read every story in that Granta but the title piece. I still haven't read it.
Back it the states, I found a bookstore that carried Granta and checked each new issue regularly, often buying and reading it. More than likely, I wouldn't read the issue cover to cover, or, when I was done with it, in its entirety. I eventually became a subscriber and over time, purchased back issues and filled in the volumes missing from the collection. Some of these back issues I read through completely, others I barely got to the end of an article. Sometimes the issue was on a topic of current interest for me. Other times, it was a matter of simply rounding out the collection.
In the last few years, I've taken to reading each issue completely. I don't necessarily read each sequentially as they appear in the volume, but I read the entire "magazine".
Since that wasn't always the case, and there are many pieces in past volumes left unread, in 2011 I'm going back to read what I missed out on in the 95 or so volumes that I didn't get through.
I'm starting with Granta 1: New American Writing from Spring 1979.
I'll eventually get to that piece about The Stones.

In Granta #1, I read the short stories and one piece of criticism about Bukowski. I haven't read enough of the other writers to appreciate the critical essays about them. I enjoyed the William Gass and Susan Sontag pieces. Sontag writes: "Is America the only country without a tragic history?" Maybe we're writing that tragedy now.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ve been reading Granta magazines off and on for years. I decided to start at the beginning and work my way through some of the older works. Skimming what is beyond me enjoying what is new.

As expected, I skimmed some of the essays.
I loved the short story “Requa-I” by Tillie Olsen.
I was introduced to John Cheever and am looking forward to reading some of his short stories.
“The Franchiser” by Stanley Elkin looks interesting too.