The Hungry Ghosts: Seven Allusive Comedies

by Joyce Carol Oates

Democracy in America
Pilgrims' Progress
Up From Slavery
A Descriptive Catalogue
The Birth of Tragedy
Rewards of Fame
Angst

Genres: Short Stories

200 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1974

About the author

Joyce Carol Oates is an American writer. Oates published her first book in 1963, and has since published 58 novels, a number of plays and novellas, and many volumes of short stories, poetry, and nonfiction. Her novels Black Water (1992), What I Lived For (1994), and Blonde (2000), and her short story collections The Wheel of Love (1970) and Lovely, Dark, Deep: Stories (2014) were each finalists for the Pulitzer Prize. She has won many awards for her writing, including the National Book Award, for her novel Them (1969), two O. Henry Awards, the National Humanities Medal, and the Jerusalem Prize (2019).
Oates taught at Princeton University from 1978 to 2014, and is the Roger S. Berlind '52 Professor Emerita in the Humanities with the Program in Creative Writing. From 2016 to 2020, she was a visiting professor at the University of California, Berkeley, where she taught short fiction in the spring semesters. She now teaches at Rutgers University, New Brunswick.
Oates was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 2016.
Pseudonyms: Rosamond Smith and Lauren Kelly.

Reviews

[Timothy · Rating 5 out of 5]

7 stories:

Democracy in America
Pilgrims’ Progress
Up From Slavery
A Descriptive Catalogue
The Birth of Tragedy
Rewards of Fame
Angst

Only 34 reviews so far? Never a new printing since the first almost 50 years ago? This must be the most criminally neglected work of fiction I have yet encountered on GR because it is absolutely Brilliant. Subtitled "Seven Allusive Comedies" - perfect. In my top three books about fictional academia along with "Stoner" by John Williams and "A New Life" by Bernard Malamud.

[Trinie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Black Sparrow Press edition, super nice early story collection of interconnected tales. As a college professor, reading prose about the trials and tribulations of the academic world is a bit spooky, but framed as ghost tales in the Washington Irving sort of American Lit vein it feels nice, almost campy. Oates' prose is hyper detailed but in these short pieces it doesn't irk me like it sometimes does.

[Mike Vial · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm on a reading binge of books published by Black Sparrow Press, and enjoyed this set of comedies about academia. Some if the allusions are more obvious than others, and I want to give two stories a closer read.

This is a fun read for JCO fans, readers who love Shakespeare references, those who have worked in education, and lovers of short stories. Many of the stories are linked by characters and a college on Ontario, like Sherwood Anderson's Winesburg, Ohio.

[Alison · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't realize when I picked up this book, but in it are 7 related short stories about academia, and particularly English departments. A few of the stories are weaker than the others, but overall, it's a great read.

[Kate]

Tulsa, OK