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Essays
From the International Man Booker Prize-winning author of Can't and Won't and The End of the Story - a crystalline collection of literary essays for fans of Susan Sontag and Joan Didion
'She's a joy. There's no writer quite like her' Ali Smith
'Among my most favourite writers. Read her now!' A. M. Homes
The visionary, fearless Lydia Davis presents a dazzling collection of essays on reading and writing, exploring the full scope of possibility within existing forms of literature and considering how we might challenge and reinvent these forms.
Through Thomas Pynchon, Michel Leiris, Maurice Blanchot, Lucia Berlin, Joan Mitchell and others, he author considers her many creative influences. And, through these lenses, she returns to her own writing process, her relationship to language and the written word. Beautifully formed, thought-provoking, playful and illuminating, these pieces are a masterclass in reading and writing.
'She's a joy. There's no writer quite like her' Ali Smith
'Among my most favourite writers. Read her now!' A. M. Homes
The visionary, fearless Lydia Davis presents a dazzling collection of essays on reading and writing, exploring the full scope of possibility within existing forms of literature and considering how we might challenge and reinvent these forms.
Through Thomas Pynchon, Michel Leiris, Maurice Blanchot, Lucia Berlin, Joan Mitchell and others, he author considers her many creative influences. And, through these lenses, she returns to her own writing process, her relationship to language and the written word. Beautifully formed, thought-provoking, playful and illuminating, these pieces are a masterclass in reading and writing.
400 pages, Hardcover
First published October 22, 2019
344 people are currently reading
3824 people want to read
About the author
Lydia Davis
352 books1,468 followersLydia Davis, acclaimed fiction writer and translator, is famous in literary circles for her extremely brief and brilliantly inventive short stories. In fall 2003 she received one of 25 MacArthur Foundation “Genius” awards. In granting the award the MacArthur Foundation praised Davis’s work for showing “how language itself can entertain, how all that what one word says, and leaves unsaid, can hold a reader’s interest. . . . Davis grants readers a glimpse of life’s previously invisible details, revealing new sources of philosophical insights and beauty.” In 2013 She was the winner of the Man Booker International prize.
Davis’s recent collection, “Varieties of Disturbance” (May 2007), was featured on the front cover of the “Los Angeles Times Book Review” and garnered a starred review from “Publishers Weekly.” Her “Samuel Johnson Is Indignant” (2001) was praised by “Elle” magazine for its “Highly intelligent, wildly entertaining stories, bound by visionary, philosophical, comic prose—part Gertrude Stein, part Simone Weil, and pure Lydia Davis.”
Davis is also a celebrated translator of French literature into English. The French government named her a Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters for her fiction and her distinguished translations of works by Maurice Blanchot, Pierre Jean Jouve, Michel Butor and others.
Davis recently published a new translation (the first in more than 80 years) of Marcel Proust’s masterpiece, “Swann’s Way” (2003), the first volume of Proust’s “In Search of Lost Time.” A story of childhood and sexual jealousy set in fin de siecle France, “Swann’s Way” is widely regarded as one of the most important literary works of the 20th century.
The “Sunday Telegraph” (London) called the new translation “A triumph [that] will bring this inexhaustible artwork to new audiences throughout the English-speaking world.” Writing for the “Irish Times,” Frank Wynne said, “What soars in this new version is the simplicity of language and fidelity to the cambers of Proust’s prose… Davis’ translation is magnificent, precise.”
Davis’s previous works include “Almost No Memory” (stories, 1997), “The End of the Story” (novel, 1995), “Break It Down” (stories, 1986), “Story and Other Stories” (1983), and “The Thirteenth Woman” (stories, 1976).
Grace Paley wrote of “Almost No Memory” that Lydia Davis is the kind of writer who “makes you say, ‘Oh, at last!’—brains, language, energy, a playfulness with form, and what appears to be a generous nature.” The collection was chosen as one of the “25 Favorite Books of 1997” by the “Voice Literary Supplement” and one of the “100 Best Books of 1997” by the “Los Angeles Times.”
Davis first received serious critical attention for her collection of stories, “Break It Down,” which was selected as a finalist for the PEN/Hemingway Award. The book’s positive critical reception helped Davis win a prestigious Whiting Writer’s Award in 1988.
She is the daughter of Robert Gorham Davis and Hope Hale Davis. From 1974 to 1978 Davis was married to Paul Auster, with whom she has a son, Daniel Auster. Davis is currently married to painter Alan Cote, with whom she has a son, Theo Cote. She is a professor of creative writing at University at Albany, SUNY.
Davis is considered hugely influential by a generation of writers including Jonathan Franzen, David Foster Wallace and Dave Eggers, who once wrote that she "blows the roof off of so many of our assumptions about what constitutes short fiction."
Davis’s recent collection, “Varieties of Disturbance” (May 2007), was featured on the front cover of the “Los Angeles Times Book Review” and garnered a starred review from “Publishers Weekly.” Her “Samuel Johnson Is Indignant” (2001) was praised by “Elle” magazine for its “Highly intelligent, wildly entertaining stories, bound by visionary, philosophical, comic prose—part Gertrude Stein, part Simone Weil, and pure Lydia Davis.”
Davis is also a celebrated translator of French literature into English. The French government named her a Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters for her fiction and her distinguished translations of works by Maurice Blanchot, Pierre Jean Jouve, Michel Butor and others.
Davis recently published a new translation (the first in more than 80 years) of Marcel Proust’s masterpiece, “Swann’s Way” (2003), the first volume of Proust’s “In Search of Lost Time.” A story of childhood and sexual jealousy set in fin de siecle France, “Swann’s Way” is widely regarded as one of the most important literary works of the 20th century.
The “Sunday Telegraph” (London) called the new translation “A triumph [that] will bring this inexhaustible artwork to new audiences throughout the English-speaking world.” Writing for the “Irish Times,” Frank Wynne said, “What soars in this new version is the simplicity of language and fidelity to the cambers of Proust’s prose… Davis’ translation is magnificent, precise.”
Davis’s previous works include “Almost No Memory” (stories, 1997), “The End of the Story” (novel, 1995), “Break It Down” (stories, 1986), “Story and Other Stories” (1983), and “The Thirteenth Woman” (stories, 1976).
Grace Paley wrote of “Almost No Memory” that Lydia Davis is the kind of writer who “makes you say, ‘Oh, at last!’—brains, language, energy, a playfulness with form, and what appears to be a generous nature.” The collection was chosen as one of the “25 Favorite Books of 1997” by the “Voice Literary Supplement” and one of the “100 Best Books of 1997” by the “Los Angeles Times.”
Davis first received serious critical attention for her collection of stories, “Break It Down,” which was selected as a finalist for the PEN/Hemingway Award. The book’s positive critical reception helped Davis win a prestigious Whiting Writer’s Award in 1988.
She is the daughter of Robert Gorham Davis and Hope Hale Davis. From 1974 to 1978 Davis was married to Paul Auster, with whom she has a son, Daniel Auster. Davis is currently married to painter Alan Cote, with whom she has a son, Theo Cote. She is a professor of creative writing at University at Albany, SUNY.
Davis is considered hugely influential by a generation of writers including Jonathan Franzen, David Foster Wallace and Dave Eggers, who once wrote that she "blows the roof off of so many of our assumptions about what constitutes short fiction."
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 144 reviews
November 24, 2019
Essential for anyone interested in the nuts and bolts of great sentence construction, how Davis composes her work, what inspires and has inspired it, or even if you just want to spend time with a rarely perceptive mind. You'll also have a few names to add to the TBR.
January 5, 2020
Lydia Davis is one of my favorite writers--smart, always interesting, thought-provoking. Her short (and short-short) stories are clever, often funny, and stimulate my imagination. And she is a superb translator (Madame Bovary, Proust's Swann's Way).
My favorite of these essays are those describing her own writing process. Davis weighs every word she uses--she appears to be as careful a writer as Flaubert himself. I loved reading about how she makes her choices, what guides her, how she thinks as a writer. In one essay, Davis shares her "tips" about how to write, she also suggests books to read for preparation and skill development (of course, I immediately bought one of the books she highly recommends, Artful Sentences: Syntax as Style by Virginia Tufte): now I need only to actually read it!). In another essay, she allows us to follow her mind as she reads a book of French history--she has barely begun when, in the course of looking up something mentioned in the book, she begins an exploration that leads her through associative thinking down many unlikely paths.
I also enjoyed her essays on other writers. She looks at works and authors that are outstanding and, perhaps, somewhat unusual (such as Maurice Blanchot, Lucia Berlin and Rae Armantrout, authors I love and admire).
Davis opens up new ways of thinking and appreciating art (and life as well). The essays are relatively short but exciting. However, the reading time may not always be equally brief: each essay gives rise to so much thought on the part of the reader, as well as the desire to go back (or for the first time) read the authors she discusses that the book becomes a kind of seed that produces growth in the reader--which in turn means that more time is taken than that which is spent in the reading of the essay.
I strongly recommend this book. It's smart, thought provoking and, well, fun.
My favorite of these essays are those describing her own writing process. Davis weighs every word she uses--she appears to be as careful a writer as Flaubert himself. I loved reading about how she makes her choices, what guides her, how she thinks as a writer. In one essay, Davis shares her "tips" about how to write, she also suggests books to read for preparation and skill development (of course, I immediately bought one of the books she highly recommends, Artful Sentences: Syntax as Style by Virginia Tufte): now I need only to actually read it!). In another essay, she allows us to follow her mind as she reads a book of French history--she has barely begun when, in the course of looking up something mentioned in the book, she begins an exploration that leads her through associative thinking down many unlikely paths.
I also enjoyed her essays on other writers. She looks at works and authors that are outstanding and, perhaps, somewhat unusual (such as Maurice Blanchot, Lucia Berlin and Rae Armantrout, authors I love and admire).
Davis opens up new ways of thinking and appreciating art (and life as well). The essays are relatively short but exciting. However, the reading time may not always be equally brief: each essay gives rise to so much thought on the part of the reader, as well as the desire to go back (or for the first time) read the authors she discusses that the book becomes a kind of seed that produces growth in the reader--which in turn means that more time is taken than that which is spent in the reading of the essay.
I strongly recommend this book. It's smart, thought provoking and, well, fun.
Read
February 4, 2022Video review on Leaf by Leaf: Video review on Leaf by Leaf: https://youtu.be/UljZf6ZXI6I
January 31, 2020
A true treasure trove. Terrific essays on under-read visionaries like Blanchot, Mallarme, Joubert, Butor, and Leiris, plus some of the best practical writing advice I've ever encountered.
January 3, 2020
A remarkable collection of essays by the brilliant prose writer Lydia Davis. I recommend this book to those who write. The first piece in the book "The Practice of Writing" is essential advice in choosing one's words correctly and economically. Also pieces on translations, essay writing, history, and art criticism. A brilliant cocktail of a book.
March 7, 2021
“(1) Work on your character. (2) Work on your handling of language so that you know what you’re doing and can do it well and be in control. (3) Know your language—its words and phrases and idioms—deeply through every kind of study of it. (4) Say what you want to say without inhibition, in the way you want to say it, regardless of what other people might think (but with sensitivity to the feelings of others). (5) Work hard (write a lot), and be patient.” — Five cardinal rules, from “Thirty Recommendations for Good Writing Habits”
What a real delight; I have not been this excited about buying a new book in years. Reading this fat volume is like taking a private writing workshop with Lydia Davis. I find myself immensely inspired and challenged. I am re-reading Artful Sentences by Virginia Tufte now, which Davis recommends, and feel like my mind is already sharpening and focusing as the year begins, all thanks to Davis’s illuminating influence. Highly recommended, especially to those who work with words.
October 11, 2020
As a writer of short stories (brief,exciting, some times like poems), and as a translator of Madame Bovary and A Swann's Way I was familiar and in love with Lydia Davis. This is her brilliant collection of non fiction (book 1) including essays, commentaries, notes , fragments, memories and reviews covering a period more than three decades.
An amazing book of her experiences in reading and collecting books, learning languages and translating fiction. In this book I have a particular liking for some of her essays like Flaubert's Madame Bovary, John Ashbery's translation of Rimbaud, fragments on Barthes, recommendations for good writing habits, on Bible . Hope to re read after a time.
--
ajai mangattu
August 26, 2021
Lydia, yo ya te amaba de antes eh pero ahora quiero casarme con vos.
¡Que librazo!
¡Que librazo!
February 5, 2020
This book contains several gems. Lydia Davis, an accomplished writer and translator, who is best known for her flash fiction pieces, is a master at recognizing the magic in small events, daily observations and everyday interactions amongst ordinary people.
I spent considerable time reading through the sections of essays entitled "The Practice of Writing". In simple terms she shares many of the recommendations she has made to her own students. She highly recommends that any student of writing read "Artful Sentences" by Virginia Tufte.
She is also a fan of keeping an active notebook in which many of her stories begin, though not all completed and says she can have several stories going at once, some laying dormant for considerable periods of times; something I found reassurance in since it best describes the many stories that co-exist in both my own notebook and head. Regarding notebooks she has studied those of other writers and of Kafka she writes:
"Kafka kept a notebook full of ideas for stories, beginnings of stories, complete stories, accounts of evenings spent with friends in cafes, and then also complaints about his family, landlady, neighbors, etc. His complaints about his neighbors' real noises on the other side of the wall became written fantasies about unreal people on the other side of the wall, A writer's notebook becomes a record, or the objectification of a mind. There were several painters like Delacroix, who kept wonderful notebooks. And then there were writers who never published anything else but their notebooks, like the eighteenth-century Frenchman, Jospeh Joubert".
Regarding endings to stories she suggests reading Elizabeth Hardwick's "Sleepless Nights", Marguerite Duras's 'The War" and "The Lover", and Thomas Bernhard's "Correction". Endings she believes should contain surprises and/or the stronger content of the story writing.
As a master of flash fiction she sites other examples she respects and found inspiration from: "The Voice Imitator" by Thomas Bernhard, and "Novels in Three Lines" by Felix Feneon-translated by Luc Sante. Another excellent example of this form is Lydia Davis's own "Local Obits".
There are dozens other insights within the sections on the practice of writing.
Other sections in the book which I briefly perused were dedicated to essays on "Visual Artists" : Joan Mitchell and Alan Cote, and other essays on "Writers", one of which on Lucia Berlin I thoroughly enjoyed.
This is a large book one could spend countless hours pouring through. That I borrowed this from the library and was reading other books at the same time I had a truncated amount of time to fully immerse my self yet I highly recommend this book and look forward to the next volume its title promises.
I spent considerable time reading through the sections of essays entitled "The Practice of Writing". In simple terms she shares many of the recommendations she has made to her own students. She highly recommends that any student of writing read "Artful Sentences" by Virginia Tufte.
She is also a fan of keeping an active notebook in which many of her stories begin, though not all completed and says she can have several stories going at once, some laying dormant for considerable periods of times; something I found reassurance in since it best describes the many stories that co-exist in both my own notebook and head. Regarding notebooks she has studied those of other writers and of Kafka she writes:
"Kafka kept a notebook full of ideas for stories, beginnings of stories, complete stories, accounts of evenings spent with friends in cafes, and then also complaints about his family, landlady, neighbors, etc. His complaints about his neighbors' real noises on the other side of the wall became written fantasies about unreal people on the other side of the wall, A writer's notebook becomes a record, or the objectification of a mind. There were several painters like Delacroix, who kept wonderful notebooks. And then there were writers who never published anything else but their notebooks, like the eighteenth-century Frenchman, Jospeh Joubert".
Regarding endings to stories she suggests reading Elizabeth Hardwick's "Sleepless Nights", Marguerite Duras's 'The War" and "The Lover", and Thomas Bernhard's "Correction". Endings she believes should contain surprises and/or the stronger content of the story writing.
As a master of flash fiction she sites other examples she respects and found inspiration from: "The Voice Imitator" by Thomas Bernhard, and "Novels in Three Lines" by Felix Feneon-translated by Luc Sante. Another excellent example of this form is Lydia Davis's own "Local Obits".
There are dozens other insights within the sections on the practice of writing.
Other sections in the book which I briefly perused were dedicated to essays on "Visual Artists" : Joan Mitchell and Alan Cote, and other essays on "Writers", one of which on Lucia Berlin I thoroughly enjoyed.
This is a large book one could spend countless hours pouring through. That I borrowed this from the library and was reading other books at the same time I had a truncated amount of time to fully immerse my self yet I highly recommend this book and look forward to the next volume its title promises.
April 26, 2021
I couldn't possibly put into words how much I loved this. A new favorite! Lydia Davis is such an inspiration.
Such a great read if you're looking for: creative inspiration, actionable writing advice (not the basic, beginner stuff), a sentence-by-sentence breakdown of how this brilliant writer goes from a blank page to a finished piece, suggestions for further reading, etc.
I think I'll challenge myself to revisit this each year - so inspiring.
Such a great read if you're looking for: creative inspiration, actionable writing advice (not the basic, beginner stuff), a sentence-by-sentence breakdown of how this brilliant writer goes from a blank page to a finished piece, suggestions for further reading, etc.
I think I'll challenge myself to revisit this each year - so inspiring.
November 12, 2019
This was such a well written collection of essays about Lydia Davis' experiences over decades. Since she usually writes fiction, I was hesitant about this one, but was hooked after reading the first essay. The writing is spectacular and I am hoping there is another volume being written!
April 27, 2020
lydia davis' experiments with form are so curious & she is so attentive as a writer. i adore her for that. here she reflects on writing & translating. i have a list of authors she references in these essays that I need to look up & now want to read her translation of Madame Bovary. i also can’t wait to get my hands on a copy of Artful Sentences: Syntax as Style b/c her musings about the book intrigue me enough to want to do so. i enjoy books by writers about writing & specifically about the evolution of their writing. lucky for me this is book one of two.
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October 16, 2021i am so pleased with myself for this impulse purchase. something i will definitely read again! when i say i want to be articulate, i mean like lydia davis. she is so precise and intentional with her words, and each essay is so neatly revised that it flows like stream of consciousness almost, but not rambly at all. she is also so aware of her own biases and fallibility - every statement is qualified, or followed up with doubts, but not in a tiresome way - her writing is still very self assured somehow. trying to work out how she does this. some essays definitely hit harder than others (as is the way of the world, or at least the way of essay collections) i particularly enjoyed the ones about memory and her own writing process/influences. one of those books that reminded me why i like to read/made me excited to read more!
January 7, 2022
Very uneven. Some excellent stories especially on subjects where her fascination with language are illustrated
Weakest part is when treating more obscure writers and scribblers in her close environment
Weakest part is when treating more obscure writers and scribblers in her close environment
November 14, 2023
Enerzijds zijn er de artikels die me inspireren voor mijn eigen schrijfdocentschap. Vooral haar lezingenreeks over haar inspiratiebronnen voor haar eigen werk is daarin boeiend en bruikbaar. Anderzijds zitten er ook gewoon mooie artikels in, of het nu een inleiding is op
Madame Bovary
van Flaubert, een heel erg meanderend essay over herinneringen of een erg persoonlijk relaas over een kunstenaar.
Telkens opnieuw merk je het oog van de vertaler, de ongelooflijke aandacht voor het detail die je ook in haar eigen verhalen opmerkt, waar elk woord ertoe doet.
In het Engels heeft dit boek de veel neutralere, minder misleidende titel 'Essays One'. In 'Essays two' heeft ze haar artikels over vertalen verzameld. Daar ben ik nu ook wel benieuwd naar geworden. Ik weet niet of daar ook een Nederlandse vertaling gepland staat, maar ik kan me wel inbeelden dat het verdomd lastig zal zijn. Deze vertaling lijkt me al een ferme uitdaging te zijn geweest, zeker in die passages waarin ze heel meticuleus bijvoorbeeld verschillende Bijbelvertalingen vergelijkt. Hopelijk hebben Nico Groen en Nicolette Hoekmeijer ook voldoening uit het eindresultaat gehaald, want ze overtuigt me wel.
Telkens opnieuw merk je het oog van de vertaler, de ongelooflijke aandacht voor het detail die je ook in haar eigen verhalen opmerkt, waar elk woord ertoe doet.
In het Engels heeft dit boek de veel neutralere, minder misleidende titel 'Essays One'. In 'Essays two' heeft ze haar artikels over vertalen verzameld. Daar ben ik nu ook wel benieuwd naar geworden. Ik weet niet of daar ook een Nederlandse vertaling gepland staat, maar ik kan me wel inbeelden dat het verdomd lastig zal zijn. Deze vertaling lijkt me al een ferme uitdaging te zijn geweest, zeker in die passages waarin ze heel meticuleus bijvoorbeeld verschillende Bijbelvertalingen vergelijkt. Hopelijk hebben Nico Groen en Nicolette Hoekmeijer ook voldoening uit het eindresultaat gehaald, want ze overtuigt me wel.
July 19, 2021
Not the kind of book one (or at least I) would read front to back, but rather a wonderful long-term companion.
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December 17, 2019I didn't entirely read this before my time was up and I had to return it to the library, but the parts about writing advice are excellent and highly recommended!
January 3, 2023
Enlightening stuff
January 18, 2020
What a startling pleasure, always.
“13. If you want to be original, don’t labor to be original. Rather work on yourself, your mind, and then say what you think. This was Stendhal’s advice. Actually, he said: ‘If you want to be witty, work on your character and say what you think, on every occasion.’ Where did I find this quote? In my New Basics Cookbook.
“But I prefer my adaptation of his advice: if you want to be original, cultivate yourself, enrich your mind, develop your empathy, your understanding of other human beings and then, when you come to write, say what you think and feel, what you are moved to say.”
“13. If you want to be original, don’t labor to be original. Rather work on yourself, your mind, and then say what you think. This was Stendhal’s advice. Actually, he said: ‘If you want to be witty, work on your character and say what you think, on every occasion.’ Where did I find this quote? In my New Basics Cookbook.
“But I prefer my adaptation of his advice: if you want to be original, cultivate yourself, enrich your mind, develop your empathy, your understanding of other human beings and then, when you come to write, say what you think and feel, what you are moved to say.”
September 9, 2024
This is a collection of art and literary criticism, along with reflections on writing. While it's more designed to be read in chunks, I enjoyed some essays so much that I marathoned through it. The strongest pieces are definitely the ones about writing. They broaden my scoop as to what has been done and what is possible.
Favorites:
"From Raw Material to Finished Work: Forms and Influences II"
"Sources, Revision, Order, and Endings: Forms and Influences III"
"Revising One Sentence"
"Found Material, Syntax, Brevity, and the Beauty of Awkward Prose: Forms and Influences IV"
"Thirty Recommendations for Good Writing Habits"
"Energy in Color: Alan Cote's Recent Paintings"
Favorites:
"From Raw Material to Finished Work: Forms and Influences II"
"Sources, Revision, Order, and Endings: Forms and Influences III"
"Revising One Sentence"
"Found Material, Syntax, Brevity, and the Beauty of Awkward Prose: Forms and Influences IV"
"Thirty Recommendations for Good Writing Habits"
"Energy in Color: Alan Cote's Recent Paintings"
January 31, 2023
rtc (really)
December 19, 2019
I read this entire book in one sitting. I don't know if I would recommend that, although I certainly recommend the book. It is a delectable glimpse at Davis' habits of mind.
June 27, 2021
first of all it feels awesome to finish a 500-page book! i think this is also my first finished essay collection. honestly it's never a drag with #LydiaDavis (maybe in some of her fiction tho. hehe).
ofc i started with the ones I'm most interested in. her discussions on her writing processes and inspirations, how she deliberates on sentence structures and editing, her favorite authors and works (she is a fan of the naturally clever, yet captivating though almost unperformative). what's very admirable about the essays here is the kindness and humor by which she walks you through her observations. it's very thoughtful and not in the usual, complicated and overtechnical style you might expect from essays on great writers. you understand exactly what she means and you get so much more for it.
i ended up reading her discussions of other authors too, which i mostly haven't heard before. a lot of these give the reader that sensation one gets from their teacher when most students have left the room but you ask a small question after class and end up getting a bunch of obscure art and book recommendations you know you probably won't ever get to but you're glad she's talking to you about them anyway.
it seems that the intent in most of these writings is really just to share her joy in literature, so it's so fun to listen (it really feels like you just Listen to her talk). there's plenty of text in each page but you go through them smoothly, again thanks to her style. if more lit. majors elaborate on their fields of interest as passionately, practical and sincere as done here, more people would realize again what makes reading and writing so great.
#bookstagram #bookreview
ofc i started with the ones I'm most interested in. her discussions on her writing processes and inspirations, how she deliberates on sentence structures and editing, her favorite authors and works (she is a fan of the naturally clever, yet captivating though almost unperformative). what's very admirable about the essays here is the kindness and humor by which she walks you through her observations. it's very thoughtful and not in the usual, complicated and overtechnical style you might expect from essays on great writers. you understand exactly what she means and you get so much more for it.
i ended up reading her discussions of other authors too, which i mostly haven't heard before. a lot of these give the reader that sensation one gets from their teacher when most students have left the room but you ask a small question after class and end up getting a bunch of obscure art and book recommendations you know you probably won't ever get to but you're glad she's talking to you about them anyway.
it seems that the intent in most of these writings is really just to share her joy in literature, so it's so fun to listen (it really feels like you just Listen to her talk). there's plenty of text in each page but you go through them smoothly, again thanks to her style. if more lit. majors elaborate on their fields of interest as passionately, practical and sincere as done here, more people would realize again what makes reading and writing so great.
#bookstagram #bookreview
February 17, 2021
These were delightful. There is nothing ostentatious; there is no single essay, idea, or story that will necessarily stick in your mind; I have no real "takeaways" -- rather, this is a book of an understated but brilliant style; the flow of Davis' writing and the range of her observational capacities make every page a pleasure. Whenever possible, attention is drawn to the mechanics of writing: what goes into good style in poetry, short stories, non-fiction, emails, and all kinds of writing is commented upon with clarity, and shown by example through Davis' own writing. Her ability to modulate the complexity of her sentence structures and move from florid, literary language to sparse, Hemingway-ish journalistic catalogues is exceptional. I really enjoyed all of her commentary and thoughts on poetry. Most of all I think I enjoy how personal these essays feel: Davis is always qualifying the certainty of her own thoughts, letting you in on what goes into her judgments of taste, and making you feel like you're reading a diary, even when the piece in question is an essay commissioned for a publication. This book is a borderline five/four stars because it lacks momentum -- being a disparate collection of essays -- and doesn't wow in any one way. But it is a joy to read and the rare book that makes you feel like you are learning how to write as you read.
April 23, 2023
I picked this up on vacation, feeling drawn to the bright green cover and the desire to always get around to Lydia Davis, hoping that an anthology would give me an overall sense of her style. I was surprised by how much I loved the subjects of many of these essays - including her self-proclaimed do’s & donts of the writing practice, reviews of niche artists, writers, and photography (the piece on Madam Bovary and Flaubert’s process made me want to go pick it up immediately); critical examinations of the construction of key phrases in the Bible, including one I’ve always been drawn to: ‘in the valley of the shadow of death’ ; and an essay chronicling the construction of a single five-line poem, including all her revisions and justifications for the subsequent finished piece. There was a tone throughout of high, high ego, which put me off a bit, but honestly it was hard to tell if she was just speaking from experience and a deep insider knowledge of her work, the publishing world, academia, and so on. I was really blown away, and now am a bit intimidated to start exploring her fiction, if her nonfic is this potent.
February 25, 2021
This was so extraordinary. The essays on revising her work, as well as the close readings of small and perfectly formed passages from other writers, have such a penetrating and careful discussion of what makes for good and lively writing. It is so nice to see how Lydia Davis revises and weighs her words.
The essay on Flaubert (and Flaubert’s innovative use of l’imparfait) finally convinced me to practice my high school French again, something I haven’t felt a sincere urge to do for years!
Strongly recommend for anyone who wants to be pleasantly and energizingly immersed in good writing, good writing about writing, and formally experimental and intriguing essays.
The essay on Flaubert (and Flaubert’s innovative use of l’imparfait) finally convinced me to practice my high school French again, something I haven’t felt a sincere urge to do for years!
Strongly recommend for anyone who wants to be pleasantly and energizingly immersed in good writing, good writing about writing, and formally experimental and intriguing essays.
November 8, 2025
Lydia Davis's "Essays One" is a collection of her non-fiction writing that doesn't follow a single story, but is moved forward by her intense curiosity about how language and stories work. In it, she does things like carefully dissect the grammar in a novel, share her very specific methods for translating from French, and explain her own approach to writing her famous, very short stories. What moves the book is not a plot, but the reader's journey into seeing the world through Davis's sharp, observant eyes, learning to pay closer attention to the words we read and write every day.
December 8, 2025
lydia davis is my favourite writer of writings, although i have never finished any of her books. i always get glutted down by the magnificence of her tiny paragraphs, some so short i have to spend time thinking, why did she write this like this as this is?? oh i see!
this is another one i did not read front to back - just the essays on the craft of writing, on note books, revision and sentence construction, which have made me feel rejuvenated!
this is another one i did not read front to back - just the essays on the craft of writing, on note books, revision and sentence construction, which have made me feel rejuvenated!
December 18, 2021
Great thought-provoking essays with the dry and self-doubting wit that I love in Davis. Mostly about writers, writing, language, and translation but with many other topics too. A few essays were a little too deeply literary for me to really comprehend , but even those felt good to follow along with in a loose way. My favorite essay was the last in the book, about memory, called “Remember the Van Wegenens.”
April 28, 2022
exquisite except the essay on old dutch fashion was boring and the little lists on what makes a good writer a bit gatekeepy lydia!!! (e.g. if you cannot discern whether any given english word is germanic or latinate, you suck at writing)!!!! good transit read. alan cote essay was beautiful. engaging even where i hadn't read the referenced text.
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