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The Red Convertible: Selected and New Stories, 1978-2008
From New York Times bestselling author Louise Erdrich, fresh off her acclaimed Pulitzer-Prize finalist The Plague of Doves, comes The Red Convertible, a stunning collection of short stories selected by the author herself from over three decades of work. A veritable masterclass in the art of short fiction, The Red Convertible features 31 previously published stories and 5 never-before-published pieces. Presented in one collection for the first time, the stories of The Red Convertible cement Louise Erdich’s position in the pantheon of consummate, innovative writers of the American short story alongside such luminaries as Flannery O’Connor and Charles Baxter.
512 pages, Hardcover
First published January 6, 2009
About the author
Louise Erdrich
130 books13k followersLouise Erdrich is one of the most gifted, prolific, and challenging of American novelists. Her fiction reflects aspects of her mixed heritage: German through her father, and French and Ojibwa through her mother. She is the author of many novels, the first of which, Love Medicine, won the National Book Critics Circle Award and the last of which, The Round House, won the National Book Award for Fiction in 2012. She lives in Minnesota.
source: Amazon
source: Amazon
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 160 reviews
January 1, 2026
100000/5. rtc
July 27, 2016
The Red Convertible was an highly enjoyable collection of short stories. It is a tad long--consisting of 36 stories, but it is worth the effort. I do recommend this collection with a warning though. If you intend to read any of her early novels, especially Love Medicine or The Beet Queen, you are probably better off either delaying your read of this collection, or skipping the first ten stories. All of theses stories are good, but as these ten stories became five chapters in each of Love Medicine and The Beet Queen respectively, if you read this first, you will have a fair amount of knowledge going into either of these novels. Erdrich's stories are also closely related; those ten were not the only ones that existed in continuity with one another and with other stories in the collection, which, while enjoyable, can get frustrating as it sends you skittering back a few stories to find out whether or not you are supposed to already know the protagonist or the narrator of this particular story.
Erdrich deals, first and foremost, with the experience of Native American life, particularly the experience of the Ojibwe people (of whom she is a member). Most of the stories in the collection have Native protagonists and many deal very closely with their experiences as they are shaped by the experience of being Native American. Many of the remaining tales deal with the experience of German and Scandanavian immigrants to the northern Midwest--also shaped by Erdrich's own personal world. The stories are strong and often have feminist tones to their interpretations of these sets of experience (although Erdrich is not afraid to have stories that do not fit a neat narrative of what her goals as an author might be). Erdrich also makes use of elements of magical realism (reluctant as I am to use the term). Her characters live in a world full of ghosts and spirits and strange, conventionally unexplainable phenomena. I am reluctant to use the term, because, although it is descriptively correct, these elements in the stories are often (but not always) deeply entrenched in Native American religious practice and belief. As such, while Erdrich is sometimes associated (and for good reason, looking at the details of these stories) the tone is often such a combination of reverence and acceptance that I am reluctant to even firmly term these elements "fantastical" despite the fact that I would do so if given them in a slightly different context. In terms of individual stories, my favorites were the five that became part of The Beet Queen, "Fleur", "The Leap", "Saint Marie", "Fuck With Kayla and You Die", "Anna", (oddly enough) "Le Mooz", "Shamengwa", "The Shawl", "The Butcher's Wife", and "The Painted Drum".
Erdrich's writing is direct and readable, sometimes even brutal, as in this passage in "Anna":
Erdrich deals, first and foremost, with the experience of Native American life, particularly the experience of the Ojibwe people (of whom she is a member). Most of the stories in the collection have Native protagonists and many deal very closely with their experiences as they are shaped by the experience of being Native American. Many of the remaining tales deal with the experience of German and Scandanavian immigrants to the northern Midwest--also shaped by Erdrich's own personal world. The stories are strong and often have feminist tones to their interpretations of these sets of experience (although Erdrich is not afraid to have stories that do not fit a neat narrative of what her goals as an author might be). Erdrich also makes use of elements of magical realism (reluctant as I am to use the term). Her characters live in a world full of ghosts and spirits and strange, conventionally unexplainable phenomena. I am reluctant to use the term, because, although it is descriptively correct, these elements in the stories are often (but not always) deeply entrenched in Native American religious practice and belief. As such, while Erdrich is sometimes associated (and for good reason, looking at the details of these stories) the tone is often such a combination of reverence and acceptance that I am reluctant to even firmly term these elements "fantastical" despite the fact that I would do so if given them in a slightly different context. In terms of individual stories, my favorites were the five that became part of The Beet Queen, "Fleur", "The Leap", "Saint Marie", "Fuck With Kayla and You Die", "Anna", (oddly enough) "Le Mooz", "Shamengwa", "The Shawl", "The Butcher's Wife", and "The Painted Drum".
Erdrich's writing is direct and readable, sometimes even brutal, as in this passage in "Anna":
I began to feel sorry not for Anna but for this creature that will turn into a baby and then a child who will ave er for a mother. I know that somehow Anna will find a way to do just what she wants to do, whether or not it's good for the baby. It also occurs to me that the only reason Anna stays friendly with me is that I have never gotten in her way. Others who were friends with her were pushed aside if they had something she wanted--a job, a man, even money. The people she likes the least are thee people she owes the most. As I've never had money, man, or enviable job, I've kept my place in her life. Which is what? As I sit there watching her mouth move I understand that I do have a place, or a purpose, and it is this: I am supposed to see Anna as she really is.Each story combines this sort of emotional intensity with fluid writing making the elements that seem less easily "realistic" slide even more readily into the fabric of Erdrich's richly detailed world.
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September 28, 2017I admit I am biased when it comes to Louise Erdrich. As one of my all-time favorite authors I really believe she's one of the best contemporary American writers. The narratives she creates and the stories she weaves are realistic and magical, emotional and raw, upsetting and uplifting all at the same time. I have rarely seen such perfect combination of humor and sadness within the same page.
In this collection of short stories, you can find the essence of her writing and the key to most of her main body of work. These short stories are the elements that build up the core of most of her novels, as she herself puts it in the foreword, and while reading them you can really notice that most of these stories are chapters from some of her novels, or stories of the characters you can find in them. All of them (except for the last few) have in some form already appeared as main stories or topics in her books, and while in those books they are developed further and more elaborate, in this short story collection they are a concentrate, a concoction - short, concise, and strong. If you would like to experience the essence of Louise Erdrich's writing, then this collection if just the book for you.
On a more personal note, some of these stories simply made me sigh and clasp the book to my chest while reading. This book contains many favorite stories that will haunt me for a long time and I am very happy that I can always just pull it off the shelf and dive into them again and again every time I just feel like it. To name just a few - "Saint Marie", "Snares", "Fleur", "The Leap", "The Fat Man's Race", "Father's Milk", "The Gravitron", "History of the Puyats", "Naked Woman Playing Chopin", "Shamengwa", "The Shawl".
In this collection of short stories, you can find the essence of her writing and the key to most of her main body of work. These short stories are the elements that build up the core of most of her novels, as she herself puts it in the foreword, and while reading them you can really notice that most of these stories are chapters from some of her novels, or stories of the characters you can find in them. All of them (except for the last few) have in some form already appeared as main stories or topics in her books, and while in those books they are developed further and more elaborate, in this short story collection they are a concentrate, a concoction - short, concise, and strong. If you would like to experience the essence of Louise Erdrich's writing, then this collection if just the book for you.
On a more personal note, some of these stories simply made me sigh and clasp the book to my chest while reading. This book contains many favorite stories that will haunt me for a long time and I am very happy that I can always just pull it off the shelf and dive into them again and again every time I just feel like it. To name just a few - "Saint Marie", "Snares", "Fleur", "The Leap", "The Fat Man's Race", "Father's Milk", "The Gravitron", "History of the Puyats", "Naked Woman Playing Chopin", "Shamengwa", "The Shawl".
January 26, 2013
THE RED CONVERTIBLE is a wonderful book. It is a book for writers to savor and readers to enjoy. The simple elegance of Erdrich's prose is displayed over and over again in these marvelous pieces of short fiction, each one quite different than the other, a sweeping range of narrators, heroes, heroines, and anti-heroes-heroines. Some of the short pieces developed into one or another of the astonishing novels that later appeared. I especially enjoy "LE MOOZ", and piece about the woman who played the piano naked, both of which, in somewhat modified form, became seminal pieces of my favorite Erdrich novel, "THE LAST REPORT OF THE MIRACLES AT LITTLE NO HORSE". I also recognized bits and pieces of "TALES OF BURNING LOVE", "THE MASTER BUTCHER'S SINGING CLUB", "THE BINGO PALACE", "LOVE MEDICINE". . .I think you get the idea.
I do not share her Objibwa heritage, but I do share with her a deep grounding in North Dakota. She has not only become my favorite Dakota writer, but one of my favorite writers of all time. I haven't read "ROUND HOUSE", although it is on my shelf and I will soon. It was about time she won the National Book Award. She has done for the Objibwa Nation and for North Dakota what Flannery O'Conner did for Alabama and the Deep South. Their prose is similar in its simplicity, their stories in their inspired tales. Each story is peculiar each, and none of those stories could have been written by anyone other than their authors.
That said, my really favorite Erdrich piece is "CONVERSION", which is buried in the pages of "DAY IN, DAY OUT: Women's Lives in North Dakota", compiled and edited by Bjorn Benson, Elizabeth Hampston, and Kathryn Sweney at the University of North Dakota, published in 1988 for the celebration of North Dakota's Centennial year of 1989. That short writing is accompanied by a full page photography of high school senior, Louise Erdrich, of Wahpeton, North Dakota, elegantly dressed, elbow-length white gloved hands elevated in surprise as tears fall from her eyes and the crown of homecoming Queen of the Wops is place on her head.
I do not share her Objibwa heritage, but I do share with her a deep grounding in North Dakota. She has not only become my favorite Dakota writer, but one of my favorite writers of all time. I haven't read "ROUND HOUSE", although it is on my shelf and I will soon. It was about time she won the National Book Award. She has done for the Objibwa Nation and for North Dakota what Flannery O'Conner did for Alabama and the Deep South. Their prose is similar in its simplicity, their stories in their inspired tales. Each story is peculiar each, and none of those stories could have been written by anyone other than their authors.
That said, my really favorite Erdrich piece is "CONVERSION", which is buried in the pages of "DAY IN, DAY OUT: Women's Lives in North Dakota", compiled and edited by Bjorn Benson, Elizabeth Hampston, and Kathryn Sweney at the University of North Dakota, published in 1988 for the celebration of North Dakota's Centennial year of 1989. That short writing is accompanied by a full page photography of high school senior, Louise Erdrich, of Wahpeton, North Dakota, elegantly dressed, elbow-length white gloved hands elevated in surprise as tears fall from her eyes and the crown of homecoming Queen of the Wops is place on her head.
October 27, 2022
The very comprehensive nature of this collection is both a strength and a weakness. The strength is that anyone who likes short stories will find delights, such as fascinating characters, unusual twists on ordinary events, and satisfying endings. The weakness is that you have to read through many tales that won’t be as satisfying or personal favorites, though I believe all are excellent examples of the genre. Erdrich is one of the contemporary masters of the short story.
May 31, 2021
Dernière lecture pour le challenge et quel plaisir de retrouver les mots de Louise Erdrich.
Chronique à rédiger rapidement !
Chronique à rédiger rapidement !
November 23, 2019
Erdrich is one of my favorite writers, and in Red Convertible the reader gets the flavor of her writing over the past thirty years. Erdrich makes me laugh and cry (sometimes at the very same time) , and then when I have wiped my eyes, I come back for more. She says more in a single sentence than most authors say in a chapter. Her prose is to be savored and reread.
February 11, 2009
Vintage, brilliant career. Erdrich is the best woman writer in America today. Many seminal stories...some that became wonderful novels. It was the perfect Oregon vacation book to be read and savored in small doses.
November 12, 2022
(read for uni)
May 5, 2022
I didn’t know Louise Erdrich wrote short stories but of course she does. Picked up off the library impulse check out shelf. What a delight.
She’s such a master. Maybe because I’ve read several of her novels and fully trust she’ll take me somewhere I want to go. But each story spawns an instantaneous world so effortlessly. Many are pre- her novels, so share the same space and some characters, and many of those novels I haven’t read yet are on my to-read list now. Thoroughly enjoyed this collection and my only complaint is that it spans 30 years so there may never be another collection like it.
She’s such a master. Maybe because I’ve read several of her novels and fully trust she’ll take me somewhere I want to go. But each story spawns an instantaneous world so effortlessly. Many are pre- her novels, so share the same space and some characters, and many of those novels I haven’t read yet are on my to-read list now. Thoroughly enjoyed this collection and my only complaint is that it spans 30 years so there may never be another collection like it.
February 16, 2018
I have read most of Ms Erdrich's books and have liked them all with some being exceptional
The Red Convertible is a collection of short stories-some from her novels and most published in various publications. I was disappointed in this collection however. It took a long time to read because many of the stories didn't grab me. A few were enjoyable but not her usual excellent writing.
The Red Convertible is a collection of short stories-some from her novels and most published in various publications. I was disappointed in this collection however. It took a long time to read because many of the stories didn't grab me. A few were enjoyable but not her usual excellent writing.
December 11, 2023
I will be rereading the stories in this book for years to come. What a great collection of short stories.
May 19, 2009
phew. finally done with this one! So good writing sometimes gets wearisome. I like Louise Erdrich a bunch but found this book to be a challenge. I think that part of it was the weird confusion of stories that were familiar from being part of other books of hers and the way most of the stories had a certain similarity of place and characters that made me Want to connect them into a novel even if they were not Really connected. On top of that, some of them Were connected in actuality. I felt like I needed a guide book to the book.
I think that one of things I like about her novels is the way they are made of stories within the story and the way those stories cross through time and character emphasis. Works great in a novel.
All that said, most of the stories themselves were thought provoking and intriguing.
I think that one of things I like about her novels is the way they are made of stories within the story and the way those stories cross through time and character emphasis. Works great in a novel.
All that said, most of the stories themselves were thought provoking and intriguing.
June 22, 2009
I am a Louise Erdrich fan and have read most of her books. This book however weighed me down and I was anxious to finish it. The writing was excellent as always but the stories were so powerful and filled with tragedy and trouble that I found them hard to read: maybe because the stories are compressed as opposed to her novels where the heavy parts aren't so concentrated.
My favorite story was "A Wedge of Shade".
"I drag more pillows down from the other rooms upstairs. There is no question of attempting the bedrooms, the stifling beds. And so, in the dark, I hold hands with Gerry as he settles down between my mother and me. He is huge as a hill between the two of us, solid in the beating wind."
My favorite story was "A Wedge of Shade".
"I drag more pillows down from the other rooms upstairs. There is no question of attempting the bedrooms, the stifling beds. And so, in the dark, I hold hands with Gerry as he settles down between my mother and me. He is huge as a hill between the two of us, solid in the beating wind."
December 25, 2015
One of my favorite short stories that I had to read for my English Literature class, and thanks to this novel I got an 85 for my test! I love The Red Convertible because of the simplicity of the story and because of its themes. I love the symbolism and also because of this story, I finally get to hear my teacher swear in class. Ain't that a good moment? And a great story.
March 9, 2021
"Naked Woman Playing Chopin" is perhaps the finest short story I have ever read, and "Le Mooz" made me laugh until I cried. If this collection were only those two stories I would still give it five stars.
December 14, 2021
Louise Erdrich is a member of the Turtle Mountain brand of Chippewa in North Dakota. The culture and circumstances of Native Americans form the backdrop of her novels as well as this collection, although the stories are universal. She was awarded the Pulitzer prize for 20121 for her novel "The Night Watchman", which is based on the life of her maternal grandfather. Erdrich is the most wonderful storyteller, and I have read and enjoyed her books for decades. And some of the flawed, complicated but lovely characters from her novels turn up again in The Red Convertible, which is a bonus.
But much as I love Erdrich's books, I also love short stories in general. Therefore, I am sorry to say that these did not meet my expectations, although I admit that my expectations were high. In my opinion, a good short story should not tell all, but leave something up to the reader's imagination. Preferably, it should also have some kind of twist or surprise at the end, which makes you look at the story from an unexpected pespective. In this collection most of the stories are very detailed and they end rather abruptly. It could be that Erdrich doesn't quite master the special form of short stories, or perhaps this form is not right for what she wants to say.
I would recommend that you choose one of Erdrich's great novels instead of this collection.
But much as I love Erdrich's books, I also love short stories in general. Therefore, I am sorry to say that these did not meet my expectations, although I admit that my expectations were high. In my opinion, a good short story should not tell all, but leave something up to the reader's imagination. Preferably, it should also have some kind of twist or surprise at the end, which makes you look at the story from an unexpected pespective. In this collection most of the stories are very detailed and they end rather abruptly. It could be that Erdrich doesn't quite master the special form of short stories, or perhaps this form is not right for what she wants to say.
I would recommend that you choose one of Erdrich's great novels instead of this collection.
March 17, 2019
This mammoth book collects 40 short stories from one of my all-time favorite novelists. I'd never encountered her short fiction before, though several of these stories were re-worked into her novels, and several other stories include characters from her longer works. She is every bit as masterful at detailing small slices of life as she is at the much bigger pictures she paints in the other books. These stories were written between 1978 and 2008, but aside from a few which are set in contemporary times, you can't tell which came when. Erdrich seems to have emerged fully formed as a writer with sharp vision, with insight into people of all sorts, with an intimate knowledge of Chippewa and German-American culture, with a wicked sense of humor and a cultivated sense of tragedy.
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October 30, 2024preface: only read the red convertible (for class), will get around to reading all the other stories.
what a story omg. god that made me so melancholy for some reason. something about losing your carefree, youthful self to trauma and war. but, even worse, to watch someone you love go through this experience. the fact that the whole story is told through lyman's perspective makes that heartbreak even more palpable. i can't imagine it, i can't imagine seeing my brother become a ghost of himself and now all that is left is his memory; the memory of the boy with the crazed laugh, the boy who was always by my side. and one day we leave town and we fight and brawl just like we used to, and for a moment, i think my brother is back and then he is lost to me. and we can never be young again.
what a story omg. god that made me so melancholy for some reason. something about losing your carefree, youthful self to trauma and war. but, even worse, to watch someone you love go through this experience. the fact that the whole story is told through lyman's perspective makes that heartbreak even more palpable. i can't imagine it, i can't imagine seeing my brother become a ghost of himself and now all that is left is his memory; the memory of the boy with the crazed laugh, the boy who was always by my side. and one day we leave town and we fight and brawl just like we used to, and for a moment, i think my brother is back and then he is lost to me. and we can never be young again.
August 17, 2018
I read the story the red convertible, and it broke my heart. I actually had to read the story twice to understand it completely. I didn't know the meaning of post-traumatic stress disorder before this story, I got to know how dangerous it can get. It was really heartbreaking to witness the growing distance between the two brothers. It was sadder to see how hard Lyman was trying to fix the relationship but they all failed to see that Henry needed professional help. They avoided getting help just so they could protect their reputation from the society. It really is a sad story because I believe that Henry could have been saved if they seek help from the professionals.
December 27, 2023
It's always an adventure with Erdrich. Her characters live at the end of the world, geographically and socio-economicly. A single story might contain everything: hope, disappointment, contentment, magical realism, craziness, desperation, living for the moment, sensualism. I like how characters and towns repeat through the stories but aren't neatly bookends.
" I liked it out there in all that dry space.. It was restful, a comfort to let my brain wander across the horizontal mystery where sky meets earth.... Earth and sky touch everywhere and nowhere, like sex between two strangers."
" I liked it out there in all that dry space.. It was restful, a comfort to let my brain wander across the horizontal mystery where sky meets earth.... Earth and sky touch everywhere and nowhere, like sex between two strangers."
June 5, 2020
2.5/5.0
La verdad son relatos que en realidad tienen un hilo conductor desde el primero hasta el último porque se utilizan personajes que ya se han mencionado, sin embargo, considero que los finales de cada uno de ellos son muy poco explotados y simples. Al inicio uno considera que se encontrará con una gran historia pero sencillamente mientras avanza por todo el libro no hay nada nuevo y uno se encuentra con más de lo mismo. Se hace muy monótono y desesperante.
La verdad son relatos que en realidad tienen un hilo conductor desde el primero hasta el último porque se utilizan personajes que ya se han mencionado, sin embargo, considero que los finales de cada uno de ellos son muy poco explotados y simples. Al inicio uno considera que se encontrará con una gran historia pero sencillamente mientras avanza por todo el libro no hay nada nuevo y uno se encuentra con más de lo mismo. Se hace muy monótono y desesperante.
July 31, 2020
Who doesn’t love a good Erdrich book? I kept this one down at the store and tried to read in the afternoon when traffic was a little slower. Short stories, some I had read before, most I hadn’t. Erdrich is such a good storyteller that as soon as the story is done, I wanted more. Hence....the next book I’m reading is The Beet Queen that continues the story of Karl and Mary Adare.
March 19, 2023
Erdrich is a talented writer. Her pacing keeps stories moving, never stalling with description. Her condensed language catches you off guard sometimes with the understatement. Only a few were not to my taste, but most left me very satisfied.
And I love a little magical realism which plays well with her tales.
And I love a little magical realism which plays well with her tales.
March 20, 2023
My first book by this author. I liked knowing I was reading stories about Native Americans by someone who actually lived and knew what she's writing about. I also appreciated that every story wasn't horribly depressing, which I'll admit I expected them to be. Of course I liked some of the stories better than others, but they were well written and I intend to read one of her novels soon.
June 12, 2023
Don't get me wrong, there are a TON of 5 star stories in here that I was so surprised and mesmerized by. But there were also a handful of stories that I didn't totally love. If I could do 4.85 I definitely would, I just can't give it a perfect score. Erdrich is definitely someone I want to read more of though!
May 29, 2017
One of the best short story collections I have ever read! Absolutely loved it! I love how Erdrich presents the characters & how she makes you laugh (out loud) and cry and react to the stories. I felt like I was part of the story.
September 22, 2018
Savored this one over 5 months. What a breadth of stories, from fantasy to ancient to modern, some in the same universe, others completely separate, exploring themes universal like love and family and particular to the Native American community.
December 27, 2018
This collection was my introduction to Louise Erdrich. The only reason it didn't get five stars (I would give 4.5 if I could) was because I found some of the stories to meander a bit. I am looking forward to reading her novels.
February 12, 2019
Fuck With Kayla and You Die was my favorite story. I love how she implements Native Americans or the woes of Native's into every story. You learn a lot while being engaged in the character's story, which I love.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 160 reviews