Phantomwise: 1972

by Joyce Carol Oates

Unknown Binding

First published September 1, 2017

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

[Fa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phantomwise elicited a deeply visceral reaction in me. I was terrified for Alyce's safety throughout, watching her repeatedly fall into the clutches of a predator, only to narrowly escape and then plunge back into the vicious cycle of seeking affection and attention from men.
Simon Meech exuded a predatory aura. He embodies the archetypal arrogant man who believes he is exceptionally intelligent and successful, yet in reality, he’s just a loser with zero social skills and the empathy of a rock. I hate him so much. I was infuriated by how he managed to get his way in the end; even though it is sad and unfair, it keeps the story real as that is the reality of thousands of women and their abusers.
Phantomwise left me feeling cold and profoundly discouraged, but I loved/hated every time the author took the tension up a notch.

[Doris Powell · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book caught my attention. Alyce Urquhart had two men in her life. Simon, the father of her unborn child, hated her. Roland B__, her mentor, an elderly man, loved her and was prepared to take care of her and her child. They were extreme opposites as you can see. Simon thought Alyce was out to ruin his life (as a priest). Roland B__ thought only good thoughts of her. I found it hard to believe that Simon had found out about her unborn child. All of a sudden he appeared out of the blue spewing hatred towards Alyce. The ending was kind of wild and left open to interpretation.

[Sapphire Detective · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bleak as hell look at a young woman going through an unexpected pregnancy, and the unlikely relationships she forges for support. This was probably my second favorite story of Cardiff, by the Sea: Four Novellas of Suspense, even for how bleak it was. Fascinating character study.

My rating: 4/5
Would I own/re-read?: Probably not.
TW: Death, Abuse, Men Being Shitty, Pregnancy
Does the animal die?: No animals die in Phantomwise: 1972.

[Alexandra Medero · Rating 4 out of 5]

Crudo, lectura difícil de terminar, sabiendo como lo va a hacer y aún así buscando que termine de otra manera.