Point and Line

by Thalia Field

The new book spanning the genres of poetry, fiction, and theater, by the highly-acclaimed Thalia Field. The wonderful writings in Thalia Field's long-awaited new book Point and Line deny categorization, they are "nicheless." Perhaps describable as "epic poetries," these riveting pieces represent a confluence of genres in which Thalia Field has been involved over the course of her fiction, theater, and poetry. Written from a constructivist, post-genre sensibility, they elude classification, and present the author's concern with clarity in a world that resists it. For instance, in "Hours" and "Setting, the Table," Field uses indeterminate performance techniques to emphasize the categorical/conceptual nature of thought. Other pieces use generative schemes, portraits of mental shapes, which create meaning out of noise. Visually, each chapter is captivating, showing the author's need for shapes and colors in her work, her fascination with the contours of speech.

Genres: Poetry, Fiction, Womens

144 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Thalia Field was born in Chicago in 1966. After attending lycée in France, she graduated with honors from Brown University. She has three books of experimental writing/prose poetry published with New Directions: Point and Line (2000), Incarnate: Story Material (2004), and Bird Lovers, Backyard (2009). A novel, ULULU (Clown Shrapnel) was published by Coffee House Press in 2008. Field's writing has appeared in numerous journals and anthologies including Chicago Review, Ploughshares, Fence, Theater, Central Park, Chain, and Conjunctions, where she served as editor from 1995-1999. Before joining the faculty at Brown University, where she currently teaches experimental fiction and performance, Field taught at Bard College and at the Writing and Poetics program at Naropa University.

Reviews

[Nathan "N.R." Gaddis]

Utterly other discourse.

"The century opens and we dream of a new American fiction: singular, uncompromising, eccentric, audacious, various, radiantly intelligent, beautiful in ways we can scarcely imagine. Consider Thalia Field's extraordinary Point and Line to be the first book of this new time and space." --Carole Maso

don't wring your hands about how to classify this stuff it's all the barthelme stuff i think the stuff we know as 'short fiction' and in that category that classification that box that pigeonhole we can stuff absolutely anything including even and up to that which is the utterlyotherdiscourse and there's a piece in here called impotence of first lines which should be a favorite for all of you and its presented in the form of an index which should make you go hogwild with what is possible and theres another piece in here called outline, in mind which is a ToC which should also make you go hogwild with what is possible even if it's just so damn simple a thing to do like when folks use that pub'ing page at the beginning of their books to make some kind of statement or something maybe about how all similarity to the living and dead is a mere coincidence and if you mistake the living and the dead with the fictional maybe your not too bright and maybe you should read something else instead. you know what else is utterly other discourse? dr suess is and maybe its just because the discourse of children is so utterly other like how you have to become as a child to read the wake and maybe too you have to become as a child to read something like thalia field because as an adult your all too wrapped up in secondary (sexual?) characteristics like plot/character/etc all those enemies of fiction which are all of secondary importance when you really get down to it what constitutes fiction is language and language should be free and maybe what is mostmost of the nature of utterly other discourse is the discourse of freedom because when it is exercised it is no longer recognized by you know those types locked into their place within the patriarchy and the matrix and things of this nature. utterly other discourse, an indictment.

[Visha · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think that if I continue to grow as a writer and reader, I will continue to find news ways to enjoy this book.

This is one of those lyric essay books; picked it out from a recommended reading list from Sarah Messer, and was glad I bought it. Rather than reading it front to back, just pick and chose. Thalia Field is highly experimental, pulling from a motley assortment of writing and media to create her own work. This one is far easier to read than ULULU: Clown Shrapnel, a "performance novel"; one of her latest works.

[Brandon · Rating 5 out of 5]

‘Walking’ followed by ‘Hours’: two of the more original and fantastic reading experiences I’ve had, wisdom permeating every line (and, well, point)…and as a whole, few authors span such a wide body of knowledge with performative showing…fundamental, philosophical concepts of math, logic, science, living interwoven into language and art, expressing a mind open to making the necessary connections to further grasp existence in the limit at a neighborhood of a point and the continuity of a line and the space of their maps.

[Luis Correa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Funny, confounding, eye-opening. Not all sections of the book are created equally, but the ones that shine, are transcendent. I wondered what the value of a book is as simply an exploration of narrative form and sentence structure, but it makes sense as it progresses. Everything can be broken down and reshuffled, especially perception.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This might be the first book I encountered where multiple forms felt possible.

[rachel misfiticus]

I have given up! I will not read this from front to back. It is something I will finish gradually and not in order.