Literature: A Portable Anthology

by Janet E. Gardner (Editor), Beverly Lawn, Jack Ridl

With a handy size and a very affordable price, this collection offers a well-balanced selection of classic and contemporary literature €” 40 stories, 200 poems, 9 plays €” for the introductory literature course. The literature is chronologically arranged by genre and supported by informative and concise editorial matter, including a complete guide to writing about literature at the back of the book. This volume in Bedford/St. Martin€™s popular series of Portable Anthologies and Guides offers the series€™ trademark combination of high quality and great value.

Genres: Poetry, Fiction, Literature, Classics, Anthologies, Textbooks

1480 pages, Paperback

Published December 8, 2003

Reviews

[Courtney Watson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was given this anthology at the CCCC conference book fair by a textbook rep, and while I generally disapprove of the racket that is the college textbook publishing industry, I have to admit that there's a lot to like about this book. It's comprehensive, thoughtfully structured, and the table of contents reads like a greatest hits of Western literature. There are 40 short stories, 200 poems, and 9 plays; I especially appreciated the short story section because it includes a range of really wonderful short stories that aren't often anthologized, as well as the gold standards. A few favorites of mine are Chekhov's "The Blunder," Joyce's "Araby," and Cather's "Paul's Case." I also love Gabriel Garcia Marquez's "A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings," wherein an angel falls to earth in the author's mythical Macondo. This collection also offers a great refresher for anyone preparing for modernist/post-modernist/contemporary lit comprehensive exams.

[Carl Leibniz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Used this handy little book for my university English II (introduction to literature) class. It is filled with many short stories and poems, making it great to assign overnight reading assignments which could then be analyzed in class. I enjoyed more talking about the meaning of stories and poems with our professor, than reading the text for the sake of reading it!

[Zachariah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Covered more material in this book than I ever thought possible. Save a few plays and shorts stories I'm pretty much finished. Also seems like no matter what I read by Faulkner, I just don't like his stuff.

[Sarah Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the anthology I used with my seniors this year. I liked it. I ended up supplementing with other poems and texts, but that would happen with any collection. My favorites in here included Kafka's Metamorphosis and Chopin's "Story of an Hour."

[B.J. Neblett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Satisfyingly finished as much as you can ever be finished with such a wonderful collection. I am sure I wIll return to it again... and again...
BJ

[Jack Herbert Christal Gattanella · Rating 4 out of 5]

4th edition. First time using it for my English Literature class and it worked out well more or less.