Robert Coover's Fable Land discussion

Here is the couch. Lie down and ask about, Which Coover should I begin with? Which Coover should I read next. This thread should become stuff'd with advice and opinion ; both good and bad, right and wrong.

I'll do my best here to create a standard "N.R."-style recommendation for those making early entry into Coover=Land.

For more or less conventional reading, without being threatened by heavy Cooverisms ::
The Origin of the Brunists
The Universal Baseball Association, Inc., J. Henry Waugh, Prop.

For the straight-to-the-top kind of readers ::
The Public Burning
The Adventures of Lucky Pierre: Directors’ Cut
John's Wife

For classic Coover fairy/fable/myth manipulation ::
Pricksongs and Descants
A Night at the Movies, Or, You Must Remember This: Fictions
A Child Again

For the short but sweet ::
Ghost Town (which has received a rather overwhelming reception here on goodreads)
Spanking the Maid
Briar Rose
Noir: A Novel

Hi, my real name's Geoff Wilt. The only Coover I've read is A Night At The Movies, Or, You Must Remember This- I thought it was pretty fantastic. Oh I've also read the first ten pages of Lucky Pierre, but I was in the middle of another book when I did this so I couldn't commit to the entire book just then, but I was really impressed and intrigued. So my next Coover is going to be either Lucky Pierre or The Public Burning but probably Lucky Pierre because I'm a pervert.

Unlike friend Geoff Wilt,I'm Not A Pervert– still I'm here to support a fellow Aquarian i.e. Mr.Coover not NR.

I've a couple of his books which I'll get to next yr,so far I've only read two of his shorts & they were both great!

Howdy y'all, I've only read a short in an anthology and since then he's been for me one of those oh-yeah-that-guy-I-should-get-around-to-his-stuff-one-day type of authors you come across all the time.

What would you recommend to a person who is a newbie yet is not afraid of heavy CooverIZM?

Gregsamsa wrote: "a newbie yet is not afraid of heavy CooverIZM? "

I'd recommend making the same mistake I did :: Pricksongs and Descants. But if you find yourself in one of those WTF-America? kind of moods, then definitely The Public Burning ; the only candidate for a better Nixon-fiction will be found on Futurama.

Mala wrote: "Unlike friend Geoff Wilt,I'm Not A Pervert– still I'm here to support a fellow Aquarian i.e. Mr.Coover not NR.

I've a couple of his books which I'll get to next yr,so far I've only read two of his..."

We are Aquarians THREE!

Nathan "N.R." wrote: "Gregsamsa wrote: "a newbie yet is not afraid of heavy CooverIZM? "

I'd recommend making the same mistake I did :: Pricksongs and Descants. But if you find yourself in one of those W..."

I second the suggestion of the Burning - it hovered somewhere between 4 and 5 stars for me, though my (few) issues were more taste/personal than any Coover-failings. Indeed, 'tis a bloody marvelous work, and one that has plenty of IMPORTANT THINGS still to say. Plus it is FUN and FUNNY.

Hi, my name is Anthony and I am a Coover virgin. I want to start reading his stuff from the beginning. I think I am going to shoot for reading a book of his a month and work through his oeuvre in chronological order. Pair him with Barth, maybe; that way I can really impress the ladies, you know what I'm saying?

I'll start off in The Public Burning, as I have the best luck with the initial plunges being of the monumental sort.

(It's also the only Coover I have added, but shhhhh.)

Aubrey wrote: "I'll start off in The Public Burning, as I have the best luck with the initial plunges being of the monumental sort.

(It's also the only Coover I have added, but shhhhh.)"

That one does sound like such an odd book. I lucked out and found a hardback for dirt cheap at a used bookstore. The dust jacket is a bit roughed-up but I suppose that's its job.

I've only read Ghost Town (the dollar bins at the Strand are magic) but I've a copy of Spanking the Maid around as well. Which come to think of it was also out of a bookstore dollar bin. Which I have pretty good luck with, but still two from one great author that way is pretty unusual.

HI,

I'm new to coover!

My next Coovers will be Noir: A Novel, The Public Burning, The Universal Baseball Association, Inc., J. Henry Waugh, Prop. and Pricksongs and Descants

I'm a big fan of postmodern/metafiction like the
The Erasers, The New York Trilogy and Pale Fire, so i'll probably start with Noir: A Novel

Also a Coover virgin. I will be reading The Public Burning next Fall with the Brain Pain group. I also have The Origin of the Brunists, which I'd like to read early next year before reading The Brunist Day of Wrath when it's released.

I have a copy of the Review of Contemporary Fiction from Spring 2012, which features Coover, but I'm waiting to read it after I'm under way with his work. I also picked up a copy of Nixonland: America's Second Civil War and the Divisive Legacy of Richard Nixon 1965-1972 as a general reference, not so much for The Public Burning, but for background reading of the time period.

Nate D wrote: "but still two from one great author that way is pretty unusual. "

If you haven't a copy yet, anticipate finding The Burning in that bin too. It's not unusual to find it not only in thrift shops but also in junk and antique shops which might stock a few stray dozen books. Strange the places you'll go, Burning.

Mekki wrote: "so i'll probably start with Noir: A Novel "

I think you will find that you have made a wise decision.

Jim wrote: "Also a Coover virgin."

From that RCF issue, read "Dampblack" along with The Origin of the Brunists ; it felt like a drop'd chapter. Or read it first ; it'll tear your guts just a little. For Nixon and The Burning, you'll want something from his VP=hood under Eisenhower and something about Julius and Ethel Rosenberg :: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julius_a...

No excuses! Stop being New to Bob!! Get on with the Next Coover!!!

Here's the newly released Coover-titles from Dzanc in newly polished electronical ebook editions ::
http://www.dzancbooks.org/blog/2014/4...

FINALLY! HOORAY!

Nathan "N.R." wrote: "No excuses! Stop being New to Bob!! Get on with the Next Coover!!!

Here's the newly released Coover-titles from Dzanc in newly polished electronical ebook editions ::
http://www.dzancbooks.org/b..."

That's great! I shd pick up a Coover again,soon.

Mala wrote: "That's great! I shd pick up a Coover again,soon. "

The Brunist pair seems to be especially in fashion this time of year.

Hello all,

I'm semi-new to Coover (and late to this party), having only devoured 'Origin of the Brunists' a few months ago and now making my merry way through "Wrath". I have managed to squeeze in a few places onto my shelves for a couple of his shorter ones to read later as well. Next though-Public Burning.

Russell wrote: "Hello all,

I'm semi-new to Coover (and late to this party), having only devoured 'Origin of the Brunists' a few months ago and now making my merry way through "Wrath". I have managed to squeeze i..."

Nice of you to drop by, Russell.

I'd say that Origin -> Wrath -> Burning will provide a nice path for you from the slightly 'realist' Coover to the total Carnival Coover! as Uncle Sam will induct you in The Burning. I'd suggest dipping into some of his fairytale stuff soon too, just for a taste of that side of the Coover palate. Er, just checked your shelves and you've read those New Yorker pieces (just wonderful!) ;; Pricksongs contains several classic Coover dances (The Babysitter, for instance, his most anthologized story).

Ramble on, nr. Well, and welcome and we look forward to hearing about your Coover impressions. (I think he's one of the Greats!)

Nathan "N.R." wrote: "Russell wrote: "Hello all,

I'm semi-new to Coover (and late to this party), having only devoured 'Origin of the Brunists' a few months ago and now making my merry way through "Wrath". I have mana..."

The New Yorker pieces were pretty hot indeed. Going for a Beer was something special. Will have to pick up Pricksongs soon then.

Hmmm... Amazon no longer offers the Dzanc Coovers. Neither does Kobo.

Actually, most Dzanc books seem to have become unavailable for Kindle.

Q. for anyone who has ordered ebooks directly from Dzanc: Is there Adobe DRM?

Amy wrote: "Hmmm... Amazon no longer offers the Dzanc Coovers. Neither does Kobo. "

Yes that is odd. Not sure what happened. I've not gotten any ebooks from Dzanc (or anyone!!) so I'm not sure what format they come in. Anyone?

Advertised as epub at Dzanc.... but still wondering if it's Adobe.

Fortunately, I did already take care of purchasing the books for which I didn't already have hardcover copies.

Amy wrote: "Advertised as epub at Dzanc.... but still wondering if it's Adobe."

I was gunna say I remember hearing something about multiple formats ; but don't recall precisely. Let us know -- and I've got an eCoover thread to help keep straight whatever we know :: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Nathan "N.R." - I'm asking for advice; good or bad, right or wrong. :)

I'll be wrapping up reading Gerald's Party tonight or tomorrow. I'll need to check what short stories I've missed.

I figure I'll take a break with something short-ish next: Hair o' the Chine.

So, that would leave John's Wife, and the Brunist books.

My thought is that I should read John's Wife first, and then do the Brunist books in order, to get the Alpha and the Omega (as we know for now) works.

Hoping to reach Coover fiction completionism this year - at long last, ha ha.

Amy wrote: "Hoping to reach Coover fiction completionism this year - at long last, ha ha. "

A worthy project!

a) Let us know what you think of Gerald's Party.
b) Hair o' the Chine almost doesn't exist ; something special!
c) John's Wife next is a great idea.
d) Brunists last is fine.
e) All Coover is good Coover!!
f) An excellent plan!

All this Cooverspeak is getting me all excited to pick up my next one - I am committed to finally reading Don Quixote as my next big read but would like to pepper it with a shorter Coover for an interlude. I am looking up at my shelf and see so many more Coovers to go - this makes me very happy.

Nathan "N.R." wrote: "Amy wrote: "Hoping to reach Coover fiction completionism this year - at long last, ha ha. "

A worthy project!

a) Let us know what you think of Gerald's Party.
"

I didn't love it. I didn't hate it. I felt like I wasn't in the right frame of mind for it.... if that makes sense.

Amy wrote: "I didn't love it. I didn't hate it. I felt like I wasn't in the right frame of mind for it.... if that makes sense."

Very much a frame of mind book to be sure. I've got an inexplicable soft=spot for it. Perhaps because I read it under the desert midnight skies?

Congratulations, Amy. You've my sympathies for that Gerald's Party book... Don't you believe NR on that — "under the desert midnight skies", read that as under the loony lunar spell...:p
John's Wife is up next for me. In fact, I can't wait for my currently-reading book to be over so I can begin it.
And what do you know, I have this New American Stories, plenty of new names here & then SURPRISE—
Going for a Beer is there!!!

Kathleen wrote: "My only experience with Coover so far is what I read from The New Yorker and knew I needed more so I went to Ken Sanders used bookstore in Salt Lake and picked up Pinocchio in Venice, John’s Wife, ..."

Pinocchio and John's Wife would be closer to what you've read from The New Yorker. Origin is a little more in the direction of what some might call a 'normal' novel. It is nonetheless veryvery good and works as prelude to his The Brunist Day of Wrath.

But first? I'd say, Pinocchio.

I adore John’s Wife.

If you want something short, Coover’s riffs on fables are fun. Stepmother and Briar Rose can each be read in a single, breezy sitting.

My 2019 goal is to tackle the two Brunists.

Kathleen wrote: "Will finish up The Broom of the System and start Pinocchio. "

btw, I found it helpful to read Carlo Collodi's Pinocchio first. As refresher ; especially if like me your main knowledge of it stems for TV or something.

It's been so long since I've dipped into Coover - this thread has inspired me yet again. Cracking open "Night at the Movies" right now over morning coffee. Cheers, everyone.