Gertrude Stein Books

This is a well written small book that explains things. The puzzle unexplained is why Gertrude stayed in an unpleasantly nazi occupied France and paled around with an obnoxious nazi in order to get favors. Its clear that Alice ruled the roost and didn't want to lose Gertrude. The author debunks Gertrude's unbearable stream-of-conscious form of writing rightly putting it in the class of the emperor's new clothes.

Oh my goodness .. if you've been 'enamored' of Gertrude & Alice for years & years, or are just discovering them .. this is THE story of their lives together. Grab this book before it goes out of print again !!

I am not a scholar and I am not sure that I would have the patience to read Gertrude "dans le texte". Yet I have a dilettant interest in these women of the first half of this century who seemed to have had a strong influence on the Arts and Litterature (Stein/Toklas, Cones, Sitwells...). I picked up this book by chance off the bookselves of my friends -- Liz and Jeff -- a rainy day by the Delaware River. I not only finished it off but enjoyed it tremenduously. I found the writting interesting, detailled (what a treat to get so many details of that era) and refreshing by its ease of access. Do read this book -- I am now onto other Stein/Toklas books (most certainly Alice's recipes).

One of the best dual-bios of these two ladies (and I've read this book both in German and English.) This book makes both of them very real, moving them beyond the literary/lesbian icons that they've become in the last 60+ years. Read this in conjunction with James Mellow's CHARMED CIRCLE and you'll be hooked both on Gertrude and Alice and the artistic era between the two World Wars!

Shaffer's stunner of an introduction, as well as the insight and organization of this book, made me see poetry in an entirely new light, as well as the brilliance of Lew Welch. Shaffer's work is extraordinary. I can't wait for the upcoming release of Shaffer's own work, PORTABLE PLANET. He is a very real talent!

This is by far Lew Welch's most intelligently written book and it was done as a graduation thesis for Reed College in 1950, when he was stil in his early 20's. This was an important time for Welch. He was still attempting to find his voice and was just then making his first contacts with William Carlos Williams. Later, when Welch became part of the Beat scene, he would look back at his own innocent days at Reed and try to recapture the excitement and importance of his explorations of Stein in his failed novel, I Leo. But this is not the voice of the hard-drinking, semi-messianic Lew that we find crowding out his talent in his later works; this is the voice of a subtle thinker saying (without the smoke and whistles of today's English departments) some important things about Stein. Considering the date, this is an amazing thesis. William Carlos Williams admitted that he had learned some important things from Lew's thesis, and it continues (now in book form competently edited by Eric Paul Shaffer--but please don't hand this perfomance to Shaffer--Lew Welch is clearly the star in this show) to remain of value for students of Stein's work. We only wish he could have continued to have written so lucidly and to have lived on to help us through some of the stranger developments of American criticism and poetry that now appear--unfortunately--to have become the norm.

This is an extraordinary book about the clarity of vision in both Stein's work and the work of Lew Welch--the often overlooked charismatic statesmen of the Beat poets. A penetrating look into the process of how are minds work, of how the creative process unfolds, and of how we create and disassemble our world. It reads like an intricate mystery novel, a precursor to Umberto Ecco's "The Name of the Rose." Lew Welch's power of insight is uncanny. Anyone interested in the "idea" of language and the tools of "seeing" should check this out. Highly recommended!!

Any one interested in the deeper mechanics of how our language makes meaning out of sound, and how sound itself is interesting into and unto itself should add this book to their collection. I have profitably reread Eric Paul Shaffer's introduction several times for his analysis of Welch's and Stein's interplay as artists and poets.

Simolke, Duane. "New Readings of Winesburg, Ohio: Stein, Gender, Isolation", toExcel, 1999.


Amos Lassen and Literary Pride

One of the topics that interested me greatly when I was in graduate school was Gertrude Stein and the theories of gender that we associated with her writings. I was mad for Gertrude Stein and my library of first editions of most of her work are somewhere that Katrina took them. Frankly I have been so busy that I have not thought about Stein for a while. In the process of reviewing I cane across Duane Simolke and it emails with him, I discovered that he had researched Stein and had published a book about his research. He was kind enough to send it to me.
His approach to Stein differed from mine but we both discovered some commonalities in reference to gender. Simolke's book deals primarily with the relationship between Stein and Sherwood Anderson and his analysis of "Winesburg, Ohio" relates to Stein and gender roles and gay subtext among other themes. "Winesburg, Ohio" was published in 1919and deal with the industrialization of the small town and how it affected the lives of the people. He shows the influence Stein had on Anderson's writing as well. We learn the motivation for the writing of the book as well of the homoeroticism of his other works. He gives us, basically, an outline for the writing of a short story.
Simolke brings fresh outlooks on the works he writes about. And as he explores the sexual subtext of Anderson's writings, some of you may be surprised at what he found. Within the sexual subtexts, there is no writing about sex per se but rather with human contact.
The book is refreshing, interesting and educating. I have always loved books that take on established works of literature and look at them with a new and different slant. As I read "Winesburg" the novel. I was amazed at how much I have missed. Its relevance is especially important today when we hear about the way immigrant workers are treated and we may compare that a bit to the way industrialism overtook America and changed the way we did everything. It is also interesting to note that this industrial takeover has been overtaken, itself, by the technological revolution, which owes a great debt to the industrial takeover which preceded it.
Perhaps I have scared some of you by going off on a literary tangent. That was not my intention. Rather, I think the importance of gender roles is so pervasive today that it would do us all a great deal of good to see how it has been treated historically. It's an easy book to read, clear and concise and it opens your eyes to a new way of thinking.

What a pleasure to read a dissertation embracing the poetry and passion of simple language as well as the art of old-fashioned story-telling exemplified by the often underrated Sherwood Anderson.

In seven chapters Dr. Simolke (whose lyrical collection THE ACORN STORIES was clearly influenced by Stein and Anderson) examines themes of alienation, sexuality and gender in Anderson's masterpiece WINESBURG, OHIO.

Bringing fresh perspective to Anderson's best known work (considered by critics to be a forerunner of modern fiction with its focus on "real folks" and small town America of the early 20th Century), Simolke candidly explores sexual subtext.

In "More Than Man or Woman" he writes, "I call attention to all this terminology because Anderson transcends those societal perceptions of gayness; his use of gay themes has little to do with sex and everything to do with human contact."

Do we need still one more analysis of the work of another dead white guy? Yes, most certainly, when it is as refreshingly and unabashedly enthusiastic as Simolke's. Criticized as being sentimental and outdated, WINESBURG becomes relevant again in this unapologetic and insightful re-reading.

Stein, Gender, Isolation, and Industrialism New Readings of Winesburg, Ohio
by Duane Simolke
Reviewed by Joe Wright
This book is the work of Dr Simolke. It served as his doctoral dissertation. It shows the relationship between Sherwood Anderson, his work and Gertrude Stein. In Dr Simolke's own words, "I consider Gertrude Stein, gender roles, the machine in the garden, feelings of isolation, and attempts at communication, as they all relate to Sherwood Anderson's masterpiece."

Of course the masterpiece he is talking about is the story cycle, Winesburg, Ohio. Published in 1919 about a small town in Ohio becoming industrialized and what that does to the lives of the people of Winesburg.
New Readings would be a great companion to go along with Anderson's Winesburg. It gives you not only the history of Mr. Anderson, but also the history of his stories. In Chapter 4 Men and Women, Dr. Simolke talks about how Mr Anderson's 1923 novel Many Marriages was banned by many libraries and book stores due to the fact that the book mainly focuses on nudity and sex.
If your a tried and true fan of Gertrude Stein or Sherwood Anderson New Readings is a must have!

Pour yourself a little brandy, pull your chair up to the fire, and read Duane Simolke's Stein, Gender, Isolation, and Industrialism: New Readings of Winesburg, Ohio. Better yet, dust off your copy of Sherwood Anderson's Winesburg, Ohio, and then read Simolke's remarkable explication of Sherwood Anderson, the influence that the great Gertrude Stein had on his writing style, and the equally important effect of turn-of-the-century industrialization on Anderson and the stories he tells. In this straightforward, yet literary accounting of Anderson's Winesburg narratives, you will come to a fuller understanding of what motivated Anderson to write his story cycle, what part homoeroticism and homophobia played in the story "Hands" and "The Untold Lie." This work should be required reading in any college course involving the art and craft of short-story writing as well as in courses on Sherwood Anderson, himself. I found the greatest pleasure in reading a while from Simolke's work, then reading from Anderson's Winesburg, Ohio. Simolke's book is a great reading guide, as well as a thoughtful and measured reading experience all by itself. ---Ronald L. Donaghe, author of Uncle Sean

Just imagine having your love notes found, analyzed and published for the world to see? Well, this is it. One of the world's most famous and iconic couples' lyrical notes to each other are here for all to share. Should it have been done? Some may say 'no', but considering the fact that they are by Stein, one of the most well-known, unread writers in history, and Toklas, whose place in history largely hinges on her hashish fudge, I'd say 'why not?' These ladies have long been used to public curiosity and scrutiny and became household names during their 1934-35 visit to the US. The introductory essay alone, though scholarly, is worth the price of admission---"Having a cow" will take on a whole new meaning in your vocabulary!

How wonderful to read about the emotions of what is sometimes considered to be "deviant" love. I believe they would each be honored to know that their true relationship is public and, for the most part, that people are touched by their genuine caring for each other. I highly recommend this book, especially for those people who find it hard to understand relationships between same-sex couples.

What a hoot! Kay Turner has done it again, producing a book that's both entertaining and eye-opening -- a delightful-as-usual combination of the scholarly and hilarious. Brava! A wonderful gift for and/or from yer girlfriend.

Gertrude Stein is one of the greatest artists of the 20th Century. She has influenced all modern art, literature and theatre. She has often been ignored or set aside as unreadable,unperformable, opaque. Yet when approached with an open mind; the genius is awe inspiring. Ula Dydo, is another gift, someone who has taken the time to sit down and explore, to play in her own scholarly way. Dydo's love of Stein is contagious. She has created an opening that I hope a lot of curious people step into.

Since I first read Three Lives in high school I became fascinated with the writing of Gertrude Stein. During the past three decades I have read all her work. Because she requires so much effort, so much attention and concentration to detail, I have also tried reading as much about her as I could find; none as enlightening, as lovingly researched, as clearly written as Ulla Dydo's The Language That Rises. Hers is truly an "elucidation!"

What better way to get to know Gertrude Stein than to be guided through some of her key writings by one of the world's best Stein scholars, Ulla Dydo! It's not "Stein For Dummies," but it certainly is a very readable book which analyzes Stein's texts bringing in information from her life as appropriate to get a clearer picture of not only what she wrote, but why and how she wrote what she wrote. A must-have book for anyone who is really serious about reading and understanding Stein, as well as a great introduction to Stein's other works if the only thing you've ventured to read is THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF ALICE B. TOKLAS, which is also, by the way, addressed in this book.

Karren Alenier`s steady presence at the helm of Word Works is clearly only one of many talents, as I discovered, spellbound, at her Gertrude Stein opera workshop and in reading the moving poems of Looking For Divine Transportation.

"slicing off/ a chunk of time/ like chocolate" Wow! What an image! Her poems are not only full of surprise and insight, but nimble and risky as life itself. I loved the opening quote by Stein "Anything scares me,/ anything scares anyone/ but really after all/ considering how dangerous/ everything is nothing/ is really frightening." Where did that come from?! Christopher Morley's "Life is a foreign/ language; all men/ mispronounce it" is another gem. She bring these intimate and foreign worlds beautifully into focus for us.

Which reminds me, I like her line-breaks and syntax. Both carry meaning in multiple ways and syncopate the music. Also, what a great title, "Soup With Greasy Eyes"! I especially admire the family poems. They're hard to write, so close to the bone, but resonate with the illusive truths that make up our lives. "Mother fades like disappearing/ ink. She doesn't sign her name." Oh! "Prisoner," "Borrowing the Knot," "The Bopper"-powerful and moving poems. As are "How His Fiction Began," "Traveling in Cameron" and especially "Table For Two" with its visual richness and perfectly discovered kinship that runs through the book-"Who are the beggars/ who block the way, argue for a purse? Who/ are the bearded men and dirty-handed/boys? Are they lost/ kin?" (from Ana Marraksia. . .) Yes, for all of us! So. . . I look forward to reading the book again and again,

The images conjured up by the verses of Karren Alenier are as entertaining as they are thoughtful and thought-provoking, a thorough-going tribute to the power of words and word images to move the human heart and pierce the mind's imagination. The Ride: Beggar, farmer, scholar:/our spirits carousel/from one life to the next/the animals--cow/monkey, serpent--rise/and recede in our path/mocking our appetites--/hot dog, cotton candy./The music from the old/organ spills from/the fixed center/still we seek union/our spark, our flirty/two-ness, holding out/for brass.

It is a shame that so much of Gertrude Stein's work is dismissed because of its unconventionality. Though sometimes difficult to read, Stein's writing has a lyrical quality about it unparalleled by the work of other writers. The Making of Americans is probably one of her best, and well worth the effort it might take to read it. I found that after only a few pages, I was moved along by the rhythm and cadence that carries the story. A wonderful read!

What starts of as an anecdotal recounting of what I imagine is Stein's forefathers and foremothers immigrant experience launches off into a brilliant, highly intellectual examination and rhapsody of individuality and conformity among other things (like death and consciousness and the battle between the sexes). This book will literally change the way you think you think. I think it should.

This biography fills in any gaps one might have regarding Gertrude Stein. The biography flows very, very nicely, with separate chapters on Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and WWI doughboys. With the discussion of Sylvia Beach and James Joyce, and the passing mention of Gertrude Stein having lunch with Roger Fry, one senses the ghost of Virginia Woolf hovering nearby. The chapter, late in the book, on Alice's cooking skills, is worth the price of the book. The author provides an outstanding appendix, notes section, and bibliography, as well as an excellent index.

On a completely different note, one sees again the influence of the Bloomsbury group in England on the pre-Raphaelite painters, and the corresponding influence of Gertrude Stein on the continent on the modernist painters, most notably Picasso. Perhaps not "influence," but rather support for these new painters, who otherwise might not have become as successful.

I read _Blood on the Dining Room Floor_ a couple months ago, during a time when I read almost nothing but sharp, hardboiled pulp detective stories. I might suggest that method -- read some old Sam Spade shorts (contemporary with Stein's writing of this little gem), then read this book, then go back.

Where Hammett and company's tales are sharp, grittily realistic, and driven by swarthy melodramatic plots, Stein's one mysterious foray into the Murder Mystery genre has little discernible plot, is distinctly un-swarthy, lacks melodrama, and for these reasons is perhaps far more realistic than Hammett et al. are held to be; _Blood_ clearly reflects the confusion we (I) feel in the face of traumatic events... the mind reels before the reality (which always lacks cliche and melodrama) of violence and leaves one (me) with nothing but an almost incoherent froth of language in one's (my) head, out of which occasionally bubble moments of "clarity": bits of facts and/or memories of incidents and characters which may or may not be accurate. Sometimes, too, the froth dissolves into moments of almost ritual invocation: "Lizzie do you understand do you understand lizzie": the mind reaching out to (hi)stries of past violence (the fall river axe murders, lizzie borden) to unsuccesfully but compulsively try to order and give meaning to the violence at hand.

Dazzling. The full effect of this book (the composition of "my take" on it which appears above) came only after weeks of letting the book sit in the back of my mind, as I moved back to pulp detective stories and on to other things.

It is classic Stein, a pure uncut jewelled antidote to the false-feeling closures of the usual mystery novel and the journalistic, faux-objective treatments of the violent throughout fiction, film, and (dare I mention) TV. A true refuge for the "thinking" person.

Only read this book if you can be honest about addiction because it gets ugly -- profoundly brutally demoralizingly unattractive, and that is not the glamorous image you might want to keep in your mind for one of the greatest authors in the history of American prose. But -- if you're ready to see the truth about F. Scott then you might be ready to read this, keeping in mind that the man was doomed for all intents and purposes. The Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous had not yet been written, so Fitzgerald didn't have a chance of fighting the demons in his cups and some of that maliciousness is captured here in his diary pages. They are the musings of a man who is not well. So, if you're interested in the tragedy and you can take the reality of the disease's ravages, then you can handle this book and may even appreciate it as much as I do for being the documentary of alcoholic demise. If not, pour yourself another drink and go back to The Beautiful and the Damned, The Great Gatsby or maybe The Other Side of Paradise. (There you'll be safely in the pages of a greatly entertaining book, and you can sleep at night knowing that the tragedies are only fiction.)