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Constant Reader

The New Yorker Columns 1927-28
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Brief Description
Dorothy Parker's complete weekly New Yorker column about books and people and the rigours of reviewing. When, in 1927, Dorothy Parker became a book critic for the New Yorker, she was already a legendary wit, a much-quoted member of the Algonquin Round Table, and an arbiter... Read More
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Dorothy Parker’s complete weekly New Yorker column about books and people and the rigors of reviewing.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Dorothy Parker's complete weekly New Yorker column about books and people and the rigours of reviewing.

When, in 1927, Dorothy Parker became a book critic for the New Yorker, she was already a legendary wit, a much-quoted member of the Algonquin Round Table, and an arbiter of literary taste. In the year that she spent as a weekly reviewer, under the rubric Constant Reader, she created what is still the most entertaining book column ever written.

Parker's hot takes have lost none of their heat, whether she's taking aim at the evangelist Aimee Semple MacPherson ('She can go on like that for hours. Can, hellβ€”does'), praising Hemingway's latest collection ('He discards detail with magnificent lavishness'), or dissenting from the Tao of Pooh ('And it is that word "hummy", my darlings, that marks the first place in The House at Pooh Corner at which Tonstant Weader Fwowed up').

Introduced with characteristic wit and sympathy by Sloane Crosley, Constant Reader gathers the complete weekly New Yorker reviews that Parker published from October 1927 through November 1928, with gimlet-eyed appreciations of the high and low, from Isadora Duncan to Al Smith, Charles Lindbergh to Little Orphan Annie, Mussolini to Emily Post.

Series: McNally Editions

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781961341258

Publisher: McNally Jackson Books

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 19 December 2024

Country: United States

Imprint: McNally Jackson Books

Illustration: Illustrations

Contributors:

  • Foreword by Sloane Crosley

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Width: 127.0mm

Height: 215.0mm

Weight: 250g

Pages: 224

About the Author

Dorothy Parker nee Rothschild (1898-1967), grew up on New York's Upper West Side. She became famous for her comic poems, her short stories, her reviews, and her repartee, as recorded by the columnist Wolcott Gibbs over lunches at the Algonquin hotel. A prolific magazine contributor in her youth and a successful screenwriter (she co-wrote the original A Star is Born), she struggled all her life with alcoholism and wrote very little in her later decades, though continued to be a vocal champion of progressive causes, especially civil rights.

Sloane Crosley is the author of the essay collections I Was Told There'd Be Cake (a 2009 finalist for the Thurber Prize for American Humor), How Did You Get This Number, and Look Alive Out There (a 2019 Thurber Prize finalist); the novels The Clasp and Cult Classic; and, most recently, her memoir, Grief Is for People. A contributing editor at Vanity Fair, she lives in New York City.

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