Description
Book SynopsisThis first book-length study of Stewart O'Nan's work offers a comprehensive introduction to his writings and carefully examines recurring thematic concerns and stylistic characteristics of his novels. The author of eighteen novels, several works of nonfiction, and two short-story collections, O'Nan received the Pirate's Alley Faulkner Society's Gold Medal for best novel for
Snow Angels and the Drew Heinz Prize for
In the Walled City. In 1996
Granta magazine named him one of the Twenty Best Young American Novelists.
In
Understanding Stewart O'Nan, Heike Paul appraises O'Nan's oeuvre to date, including his popular multigenerational trilogy of novels--
Wish You Were Here; Emily, Alone; and
Henry, Himself--that received enthusiastic reviews in the
New York Times, the
Washington Post, Publisher's Weekly, and the
Guardian.
Paul argues that O'Nan is not only a writer of popular fiction but also has developed into a major literary voice worthy of canonical status and of having a firm place in school, college, and university curricula. To this end Paul analyzes his use of formulas of long-standing popular American genres, such as the Western and the gothic tale, as he re-invents them in innovative and complex ways creating a style that Paul describes as ""everyday gothic."" She also offers a critical examination of O'Nan's treatment of American myths and vivid descriptions of struggling middle class settings and individuals who lead precarious lives. Paul believes this first critical study of O'Nan's collected works will be instrumental in building a critical archive and analysis of his oeuvre.
Trade ReviewThe Atlantic Economy during the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries will have an immediate and important impact on the rapidly developing field of Atlantic history. Peter Coclanis and the volume's contributors have assembled a collection of first-rate scholarship, well written and nicely executed."" - Russell R. Menard, University of Minnesota
""Should any doubt the richness of 'Atlantic History' as an approach to our understanding of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, let them turn to this perceptive collection. Herein a host of respected scholars engage fully in a breadth of topics encompassing the Dutch, French, Portuguese, Spanish, and British Empires, Africa, Europe, and the Americas to illuminate the interconnected nature of the Atlantic economy during the two hundred years prior to the Age of Revolutions. This work is essential for anyone interested in the early modern Atlantic World."" - John J. McCusker, Trinity University
