The Death of Picasso: New and Selected Writing

By Guy Davenport

Book Overview

When Guy Davenport looks at the world, the world changes; sometimes just a little and sometimes a lot. And no reader is the same after reading his or her first Davenport essay or story. He is a writer perfectly described by the term "singular" and in praising his work, from fiction to poetry, from translations to essays, critics all over the world have noted his unique manner, his remarkable erudition and his startling humor. He is the finely realized perfection of high modernism blended with an American sensibility as old as Emerson's.

"The way I write about texts and works of art," Davenport has written, "has been shaped by forty years of explaining them to students in a classroom. I am not writing for scholars or fellow critics, but for people who like to read, to look at pictures, and to know things."

For The Death of Picasso, Davenport has gathered twenty-six essays and stories from throughout his career, more than one-third of which have never before appeared in book form. The result is an exciting and invigorating selection, a testament to one of the prose masters at work today.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1593760566
• ISBN13: 9781593760564
• Release Date: February 2005
• Publisher: Counterpoint LLC
• Length: 384 Pages
• Weight: 1.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 5.7" x 8.9"

Customer Reviews

A Perfect Introduction to the Only Author I Re-Read

The title story of this generous new collection is one of my all-time favorites. I read voraciously, and have several favorite authors, but Davenport is the only one I habitually return to and re-read. DEATH OF PICASSO will introduce you properly to the MacArthur genius award recipient who remains largely unknown despite being arguably the nation's finest stylist. Guy Davenport's fictions are multi-layered delights. You can root around in them again and again, each time finding new nuggets and making new connections and cross-connections to his other work and to the larger world of fact and literature. D of P includes not just fictions but also criticism, which in Davenport's case mean not dull stuff for insiders but richly detailed and entertaining adventures. If you are looking for enormous talent and knowledge, displayed in writing that always delights, Davenport deserves your attention. The only thing lacking in D of P is his excellent drawings, which he has from time to time employed to add still another layer to his unique confections. Take a chance, buy this book. You may find that you have stumbled across the author you should have been reading all along.

The Best American Writer

Guy Davenport is the best living American writer; he compares to Joyce in terms of his technical ability. This book will be an excellent starting point for anyone ready for the possibility.