ŷ������

I think “Where I’m Calling From�� is a good book. The book most certainly captured my attention. I liked how his stories had an element of fantasy to them and yet seem so ordinary. I liked how the stories were about just normal people with normal lives yet the characters seem to be fighting with some problem. I really enjoyed reading Carver’s collected works.

Carver has a way of provoking emotion out of the readers throughout each (for the most part) short story. He's simplistic. He captures the first impression of people and provides the rawness of each characters growth in his/her story. It's very believable in such matter. He shows the "dark sides" and the unhappiness that people feel and experience in life which can make these short stories a bit depressing to read but he does such a wonderful job at making it feel like you know the character he is talking about in each story. Not an uplifting read but you'll find yourself hours later thinking about what you just read.

Personally I do find Carver uplifting, prob because he doesn't turn away from the trash of reality and the hopelessless of so many lives. He doesn't embellish or edit out the sheer tedium of many lives. And he always gets right into the heart of what characters want, what they fear, and what they deeply believe. In a way it's uplifting because there is no avoidance of misery: it's like he's saying "we can face the worst and survive".

Steve ParrStephen Parr

Stephen wrote: "Personally I do find Carver uplifting, prob because he doesn't turn away from the trash of reality and the hopelessless of so many lives. He doesn't embellish or edit out the sheer tedium of many l..."

Well said. I do, too.

Agreed! Well said Mr. Parr!