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This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

Product Description
This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

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Chapters: William H. Macy, Edward Ord, Drew Hankinson, Eddie Deezen, Sam Perlozzo, Indian Will, David John Lewis, William E. Shuck, Jr., Bruce Price, Herman Ball, Leo Mazzone, Philip Francis Murphy, Robert W. Hartsock, Kelly L. Moran, John Glenn Beall, Jr., Frederick John Bahr, George Wellington, Frederick Nicholas Zihlman, Rebeca Arthur, James Walsh, Mark Manges, William Walsh, William McMahon McKaig, Jane Frazier, Bob Williams, George Alexander Pearre, S. John Ross, Samuel Greene, Edward Mallory, Frank K. Nethken, John Galloway Lynn, John Lewis Thomas, Jr., John Van Lear McMahon, Thomas Johns Perry, John Scott, Joe Buskey, Jim Gaffney, Rod Breedlove, Joseph Francis Joy, Samuel Magill, Thomas W. Koon, Warren C. White, David J. Blackiston, Edward C. Athey, James A. Millholland, George M. Wychoff, Jr., William Shaw, Harry Stern,. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 146. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: William Hall Macy, Jr. (born March 13, 1950) is an American actor and writer. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as Jerry Lundegaard in Fargo. He is also a teacher and director in theater, film and television. His film career has been built mostly on his appearances in small, independent films, though he has appeared in summer action films as well. Macy has described his screen persona as "sort of a Middle American, WASPy, Lutheran kind of guy... Everyman". He has won two Emmy Awards and a Screen Actors Guild Award, being nominated for nine Emmy Awards and seven Screen Actors Guild Awards in total. He is also a three-time Golden Globe Award nominee. Macy was born in Miami, Florida, and grew up in Georgia and Maryland. His father, William Hall Macy, Sr., was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and an Air Medal for flying a B-17 Flying Fortress bomber in World War II; he later...http://booksllc.net/?id=398602 ... Read more

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OCTOBER 2002 ISSUE OF STUFF MAGAZINE FEATURING PAULINA RUBIO ON THE COVER. OTHER ARTICLES/PICTORIALS FEATURE "GET AHEAD IN BED", "SEX TIPS FROM A SUPERHERO", "9/11 CRIME WAVE", WILLIAM H. MACY, RACHEL PERRY AND MORE. ... Read more

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Aus Wikipedia. Nicht dargestellt. Auszug: William Hall Macy, Jr. (born March 13, 1950) is an American actor and writer. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as Jerry Lundegaard in Fargo. He is also a teacher and director in theater, film and television. His film career has been built mostly on his appearances in small, independent films, though he has appeared in summer action films as well. Macy has described his screen persona as "sort of a Middle American, WASPy, Lutheran kind of guy... Everyman". He has won two Emmy Awards and a Screen Actors Guild Award, being nominated for nine Emmy Awards and seven Screen Actors Guild Awards in total. He is also a three-time Golden Globe Award nominee. Macy was born in Miami, Florida, and grew up in Georgia and Maryland. His father, William Hall Macy, Sr., was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and an Air Medal for flying a B-17 Flying Fortress bomber in World War II; he later ran a construction company in Atlanta and worked for Dun ... Read more

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Chapters: David Mamet, Piers Anthony, Trey Anastasio, David Helvarg, William H. Macy, Archie Shepp, Jane Shore, Bradford Graves, Daniel Boyarin, Kenneth R. Timmerman, Page Mcconnell, Linda Mccarriston, Mark Doty, Jonathan Katz, David Gallaher, Stephen C. Smith, Paul Zaloom, Conrad Herwig, Wayne Karlin, Laura Mccullough, Oliver Foot, Jon Fishman, Geraldine Clinton Little, Tobias Schneebaum, Caroline Finkelstein, Mayme Agnew Clayton, Linnea Johnson, James Gahagan, Tim Costello, Ellen Bryant Voigt, Elaine Terranova, Suzi Wizowaty, Susie Ibarra, Lisel Mueller, Ed Allen, Larry Feign, Peter Hannan, Frances Olsen, Donald Kofi Tucker, Tony Curtis, Russell Potter, Esther Wertheimer, Jay Craven, Michael Lent, John Kasiewicz, Jared Pappas-Kelley. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 192. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: David Helvarg (born April 10, 1951) is an American journalist and environmental activist. He is the founder and president of the marine conservation lobbying organization Blue Frontier Campaign, a part of the Seaweed rebellion, which arose from his second book Blue Frontier. His first book, The War against the Greens, puts a case that violent organized resistance is being orchestrated against the environmental movement. Helvarg began his career as a freelance journalist before becoming a war correspondent and then returning to news journalism. He writes about politics, AIDS, and sea life. He has reported from every continent and he has been published in specialist and popular magazines, and US newspapers both locally and in syndication. His experience of military conflict, civil conflict and marine biology is the basis of his lobbying. Helvarg was born April 10, 1951 in New York City, the son of refugees; his mother left Nazi Germany and his father escaped civil war in Ukraine. H...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=1253373 ... Read more

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High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! William Hall Macy, Jr. (born March 13, 1950) is an American actor and writer. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as Jerry Lundegaard in Fargo. He is also a teacher and director in theater, film and television. His film career has been built mostly on his appearances in small, independent films, though he has appeared in summer action films as well. Macy has described his screen persona as "sort of a Middle American, WASPy, Lutheran kind of guy... Everyman". He has won two Emmy Awards and a Screen Actors Guild Award, being nominated for nine Emmy Awards and seven Screen Actors Guild Awards in total. He is also a three-time Golden Globe Award nominee. ... Read more

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In Atlantic City hoping to score big, Joshua and Joan Kane stumble upon a devil's deal when a high-stakes player offers Joshua a million dollars for the privilege of sleeping with his wife.Movie tie-in. Simultaneous with paperback. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Publishers Weekly Shamefully Incorrect
The review from Publishers Weekly names the hero of "Indecent Proposal" as "Joshua Cantor." There is no Joshua "Cantor" in the entire novel. This suggests that whoever "reviewed" the novel did NOT read the novel and most likely did not even bother to read the back flap. The same Publishers Weekly "review" states that Jack Engelhard wrote "The Horseman." Also incorrect. Jack Engelhard wrote "The HorseMEN."

Slopiness and negligence of this sort is harmful to writers, readers and book sellers and such "reviews" should not even be listed. They are not worthy. Books (and their authors) live or die upon the trustworthiness of sources like PW. Surely we ought to expect the highest degree of integrity from people who review our books.

A far more reliable review for "Indecent Proposal" appeared in The New York Times' Sunday Book Review under the title "Faust On The Boardwalk." (Which I intend to post.) This NY Times write-up explained how "Indecent Proposal" succeeded and became an international best-selling classic, nominated for a National Book Award, eventually got translated into more than 22 languages -- and later spawned the Paramount movie starring Robert Redford and Demi Moore.

In other words, "Indecent Proposal" handily overcame the harm that PW intended to do.

Here's hoping other writers overcome reviewers who judge the book simply to spite the book. Good luck!

Jack Engelhard, author of the novels "Indecent Proposal" and most recently "The Bathsheba Deadline."


Indecent ProposalThe Bathsheba Deadline: An Original Novel

A Book Transcendant
Any review of a Jack Engelhard novel demands superlatives.My supply was exhausted reviewing BATHSHEBA DEADLINE, THE DEADLY DECEPTION, DAYS OF THE BITTER END, THE GIRLS OF CINNCINATI...

I just now got around to reading Indecent Proposal ...A LEVIATHAN among best sellers.

Normally, I am not moved by best sellers.There is a lowest common denominator quality to them, too often nowadays propelled by hype.I'm exhausted enough as it is.

Then I stumbled over the tripwire that is INDECENT PROPOSAL...not the fifty or so shameless efforts to traffick on this book's name...but the original...the Engelhard book.

No...not the movie.it's hard for me to find fault with any cinema that would pair Robert Redford and Demi Moore...but while full of entertainment value...THE MOVIE IS NOWHERE CLOSE.

Forget The Proposal even...forget its superbly crafted tension and approach-avoidance and moral dilemmas...emotion Engelhard piques to perfection... forget even that....

This book is LIFE...and not just any life...but the life of a man hardly anyone alive nowadays can IMAGINE.Even the most succinct description I can field: "the Last of The Hemingways" sunders on the Reality.

In this book his name is Joshua Kane...his earliest memories being of a deadly journey across the Pyrenees...mouth stuffed to keep him from alerting the German patrols and their dogs.He rode camels in Sinai and tanks in Golan...and Zodiacs into Lebanon.

He writes speeches for other people at a PR firm, having once tried to become "a real writer".He drives an old Malibu that belches black smoke. He rides to work on a smelly, unsanitary SEPTA bus and then an el with little more to recommend it.He quests after the Faith of King David wearing a shabby blue suit with brown socks....all the while haunted by both quests and memories he couldn't possibly explain.

Except Jack Engelhard does such a good job of explaining as he propels this character and his gorgeous, brilliant and delightfully goofy blond Main Line Philadelphia wife Joan from the Empire State Building to Haifa to the casinos in Atlantic City with the lure they offer of dismal Fate cheated.

Peerless dialogue and graphic action that can and often does bring a tear...and can and often does make you laugh out loud are your constant companions as you travel this road map of the human condition, most likely devouring its wisdom and warning in only two sittings.

Arrogance, humility, hope, lust, hate, poetry, ambition, cynacism, devotion, jealousy....high rollers and day trippers...true love and grudges from Time Out of Mind...all this is present and captivating within the pages of this fast paced adventure... BEFORE EVEN COMING to the "proposal" and its impact on both the story and true life American Culture.

The adjectives and verbs...the nomenclature of "the novel"...none of them as words and concepts able to contain the peerless story within.

Seek and experience what lies in store as you pass through the gates of this literary nirvanna...and be satiated in mind, body and spirit.

STIMULATING!
I am a fan of Robert Redford so I enjoyed the movie, but it was NOTHING compared to this book.

Jack Engelhard while telling an interesting story is super adept at weaving in moral dilemmas which make his readers THINK!!!

Bottom line...the book is better than the movie by far.

BTW...I have read ESCAPE FROM MOUNT MORIAH...I just wonder if it weren't for Adolf Hitler, Jack could well have become a rabbi...a very distinguished rabbi.

REALLY GREAT BOOK, Jack!! You and Cassell write about different Atlantic Citys.Yours is the Atlantic City of today:slick and tinseled...as opposed toCassell's shabby but colorful.

Primitive Politics.Bold Entrapment.Sex beyond your wildest dreams... or nightmares...
Love lost and regained... maybe... at what price.

I quest for novels like this (The Bathsheba Deadline: An Original Novel was one, too), which are inspired and masterfully presented, but which do not leave the reader in the hopeless state of wanting to jump off a cliff, or off a skyscraper or high bridge, whichever arrives first.

Not only that, the story surged contemplations on various vital issues of life games... politics, religion, culture, all of what Engelhard ascribed to King David (the protagonist, Josh's man) as "lover, poet, warrior, sinner, king"... (I flipped instantly to page 61 when looking to verify that list, ha!)

Each character in this novel is precisely, profoundly, psychologically on target, with Joan, Josh, and Ibrahim being the prime trilogy in that observation:

--- Joan must have written her part, as the author accused of her in his introductory remarks, because her psychology of the feminine, as it is breaking down and rebuilding itself, are true to that psyche and hormonal balance which limits, defines, and elevates that gender, a gender which each human has within.

--- Ibrahim must also have written his part, because, as it appears to me, he is an embodiment of the pure strength and raw beauty of princely power, and of the potently rich addiction of profanity, both within his Amalekite blood.

--- Of course, Joshua, as bred by the author, constantly works the phenomenal growth potential inherent in his Jewish ancestral blood, as he relentlessly responds to the dynamic demand of consciousness shifting through the kaleidoscopic, mesmerizing, eternal process of thesis, antithesis, synthesis.

As I was reading somewhere in chapter 27 of INDECENT PROPOSAL, a thought came to mind:

"THIS IS A NOVEL."

I've never said that before, in that way, and in the most precise sense of the term "novel."For me, INDECENT PROPOSAL has delineated the term.Regarding that novel, I mean that term in the full, brightest sense of an inspired, artistic, structural accomplishment enhanced by the ability to entertain and enthrall a reader within the circular cohesion of a story format.

The complicated twists leading to the denouement of this story were awesome.

They had me fluctuating between seeing the book as a novel in the sense of bright-side brilliance...

... (especially during the reader's joy in experiencing the growing anticipation between Josh and Joan that the New York scene they had planned as a renewal of their love might work a healing magic for this pair of desert-crossed lovers)...

... then seeing the book as a novel of dark-side brilliance (on par with the literary classics, many of which I honestly can't condone as contributing to the mental health of the human race)...

... then flipping maybe a couple more times between the bright and dark... finally ending with the conclusion that INDECENT PROPOSAL has honored the grace of art and redemption of soul.

All of which brings me to noting how much I was impressed and edified by seeing parts from Escape from Mount Moriah: Memoirs of a Refugee Child's Triumph, Engelhard's childhood memoirs, bleeding, literally, into PROPOSAL. Now, of course, I see why ESCAPE stepped up to me to be read just prior to PROPOSAL, and why I was compelled to buy both in the same order on Amazon.

A question which remains after having read INDECENT PROPOSAL is:

Why did the movie move away from the intriguing, if discomforting, thematic landmine within the original novel.

Of course, the introductory essays to this original version of the novel made the opening reading of the first chapter all the more riveting, especially knowing ahead of time that this book contrasts so obviously with the movie.

As Englehard detailed generously in his intro remarks, the attempt to translate a novel into a movie is always limited by the forms of text Vs film.Also involved, as I know from my own perspective, is the fact that reading a novel aloud takes around 7 hours; whereas a movie's average run is under 2 hours.In any case, a balsamic touch for condensation is required for an honorable translation.

In this case, the movie script did not go balsamic with the essence of the original novel.It did ingeniously exploit one of the surface concepts of the book, while ignoringthe deeper issues in the novel, eclipsing them with a concept of "every woman's fantasy."That fantasy may have been true for the screenwriter, but is not true for me, and not true for 90% of the female population, in my opinion.

Truly, the translation from novel to screenplay was confusing.

There was a reason that the female lead in the original novel was a high-spirited, gorgeous, blond Gentile.There were reasons that it was an Arab prince, an enormously wealthy Sheik, who tempted a Jewish man and his wife.There were reasons for the setting of the story being in Atlantic City's gambling cassinos, with the Jewish man being unlucky in his gambling addiction due to the intensity of his need, with the Arab prince owning the dark luck his wealth and ancient blood empowered.Where did all those reasons go.

As others have said, Engelhard has accomplished something timeless, eternal, and primal in this book. To acknowledge the publisher, Huberman's understatement, it holds universal messages.

Possibly, when this book was written on Engelhard's kitchen table, and later when it was made into a blockbuster movie, the human race was not ready to be entertained by the primitive sides of politics and truth.At that time, we were buying the romantic ideal, paying for redemption through rose-tints.

In the long run, truth designs a much bolder, richer story.Jack Engelhard has presented that story with literary finesse, with gritty depth and enthralling prose.

I love movies as well as books, yet I wonder if a movie could ever capture what this author can bring to life in an original novel.

Long may he write.

In some ways movie producers today have been getting away with politically and culturally adventurous plots.Maybe they're closer now to portraying the type of bold and rich which resides in the true novelist's soul.

Every minute of every day is a choice and a second chance (I said that).

Linda Shelnutt

Check out also Engelhard's Kindle novel, The Girls of Cincinnati
And see the works of John W. Cassell for novels of the same caliber which also embody the qualities praised in this review.

Forget Woody Harleson
Oh, boy! This book is really something else. Although the movie gets the general idea of the plot, the characters are totally different from the book. Woody Harleson is a dark, moody and sacrastic European Jew obsessed with his blonde trophy wife. He lives in Philadelphia that he so deliciously hates. When the twosome go to Atlantic City (Vegas would be too happy a place), they meet, Robert Redford? Nooo! An evil oil prince from some desert kingdom. And this time it's not about money... ... Read more

Product Description
Charlie is a small-time Hollywood producer who's bought one too many Mercedes on credit and whose mortgage is bigger than the debt of most Third World countries, and now he can't get a picture made anywhere. And just when he's most desperate, a miracle drops into his lap. Lefcourt is the bestselling author of The Dreyfus Affair. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Hollywood Fiction At It's Best
A wonderful read, funny, incisive and peopled with believable characters.If you've done the Hollywood thing, as I have, you'll know that all Lefcourt had to do was to tell the story, the satire takes care of itself.And tell the story he does, brilliantly.Five star Hollywood fiction.Highly recommended.

Snarky, Biting & Outrageously Funny
I read this book when I needed a distraction. I was expecting a blowoff novel about shallow movie people but it's really so much better than that. Some stuff in here is achingly funny, so hilarious I had to put the book down several times because I couldn't read as I was laughing so hard. Lefcourt can really write and has a fantastic sense of humor. I want to read more of his books now.

A funny and literate satire
This was my first Lefcourt book. I was too cheap to buy the 11 Karens in paperback, so here I was looking at an old (1991) novel that I could buy and be happy with.As old fan of Hollywood books and novels, this ranks among the funniest I've read.It is a quick read, but more satisfying than the typical Hollywood farce.It tells you more than you wanted to know about Benjamin Disraeli.However, the satire does not get out of hand and somehow you could almost envision the plot twists actually happening in real life.The book is well written and funny as can be.I hope the reprint wins Lefcourt new fans.I'm one.The book really gets Hollywood.Bravo!

Good read
If you're looking for a fast, funny read, you will not be disappointed with The Deal. The plot is intricate, the action is non-stop, and the characters are outlandish, especially the industry's movers and shakers-the extras-that Lefcourt takes great delight in lampooning.

Orginal, lighthearted take on the strange world of Hollywood
Peter Lefcourt could've given us a savage portrayal of studios meanies. Instead he gives us a fun world of open minded, flexible studio outsiders who make anything and everything happen on the way to producing what issupposed to be a blockbuster film. You'll like the characters - they're alittle sweet and goofy even though Lefcourt shows that they can be vapid.It's a lot of fun. ... Read more

Product Description
Bill Porter worked for the Watkins Corp., selling household products door-to-door in one of Portland’s worst neighborhoods. Afflicted with cerebral palsy and burdened with continual pain, Porter was determined not to live on government disability and went on to become Watkins’s top-grossing salesman in Portland, the Northwest, and the U.S. This book was written by the woman who worked as Porter’s typist and driver and later became his friend and cospeaker. The "ten things" include Mother Knows Best, Persistence Pays Off, and Know Your Limits but Reach Beyond Them. This is an inspiring story with real-life lessons about tenacity in the face of daunting odds.

Mr. Porter was profiled in a piece on 20/20 and his amazing story is the basis for a made for T.V. movie starring William H. Macy that will air July 14th on TNT. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (49)

Everybody Should Read and Learn from Bill!
William Douglas Porter is known to everybody as the door to door salesman, Bill Porter, who sells Watkins products. He has cerebral palsy but that never stopped him from doing his job as a salesman. No matter how difficult the route or the weather in Portland, Oregon, he became one of the company's leading salesman. He has a few lessons for those of us trying to re-enter the work-force. First, never give up on your dreams and keep trying until they say yes. Bill sold products to people who didn't even need them but they couldn't help be won over by his charm. His mother, Irene Porter, played a pivotal role in his life. His parents refused to send him to an institution when he was a baby and cared for him like any other child. They refused to let society say that Bill was any less than anybody else. Bill's a special and remarkable and unique. He wasn't about to live off disability. He continued selling door to door five days a week. His father was also a salesman as well who spent most of his time working until he got sick.

Shelly Brady came to his employment in 1980 as a young girl looking to earn extra money. She is his employee but she's welcomed him into her own family. After 30 years, Shelly has driven and delivered products for Bill and married John and gave birth to six children. Shelly is his best friend but also his employee. She admires and loves him dearly in a healthy platonic way. Bill's spirit is all over this book about his remarkable life as a door to door salesman. He has become a friend to his clients and has a keen memory about all of them. His cerebral palsy may have affected his physical movements but not his mind.

The book is an easy read and it concludes with some actual letters of people who were inspired by Bill's interview on 20/20 with Barbara Walters. Following the story and the outpour of response, there was a movie starring William H. Macy as Bill Porter and Helen Mirren as Irene Porter and Kyra Sedgwick as Shelly Brady. That's perfect casting in my opinion. Macy gives the performance of a lifetime so does Helen Mirren who was an unlikely choice and Kyra was also just perfect.

My only complaint about this book is that we don't know much about his customers but we learn a lot about Bill and Shelly as well.

An inspirational story!
This book was very inspirational and honest and I'm glad Shelly wrote it and shared such an amazing story with the world!Bill Porter is an inspirational man and I was happy to see the media coverage (20/20 news report and a TV movie) that portrayed his story in such a captivating way.

Although this story credits much of the "things learned" to Bill Porter, this book is not meant to be a biography of him, just the interactions that Shelly had with him and the things that she had gained from her relationship with him.I'm amazed that so many people are commenting about how Shelly wrote the book for "selfish reasons" and to "tell her own story".Fortunately, the title of the book is "Ten Things I Learned From Bill Porter" and not "The Big Book o' Bill Porter" (which would be misleading).In other words, she meant it to be a story told from her own perspective about the things that she had learned, not as a biography.In fact, I know Shelly Brady and she is the type of person that would give anything to show the world how great someone else is, which is exactly what she did here.I also know that she still has a good relationship with Bill Porter and still helps him to this day.

I also saw somebody say that they thought the photos in the book seem amateurish.Since she is telling a story about an episode in her life, I really wouldn't expect her to have professional photos.I don't even think she had it in mind to write a book until much later.This was not a pre-planned documentary, after all.

If you're looking for an inspirational book written by a down-to-earth author, then this is it.Also, if you get the chance, order the video as well (it's called "Door to Door").

Disappointing and self-cenetred
I watched the "Door to Door" movie and ran to buy this book, anxious to read more about this remarkable man.

Ha! I was disillusioned very quickly, when I realized that not only is the book very poorly written (it feels like nobody even bothered to edit it before sending it to print), but it features the life of Ms. Brady. At times, it seems that all she had in mind was how to get more of the limelight, and if Mr. Porter was feeling unwell, well - she'll just go on her own, and get the spotlight to herself. All that while whining how tough it was for her to have it all.

Is this book yet another way to get attention on account of Bill Porter?

BOOK ARRIVED QUICKLY
This book arrived quickly. I ordered others the same day from another company and I am still waiting for them.
Book was new as stated in description.
The story of Bill Porter is a Great One! It shows if you are Patient and Persistant you can accomplish whatever you want.

what an inspiration
I laughed and I cried.I first heard of this book because it was on the New York Times Bestseller list.Also I watched clips of the movie "Door to Door" when my kids checked the video out from the library.I've become fascinated with Bill who has physical limitations and knew no limit.Despite physical challenges, he is such an inspiration to all of us who take daily tasks for granted, like putting on a tying our shoes, putting on a tie, or simply typing.Bill could only type one finger at a time.His assistant, Shelly Brady weaves her personal connection with Bill throughout.The book is a welcome addition to all middle school and high school libraries. ... Read more

Product Description
From the Academy Award-winning Fargo to the cult classic Blood Simple, the Coen brothers have earned critical acclaim and a passionate, devoted following. Now, with Gates of Eden, Ethan Coen brings to the audiobook the same razor-sharp wit, imagination, and shocking intensity that have resonated with millions of fans.

With these unabridged stories, sometimes heart-felt, sometimes brutal, always wildly entertaining -- Ethan Coen delivers everything you would expect from such an original imagination.Amazon.com Review
Small-time mobsters, private investigators, adulterers, andHebrew-school students populate these stories written by Ethan Coen,the Oscar-winning cowriter of the Fargo screenplay. Read mostlyby actors who have appeared in his films--including regulars SteveBuscemi, John Goodman, and John Turturro--these vignettes are setprimarily in Minneapolis. There is a lot of fighting, farting, and theother f word in these tapes, disqualifying this audiobook forthe fainthearted, but the listener is well rewarded with some smart,if brutal, writing. Standouts include the Matt Dillon-read "Destiny,"a Mafioso story about a college graduate-cum-failed boxer whosepoverty sucks him into an underworld rivalry, and William H. Macy'sreading of the title story, a tongue-in-cheek noir featuring aCalifornian who is temporarily distracted from his work by a geishagoddess. (Running time: 5.5 hours, 4 cassettes) --KimberlyHeinrichs ... Read more

Customer Reviews (16)

Hilarious and distrubing...
As a big fan of his movies, I was really inpressed with this collection of short stories.This guy can really write.GATES OF EDEN will leave you wondering if every story included could be made into a film.Brilliant!

Help! Coen turned people into pulp!
Well no, these aren't actual people in Coen's stories, but they are 'real' and brilliantly drawn. The dark humor those familiar with the Coen Bros. movies is ever-present in these stories, and Ethan proves he's as capable a writer as a storyteller, with very clever use (and abuse) of language and clever turns of phrase.

I suppose what I enjoyed most is that every chapter of this short-story collection is a *story*, rather than just a writing exercise from a creative writing course. These stories are populated by *characters*, and the actions of these characters advance the *plot*. Each is pure fun to read, and again, are excellent *stories*. They're about people, and the things people do, and how screwed up the whole species really it.

From Hector Berlioz, p.i., to the weights-and-measures man.
Coen brothers.

Just say the words, and most moviegoers can tell you what you're probably in for.

Crime. Criminals. Mystery. Shenanigans.

The same holds true for "Gates of Eden," a collection of short stories by Ethan Coen, one-half of the brother team (bro is Joel Coen) that created such contemporary classics as "Blood Simple," "Fargo," "O Brother Where Art Thou?" and, most recently, "The Man Who Wasn't There."

With the short stories in "Gates," Ethan displays the tendency to irresistible characters that the brothers have put to such acclaimed use in their films.

And characters they are. Hapless schmucks, crooks who just don't seem to have a clue, oddballs and hitmen, all of whom are destined to win your heart. Or, at the very least, your funny bone.

The title story is probably my favorite, simply because it examines a career that is usually shucked aside by storytellers in favor of more glamorous work: The weights-and-measures man.

It's Joe Gendreau's job to make sure the gas station attendant isn't overcharging for or skimping on gas; a beating with a tire iron will keep him straight. All in a day's work, ma'am.

Like Joe says, "Standards are what make us a society. A community agrees. A gallon is a gallon. A pound is a pound. He who says fifteen ounces is a pound - he must be put down. A pound is a pound, or we go bango."

Sigh. Coen's use of dialogue makes me weak in the knees. Oh, to have that firm control of dialect.

Other faves in "Gates":

"Destiny": A knocked-out-too-often boxer agrees to take pictures of guy's wife in bed with a business associate, and ends up caught in between two gentlemen of less than civil reputation.

"Cosa Minapolidan": Among other things, a mob boss wants a fresh stiff. But the guys he's got on the job ain't quite right in the head, if you know what I'm saying. And one of 'em's new on the job.

"Hector Berlioz, Private Investigator": Aside from his name, there's nothing out of the ordinary about this private investigator. Coen sets the whole story like it could be an old-fashioned radio drama, and the results are both familiar and fantastic.

"A Fever in the Blood": Next to "Eden," this is the best story in the collection. Another p.i. finds himself deaf in one ear psychologically after having the other one bitten off. Brings the "Twilight Zone" to mind, complete with twist at the end. Perfection.

Anyone in need of a quick pick-me-up or an enjoyably light read can do worse than Coen. Grab your teddy bear, hunker down under the covers after (or in the middle of) a long day and thank your lucky stars you don't lead these sorry souls' lives.

The Strange Mind of Coen
Ethan Coen's collection of short stories is a hint to his remarkable movies.The writer of such great films as Raising Arizona, Fargo, and O Brother Where Art Thou? brings his unmistakable sense of humor to literature with his first work of fiction, Gates of Eden.Coen's sense of humor is uniquely intelligent at times, stupid at others, and very often disturbing.

From mafia back-stabbing to a decapitated wife and every story in between, Coen makes the reader laugh and simultaneously makes the reader feel uncomfortable for laughing.One often finds himself asking, "Should I really be laughing at this?"It is upon this type of humor that the Coen Brothers built their film career.Coen overcomes the occasional lack of true plot development with intriguing character analysis and captivating dialogue.

This book is a very easy read even with the intriguing and interesting lanuage and dialogue.The stories are short enough for a single sitting and long enough to actually say something.I would recommend this book to anyone who has taken even the slightest interest in a Coen Brothers film.But take heed, many stories are not for the weak-stomached conservative.Be prepared for a few shocks and an interesting insight to the American way.

If you like his movies...
If you like Ethan Coen's wacky films, and I am among their biggest fans, then you are bound to enjoy most if not all of the subject stories.Unlike most audio collections, these stories are narrated by many of the actors who have starred in Coen Brothers films such as William H. Macy, John Goodman, John Turturro and Steve Buscemi.I thought that was a great touch, and unlike another reviewer here I thoroughly enjoyed the vocal talents, never sensing that the stars had been quickly handed the stories and told to "read" by the director.

As for the tales themselves, they were each very different, and ranged from typical Coen brothers slapstick crime stories to poignant tales of growing up Jewish in Minneapolis.I really enjoyed "Destiny",the story of an over-educated boxer with no fighting spirit, narrated by Matt Dillon, who becomes hopelessly involved in a battle between a couple of two bit hoods while getting pummeled throughout the story."The Boys", a story of a father struggling to maintain his sanity on a camping trip with his two sons really struck a chord as well, since Coen displays his typical caustic wit and dead-on observations of family relationships.

The stories are not for everyone, sometimes the language can get a little coarse (especially the Steve Buscemi narrated "Have You Ever Been to Electric Ladyland", involving a music industry executive who tries telling the police the myriad of enemies who might have tortured his dog), and those easily offended may want to look elsewhere.Even here Coen's biting sarcasm is evident, as he skewers thinly-veiled real stars including Cat Stevens.

Overall, while Coen may never push writers like Raymond Carver out of the pantheon of American Short Story writers, these tales are an amusing bunch, made more entertaining by the considerable vocal talents of each of the narrators.I recommend you give them a try, especially in audio format. The people in the next car will wonder what you are grinning about. ... Read more

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Title: Conversational coolers and warmers.
Author: Joseph A. DeVito
Publication: ETC.: A Review of General Semantics (Magazine/Journal)
Date: July 1, 2009
Publisher: Institute of General Semantics
Volume: 66Issue: 3Page: 248(6)

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This digital document is an article from Siempre!, published by Edicional Siempre on January 9, 1997. The length of the article is 1322 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

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Title: Fargo: secuestro voluntario.(TT: Fargo)
Author: Tomás Pérez Turrent
Publication: Siempre! (Refereed)
Date: January 9, 1997
Publisher: Edicional Siempre
Issue: n2273Page: p66(1)

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This digital document is an article from Epoca, published by Difusora de Informacion Periodica, S.A. (DINPESA) on March 13, 2000. The length of the article is 824 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

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Title: Microcosmos californiano: "Magnolia".(TT: Californian microcosm: "Magnolia".)(Reseña)
Author: Pedro Crespo
Publication: Epoca (Magazine/Journal)
Date: March 13, 2000
Publisher: Difusora de Informacion Periodica, S.A. (DINPESA)
Page: 74

Article Type: Reseña

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This digital document is an article from Semana, published by Spanish Publications, Inc. on July 20, 2001. The length of the article is 1397 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

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Title: De regreso a la isla.(TT: Return to the Island.)(Reseña)
Publication: Semana (Magazine/Journal)
Date: July 20, 2001
Publisher: Spanish Publications, Inc.
Page: 40

Article Type: Reseña

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