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Summary: I've just finished teaching with this one--
Review: --and, as some have said, it _does_ lack a number of things you'd like to have. But it's hard to blame W.W. Norton (as one poster does) for the shortage of Hemingway and Fitzgerald when the real culprit is Scribner's, which gives anthologists extremely limited rights: one story from each writer. (The writer's original publisher is also to blame for the amount of T.S. Eliot here: no more than 1000 lines allowed.)One more thing: I'm ditching this in the future for texts with fewer footnotes. _Norton_ needs to avoid overdetermining readers' responses with interpretive notes.
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Summary: misleading
Review: Be careful, you are only buying volume 1, there is another volume, but you would never know that just reading the (description).
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Summary: Changes in the new American Lit anthology
Review: Hello, people. As the General Editor of the new edition of the Norton American anthology, I need to point out that some of the reviews in this section are about the English lit. anthology, and that the American anthology is considerably updated from the last (1994) edition. Along with more work by the canonical writers are many new women writers, etc. etc. Hope you like it!
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Summary: Why every one should have a copy of this book.
Review: I bought this book for my American Lit Survey course. Over the past semester I have read a majority of this book. I have come to realise that this book is good for both class and any home in America. This book contains writings from Christopher Columbus and Cabeza De Vaca to Alberto Rios and Li-Young Lee. Between those writers there are great American works by Samule Clemens and Henry David Thoreau. A collection of writings like this is perfect for any home. I encourage all people who want a copy of "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" and "The Yellow Wall Paper" in one library to save space and just buy this book.
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Summary: Why every one should have a copy of this book.
Review: I bought this book for my American Lit Survey course. Over the past semester I have read a majority of this book. I have come to realise that this book is good for both class and any home in America. This book contains writings from Christopher Columbus and Cabeza De Vaca to Alberto Rios and Li-Young Lee. Between those writers there are great American works by Samule Clemens and Henry David Thoreau. A collection of writings like this is perfect for any home. I encourage all people who want a copy of "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" and "The Yellow Wall Paper" in one library to save space and just buy this book.
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Summary: Norton *Rocks*
Review: I really love all the Norton Anthology series. They are really awesome textbooks. I have this one, and it was used at my two year college. I really like the way that the books is made, and I also like the selection of literature that the editors put into the book. I am a English-Secondary Education major, and I hope that whatever high school that I teach at, I hope that will consider getting Norton books.
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Summary: Every edition worse than the one before
Review: It's pretty much impossible for an English professor to find a decent anthology of American literature these days. This Norton anthology is clearly edited by those who make up what Harold Bloom has so rightly called the School of Resentment, for the editors have included many authors based on their race or gender (or the fact their books have been published by Norton) rather than their excellence. How else can one explain a 2900 page anthology that devotes a mere 10 pages to Wallace Stevens? that leaves out crucial poems by Emily Dickinson, Robert Frost, and Elizabeth Bishop? that does not include anything by Charles Wright, one of the 2 or 3 most important contemporary American poets? The anthology is also loaded with typos, in the poems and in the introductions. The only reason I can see for any professor using this anthology in a classroom is either the professor's own incompetence or the depressingly few alternatives.
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Summary: For a Beginning Library
Review: One of the joys of life is found in reading and starting a collection for your own libary. I am a college student and had to use this shorter edition for my Major American Authors course. It provides a great way to meet many different writers and see what you personally like. It is true that your collection of books should show something about your personality; therefore, the most helpful part of this anthology is the amount of writers you will be able to become aquainted with and see if you like. It provides more help by giving beautiful introductions and biographies of all of the writers included. I like the mix of short stories and some full length novels too. Very helpful and I'd recommend it to anyone who is looking to start a little library of their own.
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Summary: a wonderful collection of American authors and their works
Review: Rarely does one encounter a book that can be read when you are in any mood. Despite the physical weight of the anthology, which makes it awkward to carry around, there is something in it for everyone. The book includes authors ranging from the beginning of American history, such as Columbus, to modern day writers like Pinsky. I found the collection to be complete and varied. The biographical introductions to each author are helpful from an academic standpoint, as well as to shed light on writers I was not familiar with. The most interesting aspect of the anthology is the development of writing styles throughout the centuries. The themes and forms vary to reflect what was important at certain times. This is truly an fabulous book filled with colorful writings that mirror the intellectualism of men and women we oftentimes overlook as being antiquated in style. For there is nothing more timeless than Anne Bradstreet's letter to her children written in the 1600's. She speaks of the ageless trials of parenthood, love, and duty to God. I hope others will enjoy this book and learn something from it, even if it's that you don't like a certain author.
Rating:
Summary: a wonderful collection of American authors and their works
Review: Rarely does one encounter a book that can be read when you are in any mood. Despite the physical weight of the anthology, which makes it awkward to carry around, there is something in it for everyone. The book includes authors ranging from the beginning of American history, such as Columbus, to modern day writers like Pinsky. I found the collection to be complete and varied. The biographical introductions to each author are helpful from an academic standpoint, as well as to shed light on writers I was not familiar with. The most interesting aspect of the anthology is the development of writing styles throughout the centuries. The themes and forms vary to reflect what was important at certain times. This is truly an fabulous book filled with colorful writings that mirror the intellectualism of men and women we oftentimes overlook as being antiquated in style. For there is nothing more timeless than Anne Bradstreet's letter to her children written in the 1600's. She speaks of the ageless trials of parenthood, love, and duty to God. I hope others will enjoy this book and learn something from it, even if it's that you don't like a certain author.
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