Rating: 
Summary: comedic absurdity
Review: A master of slapstick dialogue, Pinter forces the reader to analyze the efficiency of one's language and it's ability to convey one's meaning. Indeed, a must-read for anyone interested in theater of the absurd.
Rating:
Summary: comedic absurdity
Review: A master of slapstick dialogue, Pinter forces the reader to analyze the efficiency of one's language and it's ability to convey one's meaning. Indeed, a must-read for anyone interested in theater of the absurd.
Rating: 
Summary: Here is a playwright with something to say
Review: And Pinter says it brilliantly by having his characters communicate so little. These are truly menacing portraits of ordinary people in ordinary situations. I felt very uneasy reading these plays, as if language in Pinter's world is steadily losing its ability to signify. I imagine acting in a Pinter play must be incredibly difficult. "THE BIRTHDAY PARTY" was fantastic. What exactly is a Pinter play? I wish I could say, definitively, but I'm at a loss. Mostly these people are terrified by people on the fringes of their lives(outside their windows, in the basement of an apartment, in the same inn) who don't reveal their intentions but seem to want to do harm to the main characters. Sometimes, I think that Pinter's characters recognize the menace within themselves and project it onto other people. Part of the greatness of Pinter's work is that I'm at a loss to explain it.
Rating: 
Summary: PROLIFIC PLAYWRIGHT WORTH READING.
Review: Harold Pinter is arguably one of the most important playwrights to come out of England in the past 100 years. His plays resonate in the minds of his audience, not for what is said, but for what is left unspoken. The plays in this edition show Pinter at his best as a writer and are valuable to the reader. Also recommended: REDEFINING THE 'SELF': SELECTED ESSAYS ON SWIFT, POE, PINTER, AND JOYCE by John Condon Murray
Rating:
Summary: One of the finest playwrights of the twentieth century
Review: Harold Pinter is one of the stellar dramatic voices of the century. These plays are brilliant and intriguing in performance and well worth a careful read.
Rating:
Summary: Indoor Beckett, Maximum Drama Value
Review: Harold Pinter, what more can be said than that he is one of the most important playwrights to come out of England in the past 100+ years. "The Dumb Waiter," shows Pinter's dark indoor confussion at its best. "The Birthday Party," is twisted and fully capable of playing tricks with a reader's mind. Anyone who enjoys Pinter, Samual Beckett (Pinter's mentor & author of "Waiting for Godot," as well as countless other pieces), or good absurd theater would be well advised to purchase this set of plays, short stories etc. Early works of Pinter, show him at his best as a writer and this edition gives a great value. There are a lot of plays, an essay, and a couple of short stories, all in a book that does not cost too much more than an average "Grove Press," single play. "Complete Works 1," will take you to some fascinating but dark places, and at the end you will be ready and excited to buy the second (then third, then fourth) edition(s) of Pinter's "Complete Works."
Rating:
Summary: Indoor Beckett, Maximum Drama Value
Review: Harold Pinter, what more can be said than that he is one of the most important playwrights to come out of England in the past 100+ years. "The Dumb Waiter," shows Pinter's dark indoor confussion at its best. "The Birthday Party," is twisted and fully capable of playing tricks with a reader's mind. Anyone who enjoys Pinter, Samual Beckett (Pinter's mentor & author of "Waiting for Godot," as well as countless other pieces), or good absurd theater would be well advised to purchase this set of plays, short stories etc. Early works of Pinter, show him at his best as a writer and this edition gives a great value. There are a lot of plays, an essay, and a couple of short stories, all in a book that does not cost too much more than an average "Grove Press," single play. "Complete Works 1," will take you to some fascinating but dark places, and at the end you will be ready and excited to buy the second (then third, then fourth) edition(s) of Pinter's "Complete Works."
Rating:
Summary: The Definitive Pinter.
Review: If you must have Pinter and are short of cash, this volume is THE must have(although I'd recommend all four volumes). Three classic Pinter plays are included in this volume: The Birthday Party, The Room, and The Dumb Waiter. For those of you new to Pinter, more than likely it was one of these plays that turned you on to him. However, the selling point of this volume is not actually the plays, but the outstanding introduction entitled "Writing for the Theatre" which is a 1962 speech made by Pinter himself. Any aspiring playwright as well as those immersed in all that is Pinteresque will find this introduction both profound and useful. On another note, for Pinter completists, be advised that The Birthday Party, The Room, and The Dumb Waiter are on VHS. The Dumb Waiter and The Room are difficult to find, but rest assured they're out there. In short, if you must have Pinter, this is the volume to get.
Rating:
Summary: The Definitive Pinter.
Review: If you must have Pinter and are short of cash, this volume is THE must have(although I'd recommend all four volumes). Three classic Pinter plays are included in this volume: The Birthday Party, The Room, and The Dumb Waiter. For those of you new to Pinter, more than likely it was one of these plays that turned you on to him. However, the selling point of this volume is not actually the plays, but the outstanding introduction entitled "Writing for the Theatre" which is a 1962 speech made by Pinter himself. Any aspiring playwright as well as those immersed in all that is Pinteresque will find this introduction both profound and useful. On another note, for Pinter completists, be advised that The Birthday Party, The Room, and The Dumb Waiter are on VHS. The Dumb Waiter and The Room are difficult to find, but rest assured they're out there. In short, if you must have Pinter, this is the volume to get.
Rating:
Summary: Don't Be Stupid
Review: The Birthday Party is an unparalleled classic, and is nothing like anything that Ionesco has ever written. This book is worth buying just for that.
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