The occasion might be a holiday or a wedding, a christening or a funeral, and a family is gathered on the eve to eat, drink, talk, and cast eyes upon each other. Like all relations, the extended family in Fred Chappell's Family Gathering has its foibles and strengths--oddballs and know-it-alls, hussies and historians, sparring spouses and model marriages. More than anything, this family loves gossip. Chappell portrays its members one and all in a series of sharply limned character sketches. In this crowd of strangers we may ...
Read More
The occasion might be a holiday or a wedding, a christening or a funeral, and a family is gathered on the eve to eat, drink, talk, and cast eyes upon each other. Like all relations, the extended family in Fred Chappell's Family Gathering has its foibles and strengths--oddballs and know-it-alls, hussies and historians, sparring spouses and model marriages. More than anything, this family loves gossip. Chappell portrays its members one and all in a series of sharply limned character sketches. In this crowd of strangers we may find personalities familiar, maybe too familiar. Perhaps we may even find a glimpse or two of ourselves. Framed by the observations of Elizabeth, "age eight, / Priss-proud in her finery and bored / Bored bored," the collection introduces ebullient Cousin Marjorie, self-satisfied Uncle Einar, evasive Cousin Lilias, cunning Aunt Wilma, aged Uncle Nahum, convivial Uncle Hobart, confusing Aunt Alicia--set down in poems terse, witty, sympathetic, thoughtful, and satiric. Cousin Elmer "tends the family tree, / Shaping it to topiary rare / And strange as he trims a little here and there / And lops some ugly branches drastically." Cousin Lola "charts her paramours / On a performance scale from One to Ten / And then announces publicly the scores." Uncle Brit "cuts you off before you say / Two sentences and lets you know / He knows already what you think / And what you think is pretty dumb." And Aunt Agnes, ever forgiving, "recognizes what we are, / Yet holds us in affection / As steadfast as the morning star, / As if our faults had no connection / With the persons we are within." Although there is no continuous story line, the poems in Family Gathering almost amount to a piece of fiction. We leave these lines with full knowledge of the characters--their personalities, prejudices, idiosyncrasies, and intricate relationships with one another. Chappell gives us gossip, but also gossip parodied. If your family is like most, sparks of recognition will leap from every page. With results like those of the Polaroids taken by the family photographer, Chappell "makes us look as scary / As old woodcuts in a bestiary-- / But maybe, after all, that's us." Varied, humorous, and, above all, true, Family Gathering is pure mean fun.
Read Less
Add this copy of Family Gathering to cart. $8.82, very good condition, Sold by ThriftBooks-Reno rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Reno, NV, UNITED STATES, published 2000 by LSU Press.
Add this copy of Family Gathering to cart. $8.82, good condition, Sold by ThriftBooks-Baltimore rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Halethorpe, MD, UNITED STATES, published 2000 by LSU Press.
Add this copy of Family Gathering: Poems to cart. $8.93, good condition, Sold by Midtown Scholar Bookstore rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Harrisburg, PA, UNITED STATES, published 2000 by LSU Press.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Good-Bumped and creased book with tears to the extremities, but not affecting the text block, may have remainder mark or previous owner's name-GOOD Standard-sized.
Add this copy of Family Gathering: Poems to cart. $9.79, very good condition, Sold by Bookmarc's rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from La Porte, TX, UNITED STATES, published 2000 by Louisiana State University Press.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Very Good. No Jacket as Issued. CK3-A first printing trade paperback book SIGNED by author in very good condition that has some bumped corners, lightly cocked, light discoloration and shelf wear. 9"x5.5", 62 pages. Satisfaction Guaranteed.
Add this copy of Family Gathering: Poems to cart. $9.91, very good condition, Sold by Midtown Scholar Bookstore rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Harrisburg, PA, UNITED STATES, published 2000 by Louisiana State Univ Pr.
Add this copy of Family Gathering to cart. $10.00, like new condition, Sold by Abacus Bookshop rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Pittsford, NY, UNITED STATES, published 2000 by Louisiana State University P.
Add this copy of Family Gathering: Poems to cart. $10.00, like new condition, Sold by Murphy-Brookfield Books rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Iowa City, IA, UNITED STATES, published 2000 by Louisiana State Univ Pr.
Add this copy of Family Gathering Poems to cart. $12.50, like new condition, Sold by Always Superior Books rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Marietta, GA, UNITED STATES, published 2000 by LSU Press.
Add this copy of Family Gathering: Poems to cart. $12.82, good condition, Sold by Goodwill of Silicon Valley rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from San Jose, CA, UNITED STATES, published 2000 by LSU Press.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Supports Goodwill of Silicon Valley job training programs. The cover and pages are in Good condition! Any other included accessories are also in Good condition showing use. Use can included some highlighting and writing page and cover creases as well as other types visible wear.
Add this copy of Conservative Conservationist: Russell E. Train and the to cart. $12.99, new condition, Sold by rockyblue rated 3.0 out of 5 stars, ships from GLADWIN, MI, UNITED STATES, published 2000 by LSU Press.
