Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

Short Cuts: Selected Stories
Short Cuts: Selected Stories
Short Cuts: Selected Stories
Audiobook5 hours

Short Cuts: Selected Stories

Written by Raymond Carver and Robert Altman

Narrated by Norman Dietz

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

4/5

()

About this audiobook

The nine stories and one poem in this volume formed the basis for the astonishingly original film Short Cuts, directed by Robert Altman. Collected altogether in this volume, these stories form a searing and indelible portrait of American innocence and loss. With deadpan humor and enormous tenderness, this is the work of "one of the true contemporary masters" (The New York Review of Books).
LanguageEnglish
Release dateJul 11, 2017
ISBN9781515984566
Short Cuts: Selected Stories
Author

Raymond Carver

(1939-1988) falleció en pleno reconocimiento de su carrera como narrador y poeta. Sus cuentos lo consagraron internacionalmente como uno de los maestros del género. En Anagrama se han publicado sus seis libros de relatos. ¿Quieres hacer el favor de callarte, por favor?, De qué hablamos cuando hablamos de amor, Catedral, Tres rosas amarillas y los póstumos Si me necesitas, llámame y Principiantes, además de la antología Short Cuts (Vidas cruzadas). Asimismo se ha publicado Carver Country, que contiene textos del autor (cuentos, poemas y cartas inéditas) y fotografías de Bob Adelman.

More audiobooks from Raymond Carver

Related to Short Cuts

Related audiobooks

Short Stories For You

View More

Related articles

Reviews for Short Cuts

Rating: 3.8896712582159627 out of 5 stars
4/5

213 ratings4 reviews

What did you think?

Tap to rate

Review must be at least 10 words

  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This has been sitting on my DVD shelf for a few years now as the Criterion companion to the movie. While I really enjoy the movie, I think I ended up buying it just because there was a book included in the packaging. And thank goodness...Carver might have continued to go undetected by me as--for the most part--all I've ever heard him discussed is a one sentence nod of approval in passing. Not that I could have predicted it, but I'm glad I've waited to read his work because I might not have appreciated it as much had I read it before this particular moment of my life...whatever that is.
    So this is a collection of his stories (plus one poem) that Robert Altman used in his film, which added a whole other level to my reading that I enjoyed. I usually like to read the book before I see the movie, but in this case I'm glad it went the other way around. It was fascinating to find what elements Altman used and their point of departure, and really I can't say that I enjoyed one more than the other in its own right. However, Carver's style really shines through...I love the open ends he leaves in his stories. In other authors' writing, this technique often seems to me like a cop out, a lazy solution for a plot they never quite thought out, but with Carver I feel a sense of certainty planted within what might seem ambiguous. Like this is where we close our eyes to go to sleep for the day, and even though the future likely will sling us every which way, at least we know tomorrow will come, even if maybe not for us...that much we may rely on.
    I give this four stars because this is Altman's selection of Carver. Now I want to read Carver's selection of Carver, the way he intended. I am enamored. I have been wooed. I am prepared to blissfully writhe in his stories like a pup when he finds that funky patch of grass in the park. Yeah.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    It was really interesting to go back to the volume of short stories to look again at the (post-Hemmingway) father of the contemporary short story. He really was a masterful writer, and I don't know too many authors who can capture the unease, trouble or human question behind a set of circumstances, or a relationship, with saying so little. All of these stories are uneasy in some way or another, mostly marriages in trouble, and Carver's characters tend to be alcohol-sodden and hard to like. But that said, such is humanity. I don't think all of these stories work, and some push the boundaries of weird for the sake of being weird (and not in a good way). But overall, a strong collection and well worth re-visiting considering the resurgence of the short story form. It's also really refreshing to read some "real" short stories amidst the surge of "magic realism" currently glutting the market.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This book probably represents the best half-dollar I ever spent at a yard sale. Raymond Carver wrote mostly short stories, and he is among the best short stories writers of the latter part of the 20th century. I had never heard of this book, although I have read several of the stories.Raymond Carver died at the young age of 50. He wrote five collections of stories, and five collections of poetry. His first published story appeared in a college literary journal, and his first book of poetry was published by a college press. His career was plagued with bankruptcies and alcoholism. The American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters awarded him a fellowship, which allowed him to write full time. At age 49, he was diagnosed with lung cancer, and despite radiation, chemo, and surgery, he died in August of 1988Robert Altman wrote the Introduction to Short Cuts, because he assembled a selection of nine Carver stories and a poem and made a film with the same title. Amazon should shortly process my order for the film.Each of these nine stories tells a tale of families and relationships. Individuals, who through fate, carelessness, accidents, and plain old stupidity, find themselves in a corner of dark shadows, fears, and stressful situations. Raymond Carver short stories often probe the psyche of men and women caught in uncomfortable positions. Most of these slice of life stories end up without resolution, as the character founders and struggles with the consequences of his or her own deeds.I do not have a single favorite. Unlike most collections of stories, Carver’s Short Cuts, has no lumps of coal. They are all gems. However, one story intrigued me slightly more than the others – “So Much Water So Close to Home.” In this intense story, four friends, bowl, play cards, drink, and a couple of times year, travel over 100 miles for a long weekend of fishing. One trip, however, will alter Stuart Kane’s life forever.Carver wrote, “On Friday afternoon these four men left for a three-day fishing trip to the Naches River. They parked the car in the mountains and hiked several miles to where they wanted to fish. They carried their bedrolls, food and cooking utensils, their playing cards, their whiskey. The first evening at the river, even before they could set up camp, Mel Dorn found the girl floating face down in the river, nude, lodged near the shore in some branches” (71).Imagine what happens next! All of these stories revolve around a crisis of some sort, and they all shatter lives and relationships. A nifty collection and a first-rate introduction to a master of the short story. 5 stars.--Jim, 12/31/12
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    We studied these stories in high school literature. I really enjoyed them at the time, though I'd love to re-read them again.