odradek

@ Ilfreddo: you should read the same stories in the version that was published at the time. I bought this as soon as it came out in the Italian translation, on the same day, and I still haven't read it. The publication of "Principianti" was indeed an editorial "case." The issue is less simple than it appears from what you write: it wasn't about "mutilations" as a coercive exercise on a work and a writer, because the relationship between Carver and his editor is very complex, and one should read the correspondence between the two and the many pages dedicated to the matter over the years by several literary "critics." Often, those who had the chance in the past to compare the original draft with the published version judged the editor's work to be excellent, capable of trimming and concentrating the material, giving it the definitive and unique imprint that made it a critical and commercial success. Now, what I know is that the "mutilated" stories are wonderful; I read them many years ago and reread them with a certain frequency (I have all the books by C. published in Italy), and that's why I'm waiting for the right time to "reread" these in their original form. I'm afraid it's like meeting a "revised" version of someone you thought you knew well... Of course, I'll do it, and maybe I'll come back to tell you what I think. For now, I allow myself to recommend all the other collections, which now seem to be published by Minimum Fax. Even in the "less successful" ones, you'll find something good. Small things with a dense and trembling heart. And sorry if that's not much. - P.S. And if you really have often encountered authors who mostly "mess around and stall to dazzle and surprise the reader in the end," I think you are rather unlucky, because even among American authors in the last 20 years, there are many who proceed quite differently. Not just among novelists but also among short story writers. Perhaps not up to expectations that are too lofty, as some here seem to have, but more than decent. Much more than decent. Don’t ask me for names: if I have time to think seriously about it, I'll send you a private message with some titles. Regards and kisses.

Very nice little page. Definitive closure. Five. I can do very well without the Brondi.

Well, I don’t care about aperitifs, but Parov Stelar has been making good records for a while now. If it also helps you with the chicks, good for you.

My favorite by Spacemen 3. To the point that the vinyl is so worn out it’s unlistenable: back then, my dealer was perhaps even better than theirs...

@PINHEAD: "Rainy Day" deserves half a point extra, and in fact, it’s related to this one in terms of mood as well.

Bellino, every now and then I have him take another spin in the player. - Naturally, the first album is the excellent "Happy Nightmare Baby" and not Northern Line. And of course the 5 balls are exaggerated for an album that, in my opinion, deserves an honorable 3.5 considering that it is indeed a compilation of material representing a more "soft" side of a band that will give its best in the mentioned album.

True, what a sieve of memory...

@IMASOULMAN: how come you were at Massaua? Are you from Turin too? And why do you call me vater? Anyway, I don't have the one from the Knitters, but I'll find it now.

Done.

A risk we do not take. Moving on, I just finished downloading one of the two box sets from Deutsche ("111 Years Of Excellence") that I didn’t dare buy and now found on a blog. Might it be of interest?