Meet New Books
Book Cover

The Portable Dorothy Parker

Save:
Find on Amazon

'The Portable Dorothy Parker' is a compilation that delves into the life and writings of Dorothy Parker, showcasing her witty and humorous yet poignant style. The book includes a variety of content such as short stories, light verse, articles, letters, and reviews, offering readers a deep insight into Parker's thoughts and character. Through her writings, Parker addresses themes of pain, self-doubt, and societal critique, all wrapped in her unique blend of humor and wisdom.

The book not only presents Parker's well-known witticisms but also reveals her talent for character studies and her ability to tackle social issues with irony and insight. Readers can expect a mix of amusing, moving, and thought-provoking pieces that showcase Parker's sharp eye, witty tongue, and ability to balance humor with depth in her writing.

Characters:

The characters in her works are multi-dimensional, often depicted with irony and depth, evoking both humor and sympathy.

Writing/Prose:

The prose style is characterized by wit, incisive irony, and vivid, often humorous imagery that conveys both humor and underlying bitterness.

Plot/Storyline:

The work is primarily an anthology that explores social themes and presents character studies through a collection of poetry, short stories, essays, and reviews.

Setting:

The setting is primarily early 20th century America, highlighting the social dynamics and issues prevalent during that time.

Pacing:

The pacing varies, switching between shorter poems and longer narratives, which helps keep the reader engaged throughout.

Notes:

The Portable Dorothy Parker showcases both her poetry and short stories.
Her short stories often focus on character studies rather than humor.
Dorothy Parker had a unique bitter tone in her writing.
She believed Hemingway was a genius for his selective writing style.
The book includes Parker's theatrical and literary reviews from her era.
Parker's famous poem "Resume" touches on themes of despair and irony.
She had a sharp wit that revealed pretentiousness and hypocrisy.
Parker addressed issues like racism, women's rights, and social independence in her writings.
Her short story "Big Blonde" is noted for its depth and character insights.
Her reviews are often blunt and humorous, famously calling one play "lousy."
Parker's work is still appreciated today for its intelligence and insight.

Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings

Medium content warnings are present due to themes of mental health, depression, and societal critique.

Has Romance?

There is a medium level of romance explored in the themes of love and relationships throughout her poetry and stories.

From The Publisher:

The second revision in sixty years, this sublime collection ranges over the verse, stories, essays, and journalism of one of the twentieth century's most quotable authors.

The introduction of two new sections is intended to provide the richest possible sense of Parker herself. "Self-Portrait" reprints an interview she did in 1956 with The Paris Review, part of a famed ongoing series of conversations ("Writers at Work") conducted with the best of twentieth-century writers.

"Letters: 1905-1962," which might be subtitled "Mrs. Parker Completely Uncensored," presents correspondence written over the period of a half century, beginning in 1905 when twelve-year-old Dottie wrote her father during a summer vacation on Long Island, and concluding with a 1962 missive from Hollywood describing her fondness for Marilyn Monroe.

Features an introduction by Marion Meade and cover illustrations by renowned graphic artist Seth, creator of the comic series Palooka-ville

Ratings (2)

Loved It (2)

Reader Stats (3):

Read It (2)
Want To Read (1)

1 comment(s)

Loved It
1 year

I loved this book. There was just enough comedy in it to give a fresh take on things, but not to much so as to make light of them. Dorothy Parker has a talent for rhyme and reason.

 

About the Author:

Dorothy Parker was born in West End, New Jersey, in 1893 and grew up in New York, attending a Catholic convent school and Miss Dana's School in Morristown, New Jersey. In 1916 she sold some of her poetry to the editor of Vogue, and was subsequently given an editorial position on the magazine, writing captions for fashion photographs and drawings. She then became drama critic of Vanity Fair and the central figure of the celebrated Algonquin Round Table.

Famous for her spoken wit, she showed the same trenchant commentary in her book reviews for The New Yorker and Esquire and in her poems and sketches. Her collection of poems included Not So Deep as a Well and Enough Rope, which became a bestseller; and her collections of stories included Here Lies. She also collaborated with Elmer Rice on a play, Close Harmony and with Arnaud d'Usseau on the play the Ladies of the Corridor. She herself had two Broadway plays written about her and was portrayed as a character in a third. Her cynicism and the concentration of her judgements were famous and she has been closely associated with modern urbane humour.

Her first husband was Edwin Pond Parker II, and although they were divorced some years later, she continued to use his name, which she much preferred to her own of Rothschild. Her second husband was an actor-writer Alan Campbell. They went to Hollywood as a writing team and went through a tempestuous marriage until his death in 1963, when Dorothy Parker returned to New York. She died in 1967.

Marion Meade is the author of Dorothy Parker: What Fresh Hell Is This? and Bobbed Hair and Bathtub Gin: Writers Running Wild in the Twenties. She has also written biographies of Woody Allen, Buster Keaton, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Victoria Woodhull, and Madame Blavatsky, as well as two novels about medieval France.

Seth is an illustrator whose work has been featured in such publications as the Washington Post, Details, Spin, and the New York Times. He is best known for his continuing comic book series Palooka-Ville.

 
Meet New Books is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a way for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to products and services on amazon.com and its subsidiaries.
When you click the Amazon link and make a purchase, we may receive a small commision, at no cost to you.