Bibliograph

The Jules Verne steam balloon:, nine stories, Guy Davenport

Type

Label

The Jules Verne steam balloon:, nine stories, Guy Davenport

Language

eng

Index

no index present

Literary Form

fiction

Main title

The Jules Verne steam balloon:

Nature of contents

dictionaries

Responsibility statement

Guy Davenport

Sub title

nine stories

Summary

Guy Davenport's cerebral and innovative stories intricately assemble centuries' worth of images and ideas Guy Davenport's stories seamlessly illuminate his vast knowledge of theology, philosophy, botany, and art, in his singular style of finding harmony in the juxtaposition of different themes. Whether critiquing the politics of socialist realist art in "We Often Think of Lenin at the Clothespin Factory," revisiting biblical tales in "Jonah," or depicting an ancient Greek philosopher in "The Meadow," Davenport demonstrates his talent for blending high-minded ideas with literary wit.   Davenport's writing is at its most confident when the author weaves between time periods and ideas, such as when he revisits Descartes through the eyes of an ancient Greek skeptic in "Pyrrhon of Elis," wherein a doubting philosopher declares, "I may not be, I think"; or in "The Bicycle Rider," in which a doctoral student studying imagery of demons in the Gospels is visited by angelic spirits and attempts to save the life of a nihilistic prostitute. In these stories and the others collected in The Jules Verne Steam Balloon, Davenport's signature approach to culture and humanity is on bold display

Target audience

adult

Classification