Three Short Novels

By Wendell Berry

Book Overview

A compilation of three of the shorter of Wendell Berry's works of book-length fiction: Nathan Coulter (1960), Remembering (1990), and A World Lost (1996).

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1582432376
• ISBN13: 9781582432373
• Release Date: May 2003
• Publisher: Counterpoint
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.0" x 1.0" x 5.3"

Customer Reviews

at just the right time...

Wow. I read my first Wendell Berry Novel, and I'm virtually "speechless". The more I read, the more I had to read. Reading Wendell Berry is not only addictive, but deeply emotional. I fell in love with Port William, Kentucky and the wonderful characters to whom he introduced me. I literally could not put the book down. As soon as I finished the first novel I began reading the second and then the third. I knew I would be sad to finish reading, but I was compelled to read until I finished! Don't you hate that?!?! I found myself reading parts of the book over and over. I simply couldn't believe that someone could write the way Berry wrote. The words by themselves weren't powerful, but when put together in a sentence constructed by Wendell Berry, they became works of art that left me shaking my head, smiling, crying, or simply saying, "wow". I don't suppose everyone will like his writing. I've come to learn that it isn't books that are good or bad, but the soil into which they fall. This explains to me why someone will read a book and rave about it, while someone else will read it and fall asleep. The parable of the sower is not just true for the words of Jesus. Wendell Berry has fallen into the soil of my life at just the right time.

A Perfect Introduction

For those who know Wendell Berry only as a poet and/or environmentalist, this collection of three short works is a perfect introduction to his fiction which is an expansion on the poetry and centers on the same themes of relationships and devotion to the earth The first of the novels, "Nathan Coulter," is a coming of age story, and the first of Berry's Port William stories. It describes the relationship between Nathan and his brother, Tom, and their lives with their grandparents after the death of their mother. The second, "Remembering," is a denser, darker tale, focusing on Andy Catlett, an agricultural journalist and farmer, struggling to find himself after losing a hand (and his direction in life) in a farming accident. Reviewing his memories during a trip to an agricultural conference he is finally able to come to terms with the realities of his life and their value. This book is a testament to the virtues of the simple life Berry has been preaching for years. The third novel, "A World Lost," introduces us to the young Andy Catlett in the year his uncle and namesake is murdered, an incident which impacts his life to come. It is only when he is older and able to investigate the incident himself that he is able to learn the truth about his hero. Wallace Stegner wrote that he found it hard to say whether he liked Berry better as poet, essayist or novelist, that he is all three and at a high level. The man lives the life he writes about. The author of more than 30 books, he lives and farms with his family in Henry County, Kentucky.

Three's Delightful Company

A long time fan of Wendell Berry's poetry, I have truly enjoyed discovering the town of Port William and the lively characters that inhabit and haunt the land that Berry has crafted through various novels. "Three Short Novels" is a collection of some of his prize pieces, including 'Nathan Coulter', 'Remembering', and 'A World Lost'. All three novels stand on their own, but are interconnected in one book due to the fact that the lives of every character intermingles with that of others. 'Nathan Coulter' is a tender coming-of-age story, as our young narrator explores and explains his life and the world around him. Poetically we are told the ramblings and fights of Tom and Nathan, the two Coulter brothers raised by their grandparents after the death of their mother. Nathan is an honest and perceptive storyteller, revealing the innocent and wondering notions of a young boy's mind. 'Remembering' is a starker novel in contrast to the other two in the collection. It tells the story of a grown Andy Catlett, an agricultural journalist and farmer, trying to come to terms with a devestating injury. During the process of farming, he lost his right hand and struggles with both the physical demands of his deformity, as well as the psychological and emotional demands it places upon himself, and his family and friends. The novel shifts in perspective from past to present, fluctuating between Andy's memories, and his rememberings of the stories he has been told about his family and his town. The ending is bittersweet and poignant, as Andy returns home and comes to terms with the life he must now lead. After being introduced to the grown Andy Catlett in 'Remembering', readers are introduced to him as a boy in 'A World Lost'. In this novel he reminisces about his childhood and the idol of his younger days - Andrew Catlett, his uncle and namesake. When Andy was just a young boy of nine, his uncle was murdered and he accepted the story that had been fed him. He experiences his own grief as well as that of his family, all the while painting a vivid image of the wild man his uncle was. It isn't until his later years that Andy begins to question the story surrounding his uncle's murder, and searches out sources to learn the truth about the man he most admired. Berry's stories always unfold delicately. He has imagined the lives of every inhabitant of Port William and its surrounding communities so well that they come to life of their own initiative in the reader's mind. His novels are odes to a simpler time and life, to the relationship man should have with the earth, to the ties that bind all of us to each other. His novels are welcome escapes into a world that seems irrevocably lost. Berry offers readers the hope that this world could exist again.