The Pacific, and Other Stories Lib/E

Review As ambitious and imaginative as any of Helprin's past works...These are sturdy, rewarding stories from a master of the form.-- "Publishers Weekly"Especially satisfying...fine character studies...Highly recommended.-- "Library Journal"Helprin is a man of the world deeply concerned with valor, integrity, discipline, intelligence, and honor, themes explored with verve in this radiant collection.-- "Booklist, starred review"Helprin reaffirms his place as our most elegant moralist...[His] range is staggering.-- "Entertainment Weekly"Mark Helprin just might be the most romantic writer in America.-- "Washington Post"There is plenty of magic here...in a prose that is as glassy and smooth as amber.-- "Los Angeles Times" Product Description Almost ten years since his last book, Mark Helprin returns with a collection of sixteen stories that display the remarkable scope, incomparable wit, and deft prose that are his signature. A British paratrooper jumps into occupied territory in order to reconnoiter enemy positions, but a roof breaks his fall; shattered physically, he must decide the extent of his devotion to his mission. The 1958 New York Yankees gain an unexpected teammate in a puny, teenage Hasidic Jew whom God has called to rescue the House of Ruth. In 1972, a female reservist in the Israeli Army who has despaired of love finds it at the very last minute, while floating in the sea off Haifa. The Pacific is an engulfing collection of lasting substance and emotional depth. About the Author Mark Helprin is the acclaimed author of Winter's Tale, A Soldier of the Great War, Freddy and Fredericka, In Sunlight and in Shadow, Memoir from Antproof Case, and numerous other works, including four that made the New York Times bestsellers list. His novels are translated into over twenty languages and read around the world. He was educated at Harvard, Princeton, and Oxford and served in the Israeli Army, Israeli Air Force, and British Merchant Navy. William Dufris attended the University of Southern Maine in Portland-Gorham before pursuing a career in voice work in London and then the United States. He has won more than twenty AudioFile Earphones Awards, was voted one of the Best Voices at the End of the Century by AudioFile magazine, and won the prestigious Audie Award in 2012 for best nonfiction narration. He lives with his family in Maine. From AudioFile William Dufris, winner of nine AudioFile Earphones Awards and a frequent Audie Award finalist, delivers an excellent performance of these 16 short stories. Written between 1982 and 2004, they cover war, love, death, devotion, and regret in many places--from London to Hawaii, Haifa to Florida. Some of the stories are more polished than others, some more believable. All are entertaining. Dufris offers first-rate accents and idiosyncratic speech patterns for the wide range of characters in combinations that help reveal personality and motivation. His readings are always careful and respectful of the material. R.E.K. © AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine