The New Oxford Book of English Prose - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0192142461 ISBN 13: 9780192142467

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 1998

Synopsis

Prose, strictly defined, is the ordinary form of spoken or written language. Examples of solid prose are not difficult to come by: a well argued legal judgment, a lucid scientific paper, or a readily grasped set of technical instructions. Inspired prose, however, is a much rarer thing. In The New Oxford Book of English Prose, John Gross has gathered together those rare jewels of the English language that take plain prose to artistic heights.
The pared-down style of Hemingway didnt happen overnight. Beginning with Sir Thomas Malory and ending with Kazuo Ishiguro, this anthology chronologically traces the evolution of prose, which gained confidence and extended its range in the late seventeenth century. It wasnt until the eighteenth century, however, that the ornate style of literary giants like Milton and Donne gave way to prose that was recognizably modern. The material included in this anthology is literary, but literary, as the editor states in the introduction, is not the narrow term that it is often made to beit embraces an enormous range of experience and response. The New Oxford Book of English Prose pays tribute to literatures vibrant diversity by offering glimpses of master craftsmanship from around the globe. Included here are excerpts from writers of such varied backgrounds as Salman Rushdie, Margaret Atwood, Vladimir Nabokov, and Mulk Raj Anand.
From the eloquent political treatises of Burke to the bold narrative strokes of Herman Melville, readers will find that the selections contained within this volume superbly illustrate the expressive powers of prose.

About this title

About the Author

John Gross is former editor of the TLS and currently theatre critic of the Sunday Telegraph, and reviews widely. He has previously edited the Oxford Books of Aphorisms (1983), Essays (1991), and Comic Verse (1994).

Reviews

This new anthology of writing in English proves to be much more than a revision of the Oxford Book of English Prose. Gross, a journalist and editor of the Oxford Books of Aphorisms (1987), Essays (LJ 2/1/91), and Comic Verse (1994), collects some of the same authors, but he makes different selections. Gross bases his choices on their literary, not historical, significance, and his attempt to be international in his selections is the strength of this anthology. Of the over 490 authors included, 21 percent are American, and 11 percent hail from countries such as Ireland, Canada, Australia, India, South Africa, and Nigeria. Additionally, 12 percent of the writers represented are women, and 20th-century writers are included. Writers' nationalities are indicated in the index. This work has more breadth than The Macmillan Anthology of English Prose (1994). Recommended for public and academic libraries.?Shana C. Fair, Ohio Univ. Lib., Zanesville
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 1998
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0192142461
• ISBN 13: 9780192142467
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 1054
• Editor: Gross John