Stills (Arab American Writing) - Softcover

Hazo, Samuel John

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0815605374 ISBN 13: 9780815605379

Publisher: Syracuse University Press, 1998

Synopsis

A haunting and powerful novel of love in the storm of 1980s terrorist politics, Stills brings us to the core of one photographer's shattering experience in Beirut, revealing the heart of his very personal and dangerous profession.

When Louise, a young film producer, takes on the job of documenting the life of boy wonder photojournalist Bede Baxter, he has been missing in Lebanon for three months and is presumed dead. When she visits his house and puts herself in the midst of his most private concerns, she imagines she is in love with him: his talent, his sometimes cold, sometimes sensitive, reporter's soul. That is, until the unexpected happens.

The scene is then set for an unusual relationship, as Louise shifts the focus of her documentary from Baxter's life to his continued search for the "perfect" photo. In reaching for that elusive, career making picture, Baxter is willing to risk his life―and, it soon becomes clear―Louise's as well.

About this title

About the Author

Samuel Hazo is director and president of the International Poetry Forum and professor emeritus of English at Duquesne University. He is the author of several novels as well as poetry collections, including Silence Spoken Here, and Once far the Last Bandit, which was nominated for a National Book Award in 1973. He lives in Pittsburgh.

From Publishers Weekly

A great novel could surely be written about the risks taken by photojournalists pursuing their craft during wartime, but Hazo has not written it. His prose style is a perfect example of portentousness masquerading as profundity. His descriptions and analyses of Lebanon--where much of the novel takes place--are superficial, and the plot is negligible. Bede Baxter is an American photographer missing in Lebanon, presumed dead. He becomes the subject of a memorial documentary by Louise, who promptly falls in love with him, only to have him resurface unexpectedly--providing the novel with a few grains of emotional grist. Bede's first wife, Mercedes, has been conveniently killed in Lebanon, while Louise's ex--a sportswear salesman--pops up every so often to give the story a twist. The stage is set for Bede and Louise's courtship, in which they display as much passion as a couple of tripods. Spliced into the story at irregular intervals is an inexplicable account of a trombone-toting terrorist lurking in an airport. Dreary stretches of tape-recorded narrative, murky criticisms of U.S. foreign policy and soulful chit-chat about art don't build narrative momentum.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Syracuse University Press
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0815605374
• ISBN 13: 9780815605379
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 181