Cabbages and Kings

Henry, O

ISBN 10: 1470888351 ISBN 13: 9781470888350

Publisher: Blackstone Publishing, 2013

Synopsis

O. Henry wove several stories together into this highly episodic narrative, taking his title and inspiration from Lewis Carroll's poem "The Walrus and the Carpenter" in Alice in Wonderland. The stories are set in the fictional country of Anchuria in Central America, a banana republic where larceny is rampant and revolution is lurking in every impoverished back alley. O. Henry offers a cutting satire of contemporary politics and prejudices. Nevertheless, an essential middle-class morality prevails, in which lovers are reunited, poverty obliterated, character rewarded, and sentiment satisfied.

About this title

About the Author

O. Henry (1862-1910), born William Sydney Porter in Greensboro, North Carolina, was a short-story writer whose tales romanticized the commonplace, in particular, the lives of ordinary people in New York City. His stories often had surprise endings, a device that became identified with his name. He began writing sketches around 1887, and his stories of adventure in the Southwest United States and in Central America were immediately popular with magazine readers.

From AudioFile

Those with fond sentiment for O. Henry's short stories should understand why this is his only novel. Although there are some trademark plot twists and well-crafted character sketches, the effect is muted by the rambling, cobbled together style. These loosely related tales of scamps and underdogs in an unstable Central American republic contain some clever images, as well as some dated, derogatory language. Lloyd James navigates this murky area admirably, de-emphasizing the crude name-calling by voicing it largely without malice. He simply speaks the vernacular as naturally as he creates the characters' accents. James's agile pacing and overall breezy approach work favorably on this insubstantial material. D.J. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine

Edition details

• Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 1470888351
• ISBN 13: 9781470888350
• Binding: Audio CD
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 6