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The Fun of It

Stories from The Talk of the Town

Stories from The Talk of the Town

By E. B. White, James Thurber and John Updike
Introduction by David Remnick
Edited by Lillian Ross

By E. B. White, James Thurber and John Updike
Introduction by David Remnick
Edited by Lillian Ross

By E. B. White, James Thurber and John Updike
Introduction by David Remnick
Edited by Lillian Ross

By E. B. White, James Thurber and John Updike
Introduction by David Remnick
Edited by Lillian Ross

Best Seller
Paperback $27.00

May 01, 2001 | ISBN 9780375756498

Ebook $5.99

Dec 18, 2007 | ISBN 9780307432230

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    The Fun of It by E. B. White, James Thurber and John Updike
    Paperback $27.00
    May 01, 2001 | ISBN 9780375756498

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    • Paperback $27.00

      May 01, 2001 | ISBN 9780375756498

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      Dec 18, 2007 | ISBN 9780307432230

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    About The Fun of It

    William Shawn once called The Talk of the Town the soul of the magazine. The section began in the first issue, in 1925. But it wasn’t until a couple of years later, when E. B. White and James Thurber arrived, that the Talk of the Town story became what it is today: a precise piece of journalism that always gets the story and has a little fun along the way.

    The Fun of It is the first anthology of Talk pieces that spans the magazine’s life. Edited by Lillian Ross, the longtime Talk reporter and New Yorker staff writer, the book brings together pieces by the section’s most original writers. Only in a collection of Talk stories will you find E. B. White visiting a potter’s field; James Thurber following Gertrude Stein at Brentano’s; Geoffrey Hellman with Cole Porter at the Waldorf Towers; A. J. Liebling on a book tour with Albert Camus; Maeve Brennan ventriloquizing the long-winded lady; John Updike navigating the passageways of midtown; Calvin Trillin marching on Washington in 1963; Jacqueline Onassis chatting with Cornell Capa; Ian Frazier at the Monster Truck and Mud Bog Fall Nationals; John McPhee in virgin forest; Mark Singer with sixth-graders adopting Hudson River striped bass; Adam Gopnik in Flatbush visiting the ìgrandest theatre devoted exclusively to the movies; Hendrik Hertzberg pinning down a Sulzberger on how the Times got colorized; George Plimpton on the tennis court with Boris Yeltsin; and Lillian Ross reporting good little stories for more than forty-five years. They and dozens of other Talk contributors provide an entertaining tour of the most famous section of the most famous magazine in the world.

    About The Fun of It

    William Shawn once called The Talk of the Town the soul of the magazine. The section began in the first issue, in 1925. But it wasn’t until a couple of years later, when E. B. White and James Thurber arrived, that the Talk of the Town story became what it is today: a precise piece of journalism that always gets the story and has a little fun along the way.

    The Fun of It is the first anthology of Talk pieces that spans the magazine’s life. Edited by Lillian Ross, the longtime Talk reporter and New Yorker staff writer, the book brings together pieces by the section’s most original writers. Only in a collection of Talk stories will you find E. B. White visiting a potter’s field; James Thurber following Gertrude Stein at Brentano’s; Geoffrey Hellman with Cole Porter at the Waldorf Towers; A. J. Liebling on a book tour with Albert Camus; Maeve Brennan ventriloquizing the long-winded lady; John Updike navigating the passageways of midtown; Calvin Trillin marching on Washington in 1963; Jacqueline Onassis chatting with Cornell Capa; Ian Frazier at the Monster Truck and Mud Bog Fall Nationals; John McPhee in virgin forest; Mark Singer with sixth-graders adopting Hudson River striped bass; Adam Gopnik in Flatbush visiting the ìgrandest theatre devoted exclusively to the movies; Hendrik Hertzberg pinning down a Sulzberger on how the Times got colorized; George Plimpton on the tennis court with Boris Yeltsin; and Lillian Ross reporting good little stories for more than forty-five years. They and dozens of other Talk contributors provide an entertaining tour of the most famous section of the most famous magazine in the world.

    Read An Excerpt

    Read An Excerpt

    About E. B. White

    E. B. White, the author of such beloved classics as Charlotte’s Web, Stuart Little, and The Trumpet of the Swan, was born in… More about E. B. White

    About James Thurber

    The Modern Library has played a significant role in American cultural life for the better part of a century. The… More about James Thurber

    About John Updike

    JOHN UPDIKE is the author of more than sixty books, eight of them collections of poetry. His novels won the… More about John Updike

    About E. B. White

    E. B. White, the author of such beloved classics as Charlotte’s Web, Stuart Little, and The Trumpet of the Swan, was born in… More about E. B. White

    About James Thurber

    The Modern Library has played a significant role in American cultural life for the better part of a century. The… More about James Thurber

    About John Updike

    JOHN UPDIKE is the author of more than sixty books, eight of them collections of poetry. His novels won the… More about John Updike

    Product Details

    Category: Literary Collections | Literary Criticism | History | Nonfiction Classics

    Paperback | $27.00
    Published by Modern Library
    May 01, 2001 | 512 Pages | 6 x 9 | ISBN 9780375756498

    Category: Literary Collections | Literary Criticism | History | Nonfiction Classics

    Ebook | $5.99
    Published by Modern Library
    Dec 18, 2007 | 512 Pages | ISBN 9780307432230

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