McSweeney's Issue 4: Trying, Trying, Trying, Trying, Trying

McSweeney’s Quarterly Concern #4

by Dave Eggers (Editor)

This issue contains 312 pages, which is more than previous issues, though in this case the pages are not all bound together. This issue actually starts with a box, within which are fourteen separate booklets, most of the stories having been granted their own binding and color covers. They look very good.

Now, a rundown of the issue's contents:

Rachel Cohen: "A Chance Meeting"
[Poignant and illuminating discussion of a meeting that never happened -- between Willa Cather and Katherine Anne Porter. 16 pages]

George Saunders: "Four Institutional Monologues"
[A new story-cycle. 16 pages]

Ben Miller: "Dar(e)apy"
[Short story involving cooking oil and imminent fire. 16 pages]

Lawrence Weschler: "Two Further Convergences"
[Just as the title suggests. Includes two color foldouts. 8 pages]

Sheila Heti: "The Middle Tales"
[Five stories by this Toronto writer, who lives at home with her dad and brother. 16 pages]

Haruki Murakami: "Dabchick"
[Short story involving tunnels and passwords. 12 page]

Rick Moody: "The Double Zero"
[A cover version of Sherwood Anderson's "The Egg." 16 pages]

Jonathan Lethem: "K Is for Fake"
[A version of "The Trial." 16 pages]

Paul Maliszewski: "Paperback Nabokov"
[An investigative essay exploring that author's endless efforts, mostly in vain, to improve the covers of his books, in particular their paperback incarnations. With four color pages of rare paperback covers, and an appendix of related correspondence. 32 pages]

Paul Collins: "Symmes Hole"
[Another in Mr. Collins's series of profiles of history's notable (and failed) dreamers. This one recounts the life of a certain Mr. Symmes, who spent decades trying to convince the world that there was another, below our own, accessible via the North Pole. 16 pages]

Lydia Davis: "A Mown Lawn"
[A meditation on those three words. 8 pages, sort of]

Denis Johnson: "Hellhound on My Trail"
[A three-act play. Very hard to summarize. 80 pages]

Issue also contains a booklet, of 48 pages, which contains new, short work from these people, among others: Sarah Vowell, Arthur Bradford, Sean Wilsey, J. Robert Lennon, Amy Fusselman, Nicholas Laughlin, Dan Pope, Gabe Hudson, Marcy Dermansky, the very fine John Warner and a very funny piece by a Mr. Jason Eaton.

On the back cover is "More Notes on Revising Last Night's Dream," a perfect little thing by Ben Greenman.

There are also many drawings of ears and severed hands.

Thank you.

Genres: Fiction, Short Stories, Literature

Magazine

Published January 1, 2000

About the author

Dave Eggers is an American writer, editor, and publisher. He is best known for his 2000 memoir, A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, which became a bestseller and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction. Eggers is also the founder of several notable literary and philanthropic ventures, including the literary journal Timothy McSweeney's Quarterly Concern, the literacy project 826 Valencia, and the human rights nonprofit Voice of Witness. Additionally, he founded ScholarMatch, a program that connects donors with students needing funds for college tuition. His writing has appeared in numerous prestigious publications, including The New Yorker, Esquire, and The New York Times Magazine.

Reviews

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I recently wrote a short thing about Dave Eggers and then realized that I hadn't rated or reviewed the many issues of McSweeney's I've read. The early issues were especially influential and inspiring to me. This box issue = HOLY SHIT! Also, it seemed to announce, nonverbally, We're about to start fucking shit up right about now!

[andrew y · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are no words to describe reading a box of books.

[Greg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although not every piece was to my liking, this gets five stars for being McSweeney’s first foray into experimenting with the physical form of the journal. The product is spectacular and the non-theme of covers that ties it all together worked well. It is definitely neat to go back to some of these earlier issues and recognize that the quality and inventiveness were there from the beginning.

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've given myself permission to skip the letters section - far too witty by half. Otherwise enjoyable.

[A-ron · Rating 4 out of 5]

McSweeny's is usually a mixed bag, and this issue is no different. What I love most though is that they are always living by the subtitle of the issue, "trying, trying, trying..." This collection is not afraid to take chances and print off-kilter stories and essays. Sometimes they succeed wonderfully, others crash. Thankfully the latter is rarer. "Symmes Hole" was an interesting history of long debunked scientific theory. I found "The Double Zero" to a hilariously wacky. Other highlights include "The Middle Tales" and "The Paperback Nabokov", about the famous author's struggle to see his work accurately portrayed by their covers. I'd read two of the stories from "Four Institutional Monologues" before in a couple of Saunder's collections and both were among my favorites. Some of the very short works were quite good, especially the clever "Three picture deal".

[Jim Taone · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing. It is the "cover issue" of McSweeney's. 14 booklets in which the authors chose all the art for their covers (although Murakami didn't).
There is a "cover version" of "The Trial" and "The Egg" which are both great. A piece of non-fiction about Nabokov and his hand in the paperback artwork of his novels. While Haruki Murakami and Denis Johnson round out this amazing collection with great fiction pieces.

[Carla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding collection. McSweeney's is great for a book nerd, not only is it slavishly attentive to every sarcastic detail, it has amazing authors and content, and wonderfully printed and packaged publications, different every time.

[Christopher · Rating 3 out of 5]

I waited ten years to get a copy of this (they recently reprinted it) so my expectations were high....and it was so-so. I love the packaging but the stories were 50/50. I think my favorites were the letters, which says a lot.

[Kate Cares · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Murakami and Saunders stories are obviously fantastic but I was pleasantly surprised by how great the Jonathan Lethem story was.

[Lenore · Rating 4 out of 5]

such a beautiful and fun collection. i poured over it through the month of february.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Middle Tales
A Chance Meeting (for the quotes)
Dar(e)apy
Hellhound on My Trail
Four Institutional' Monologues

[David Markwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

McSweeney's Quarterly Concerns are always a good time and this reprint of issue #4 is no exception. I really enjoyed the pamphlet on the Hollow Earth Theory, and the Murakami story.