The Largesse of the Sea Maiden: Stories

　　本書是國家書卷獎得主、兩度問鼎普立茲獎的Denis Johnson，在《Jesus’ Son》出版二十五年後推出的第二本短篇故事集，文字精彩，並展現了深刻的人性。Johnson經常描寫命運不幸的角色──酒鬼、竊賊、厭世的士兵等，在這部作品中，他拓展了書寫的範圍，直視過去的鬼魂與宇宙難以捉摸的運行方式。



　　在同名作品〈The Largesse of the Sea Maiden〉中，一名即將退休的成功廣告人提供了一連串關於死去或失蹤的熟人的描述，從而思索著關於藝術、人生和正直誠實的問題；〈Strangler Bob〉中，一個名叫Dink的年輕男子，落得被關進拘留所的下場，在那裡，他遇見了一群同樣任性、固執的人，這是他以既嚴肅又滑稽的語氣訴說的人生故事；〈The Starlight on Idaho〉是由康復中的酗酒者Mark Cassandra的一連串書信構築而成，這些信件是寫給所有在他人生中扮演重要角色的人──他的手足、醫生們、撒旦──同時他思索著可以如何導正他自我毀滅的傾向；而〈Triumph Over the Grave〉，則是一位上了年紀、獨自生活的作家，講述了一個關於他死去的好友們的曲折故事；在〈Doppelgänger, Poltergeist〉裡，一名教授與一名學生的長久友誼，將他牽扯進那名學生對於貓王之死的瘋狂陰謀論之中。



　　這本書是一部經典之作，充分展現了Johnson為黑暗和世俗的一切注入幽默感、深度以及美的獨特能力。他筆下的角色們被推到邊緣，透過他們對人生意義的追尋，或者只是試圖緊緊抓住生活的掙扎，Johnson道出了活著、懷抱希望的意義為何。Johnson於這部作品完成不久後逝世，本書是這位作家生命中最後的聲音，而他動人的文字將長久地留存下去。(文/博客來編譯)

Twenty-five years after Jesus' Son, a haunting new collection of short stories on mortality and transcendence, from National Book Award winner and two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist Denis Johnson

NATIONAL BESTSELLER - NAMED ONE OF THE TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY Dwight Garner, The New York Times - Maureen Corrigan, NPR's Fresh Air - Chicago Tribune- Newsday - New York - AV Club - Publishers Weekly

"Ranks with the best fiction published by any American writer during this short century."--New York

"A posthumous masterpiece."--Entertainment Weekly

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The New York Times Book Review - The Washington Post - NPR - The Boston Globe - New York Public Library - Kirkus Reviews - Bloomberg

The Largesse of the Sea Maiden is the long-awaited new story collection from Denis Johnson. Written in the luminous prose that made him one of the most beloved and important writers of his generation, this collection finds Johnson in new territory, contemplating the ghosts of the past and the elusive and unexpected ways the mysteries of the universe assert themselves.

Finished shortly before Johnson's death, this collection is the last word from a writer whose work will live on for many years to come.

Praise for The Largesse of the Sea Maiden

"An instant classic."--Newsday

"Exceptional luminosity . . . hits a powerful vein."--TheNew York Times Book Review

"Grace and oblivion are inextricably yoked in these transcendent stories. . . . Johnson's] gift is to extract the beauty in all that brokenness."--TheWall Street Journal

"Nobody ever wrote like Denis Johnson. Nobody ever came close. . . . We're just left with this miraculous book, these perfect stories, the last words from one of the world's greatest writers."--NPR

Denis Johnson was the author of nine novels, one novella, two books of short stories, five collections of poetry, two collections of plays, and one book of reportage. Among other honors, his novel Tree of Smoke won the 2007 National Book Award and was a finalist for the 2007 Pulitzer Prize, and Train Dreams was a finalist for the 2012 Pulitzer Prize.