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Product Description
James Nagel offers the first systematic history and definition of the short story cycle genre as exemplified in contemporary American fiction, bringing attention to the formats wide appeal among various ethnic groups. He examines in detail eight recent manifestations of the story cycle, all praised by critics while uniformly misidentified as novels: by Louise Erdrich; by Jamaica Kincaid; by Susan Minot; by Sandra Cisneros; by Tim OBrien; by Julia Alvarez; by Amy Tan; and by Robert Olen Butler. Nagel proposes that the short-story cycle, with its concentric as opposed to linear plot development possibilities, lends itself particularly well to exploring themes of ethnic assimilation, which mirror some of the major issues facing American society today.