Rate this book

Important Artifacts And Personal Property From The Collection Of Lenore Doolan And Harold Morris, Including Books, Street Fashion, And Jewelry (2009)

by Leanne Shapton(Favorite Author)

3.86 of 5 Votes: 1

ISBN

0374175306 (ISBN13: 9780374175306)

languge

English

genre

Romance

publisher

Sarah Crichton Books

review 1: The title is very nearly as long as the book; at 129 pages the volume barely makes it to book length. It’s constructed uniquely: it’s an auction catalog for the possessions of a couple, Lenore and Harold. She’s in her 20s, he’s in his 30s. They are hipsters who dress in vintage clothing and use precious vintage accessories. He’s a photographer, she’s a food columnist. We find that he considers his work art and very important and serious, while he considers her writing silly and unimportant. Through the book we see the couple get together, live together for a while, and fall apart. The author does this through not just their objects but through notes; him to her, her to him, her to her sister. Very short, spare notes, but still, they manage to convey the story. ... moreYou wouldn’t think you could connect to a character with that few words, but I did find myself feeling a little sorry for Lenore. It’s kind of a fun book to go through. This length is probably all that the format could sustain; it’s not a format for nuance and depth. I enjoyed it, but I’m glad I didn’t buy it but read the library copy.
review 2: I’m not usually a big experimental fiction reader but as a huge Leanne Shapton fan I gave Important Artifacts and Personal Property From the Collection of Lenore Doolan and Harold Morris Including Books, Street Fashion, and Jewelry a shot. Important Artifacts tells a love story from start to finish in the form of items in an auction catalog, with little more than photos of the items and brief descriptions of said artifacts painting the details. It sounds like it would be hard to glean much from an index of belongings, but it’s amazing how much is said by the objects left over, how the things left behind can inform our stories. Seemingly innocuous items are injected with a lingering meaning, tied to memories and experiences. A forgotten t-shirt in a drawer or stray sock under the bed can be as powerful as words.A surprise bonus was that Sheila Heti, author of How Should a Person Be? stars as the female love interest in photos of the couples. I loved this book, definitely recommend. less

Download links for: Important Artifacts and Personal Property from the Collection of Lenore Doolan and Harold Morris, Including Books, Street Fashion, and Jewelry

Advertising