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Joyce Carol Oates
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The Assignation: Stories (Perennial Fictional Library) Paperback – January 1, 1989

by Joyce Carol Oates (Author)
4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 20 ratings
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Forty-four short, compact stories by a contemporary master of the genre build from simple setting to enormous emotional intensity
Previous page
  1. Part of series
    Perennial Fictional Library
  2. Print length
    195 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    Harpercollins
  5. Publication date
    January 1, 1989
  6. Dimensions
    5.25 x 0.5 x 8 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    0060972467
  8. ISBN-13
    978-0060972462
  9. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In 44 short narratives, "Oates has captured precisely an essential presence and instant in the lives of her characters," commented PW. " Logical as daydreams, with endings similarly as interrupted or unforeseen, these stories reveal a master of the form, writing at her efficient, full-tilt best ."
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From the Publisher

"Vintage Oates . . . short, sharp shots . . . from the master of moody foreboding."--Kirkus Reviews. "If the phrase 'woman of letters' existed, she would be, foremost in this country, entitled to it."--John Updike.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Harpercollins; Reprint edition (January 1, 1989)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 195 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0060972467
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0060972462
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 6.8 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.25 x 0.5 x 8 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 20 ratings

About the author

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Joyce Carol Oates

Joyce Carol Oates

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Joyce Carol Oates is the author of more than 70 books, including novels, short story collections, poetry volumes, plays, essays, and criticism, including the national bestsellers We Were the Mulvaneys and Blonde. Among her many honors are the PEN/Malamud Award for Excellence in Short Fiction and the National Book Award. Oates is the Roger S. Berlind Distinguished Professor of the Humanities at Princeton University, and has been a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters since 1978.

Customer reviews

4.8 out of 5 stars
4.8 out of 5
20 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

AJP
5.0 out of 5 stars Worth reading
Reviewed in the United States on September 16, 2018
Verified Purchase
I'm a long-time JCO fan, and this is more of her great work.
Short stories, some very short (less than a page).
Worth reading.
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Clare West
5.0 out of 5 stars She somehow puts the content and emotional draw of a novel into a two or 3 page story - amazing and powerful work
Reviewed in the United States on March 1, 2016
Verified Purchase
The strongest collection of short (very short) stories that I have read in a long time. She somehow puts the content and emotional draw of a novel into a two or 3 page story - amazing and powerful work!
2 people found this helpful
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R. Russell Bittner
5.0 out of 5 stars “I know how to hurt you…” (p. 159)
Reviewed in the United States on October 14, 2017
Let me begin by saying that this collection of very short short stories by Joyce Carol Oates is a difficult one to review. It’s difficult not because Ms. Oates’ writing is flawed—far from it—but difficult because the writing is sui generis, one of a kind.

Perhaps it’s best to quote a little bit of Ms. Oates herself from her Afterword (pp. 193 – 195). “With two or three exceptions, the prose fictions of THE ASSIGNATION are not short stories but ‘miniature narratives’ … radical distillations of story.” Indeed, one or two of her shorts are examples of what we now call ‘micro-fiction.’

But apart from the length (or brevity) of these narratives, Ms. Oates uses other devices to arrest our attention on the page, among which is an outright omission of standard punctuation. In the hands of a lesser writer, this device could be deadly—or at the very least, annoying. But with Ms. Oates’s narrative fiction, I found it to be quite effective. Although most of my reading of this short tome was accomplished either on a bus or on a subway as I went about my daily job, and although commutation in NYC is rarely blessed with library silence (for that matter, NYC libraries these rambunctious and distraction-filled days are rarely blessed with library silence), I never lacked concentration. In fact, I had the impression on numerous occasions that I’d stopped breathing from one paragraph-length sentence to the next.

The entire collection (which I found laid to rest on a stoop here in Brooklyn) is well worth reading. But if you want to run a little test drive before you jump in and buckle up, allow me to suggest both (or either of) “Superstitious” (pp. 129 – 133) and “A Sentimental Encounter” (pp. 134 – 138). You won’t be disappointed.

When it comes to the art of short story-writing in the larger category of American Letters, I would like to nominate Joyce Carol Oates queen, and T. C. Boyle king. I’m just not sure I’d like to see them sitting side by side on the same throne. (Not good for library silence.)

RRB
14 October 2017
Brooklyn, NY
One person found this helpful
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Jennifer
4.0 out of 5 stars GREAT book.
Reviewed in the United States on August 1, 2014
Verified Purchase
Great book. I love Joyce Carol Oates.
3 people found this helpful
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Nicole Guerrero
5.0 out of 5 stars A modern mastermind of the human experience
Reviewed in the United States on June 15, 2005
A small collection of short stories, some even shorter, vignettes, I suppose one could say, always in the vein of a slice of a person's life; however, Oates manages to find those things that really get to the heart of us. The volume has a theme, of secrecy, of trysts, rendezvous; the things one keeps closest to oneself, and does not like to let the too-harsh daylight shine upon them.
11 people found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Assignation
Reviewed in the United States on July 26, 2000
This book is my all-time favorite Oates book. I've read it years ago and find myself re-reading it from time to time. In this collection of short stories, Oates finds a way to drive home the utter despair of the human condition. "A Touch of the Flu" twisted my insides and gave me that sick feeling I get when I think about death. My favorite story is "In Traction"-- the hopelessness of the character A. is completely beyond help. Oates is absolutely the master of horror when it comes to daily life and she magically transfers those utterly private and personal feelings onto paper and exposes them grotesquely for the world to see. EXCELLENT!
29 people found this helpful
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Nicole
5.0 out of 5 stars Typical Oates
Reviewed in the United States on March 28, 2000
The Assignation is filled with often startling and honest glimpses into the interesting moments of everyday life. Realistic to the point of being grotesque, this collection of stories is typical Oates--beautiful yet piercing. From a woman's yearly physical ("Pinch") to an ironic tour through a fallout shelter ("Shelter") Oates, as always, challenges her readers to think!
12 people found this helpful
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Pamela Scott
3.0 out of 5 stars Not one of her best collections
Reviewed in the United States on July 25, 2016
I have wishy-washy feelings about the stories in The Assignation. JCO knows how to write with brutal honesty that can be uncomfortable at times. One of the things that makes me a huge admirer of her work is her ability to write fiction that makes me feel like someone has sliced off the top of my head and is prodding my brain matter. This is a good thing. JCO constantly surprises, stuns and shocks me in equal measures. Except she never really does this in The Assignation. I just didn’t feel the love vibe with most of these very short stories. The main theme of this collection is love in its darker guise, a theme she uses repeatedly and usually in a way that blows my mind. It fell a bit flat this time around. I’m finding it hard to convey just what didn’t work. Maybe I’m just not a fan of short, short fiction. Some stories work really well such as One Flesh, The Boy, Sharpshooting, Mule, A Touch of the Flu and In Traction. These were excellent stories. The vast majority of the others were just okay. I’ve read stories a lot worse but I’ve also read much better, many of these by JCO. The Assignation isn’t one of her best collections. I’d recommend it for fans of short, short fiction of JCO complestitsts.
One person found this helpful
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