"The end of 'Esme'"
LR Pearson, Arts 99 (lp9616@bristol.ac.uk)
Fri, 26 Nov 1999 21:28:03 +0000 (GMT Standard Time)
On Fri, 26 Nov 1999 12:15:09 -0500 Tim O'Connor <oconnort@nyu.edu>
wrote:
> On Fri, Nov 26, 1999 at 10:08:24AM -0500, AntiUtopia@aol.com wrote:
>
> > waitaminute...the ending of Esme doesn't solve much? What Do You Mean?
>
> I think our subscriber is referring to a non-US version of Nine Stories,
> which were published (at least in the UK, as far as I know) under the
> title FOR ESME, WITH LOVE AND SQUALOR. So, that along with "not knowing
> what happened to the little boy," I would guess it's the last couple of
> pages of "Teddy" that are missing.
>
> Just an uneducated guess....
>
> --tim
Yup, Tim, you're right. It is only quite recently that I even realised
the title 'Nine Stories' existed, and I still prefer the English title
(maybe just because it's the one that "belongs" to me. Incidentally,
the copy I have is the one with a picture of "Esme" on the front - very
insipid and not at all how I imagine her. In fact, although I've seen
it referred to as being Esme, I always imagined that it was one of the
other female characters - maybe one of the women from "Uncle Wiggily in
Connecticut".
Not having the last two pages of "Teddy" puts the story in a completely
different light - it was quite chilling when I finally read the end.
(Ooops, just been told off by my English tutors for unpaired dashes!)
Well, chilling isn't quite the right word, but I can't think of a
better one just now.
Ta ta for now,
Love Lucy-Ruth
----------------------
LR Pearson, Arts 99
lp9616@bristol.ac.uk