h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Entry: E B White - most companionable of writers - A14435264
Author: Leo - "And Lo! The frowny one smileth." - U519437


Stashing this here for comment and some tweaking before it goes out of my control and into PR.

I think this is done.

I imagine some adulation shows through - can't help it. I like his stuff. I am fairly certain that the majority of the stuff quoted isn't copyrighted (whatever The New Yorker might say today, Ross never retained reprint rights to anything in the magazine, so the ads and newsbreaks are definitely in the OK.) Not entirely sure about the poetry.

Think anything in there will be a problem?

Hi Leo! I've got a long list of suggestions, but that should not diminish the fact that this is one of the best of the New Yorker entries.

As to the copyright issue, I don't think it should be a problem, but I'm not really up on copyright law. I think the author needs to be dead for 50 years before it's in public domain, though the poetry is in small enough excerpts that I don't think it should be a problem.

<> --> first initials

<>

I think this sentence has too many dashes. I would change it to "He lovedboats - he had his own canoe at the family summer home in Maine - and loved writing, winning several magazine contests before graduating grade school."

What's "FPA", or did I miss something again?

I'm not sure what the house style rules are on centred titles for s. I might enclose the title in quotes and leave it left-justified. I'm not sure, though.

<>

That's an amazing quote, just to say.

<>

I don't know that this is the clearest way of wording the concept. After all, it's not really a case of water moving across a semipermeable membrane from an area of high concentration to one of low concentration, now is it? I think it would be sufficient to say that "His 'departments' eventually bled into the 'Talk' section."

<>

"Prose" is a singular noun; I think it should be "His prose is" or "His works of prose are".

<>

Should the title have a question mark in it?

<>

Any way you can rephrase the last part of the sentence so that it doesn't repeat "life"?

<>

Should this be "have been"?

<>

Perhaps "English-speaking" would be better?

Is it the writing, the organisation, or the story? Because his story is a great one - especially for young, ambitious folks who vary between acute lack of confidence and mild conceit. I speak for myself, of course. It's a true tale of cream rising to the top.

Ross's tale, on the other hand, is one of rugged individualism. He may have been brilliant, but he clawed his way up, tooth and nail.

Oh, and the poetry helps too. Really good stuff, and not at all cryptic or affected. Pre-White I didn't like poetry at all. Now I have two poets I like: White and John Donne.

I'd recommend his stuff, btw. And quite a few other old writers, like Robert M. Coates. I decided to capitalise on this h2g2 labour by comparing 1930s New Yorker stories with 1930s Saturday Evening Post stories for my literature paper. I couldn't help noting the differences between both genres and modern short stories.
At risk of sounding like my grandmother, they don't write New Yorker stories like they used to.


If wild my breast and sore my pride
I bask in dreams of suicide.
If cold my heart and high my head
I think how lucky are the dead.
~ Dorothy Parker


but about the entry:

70 years, unfortunately, before the copyright expires. But I imagine the quotes are short enough and they're all attributed.

changed

changed

No, you didn't miss anything, I deleted a relevant footnote and never explained.

I kinda like the titles, so if there's no rule against them...

I wonder if the world still pays for that? Of course, 'simple and legible' makes it sound easier than it is.

I beg to differ. Not water, but titles, moving from area of high concentration (newbreaks) to an area of low concentration (Talk) through the semi-permeable membrane of the the author of both.
I'm pretty sure it's proper usage. Anyway, I changed it.

changed (don't know why it's stuck as plural in my head)

yes, changed

swapped life for death - better?

Yep, changed.

Anglo may not be best, but some of that New Yorker nit picking rubbed off on me, and I do believe that the libraries don't speak English; they merely contain books that do.

Nothing to do with the Entry (well I guess kind of), my daughter enjoys listening to an Audio CD of Charlotte's Web actually read by the author. His tone is gentle and very american, and it's soothing qualities, while to my ear are a little jarring, sends her to sleep - but not before she has heard much of the story.

Good luck with the Entry - I think he very much deserves a place in the EG.

Read by the author? Wouldn't mind hearing the fella meself. I think I'm beginning to understand the fan mentality. Never thought I'd see the day.

Thanks.

I think you just characterize the man really vividly and adeptly. He seems like a pretty interesting person.

So would left-justified titles be okay then?

Hmm, good point about the libraries. "Libraries throughout the English-speaking world", maybe?

Oh he definitely was.







But so were several others. Now you have me worried about the rest...


Don't respond to that. I'm not fishing.


I left adjusted a few titles, but I'm slightly unhappy because they get so easily confused with the body of the excerpt. Shall we leave it to be argued over in PR?


English-speaking world is a go. Excellent.


And Matt - I found an audio recording in the local library. Blast from the past coming up. Thanks.

Beyond that - there's one small point I want to add to Shawn's entry, if I can, and I wanted to describe the famous Luce profile a little better in the Gibbs one. If I get to it today you can have the lot of them next week.

Think you'll see, or hear rather, what I mean then

Can't wait.

Echo - I finished with my entries. And the more I read them the less I like them, so I guess it's time to get them off my hands before I go crazy. I'll post relevantly on the subbie list.

It's funny you call that a very American accent. At first I took it for that faux-British accent used in early American movies (Wilbah opened his oiyes...)

Then I realized that it was none other than a bona fide, pure, unaffected, New Yawk accent. I've never heard one before (only Brooklynese, which is ten times worse). If it jars your ears, know that half the world has the same problem. Could be the reason it's dying out.

Anyway, thanks for the tip.

My favourite line has to be 'Let's build a treehouse'

But it is strange to think how we hear accents. I'm constantly told I have a thick Aussie accent by people I meet, but my other half swears she can't hear it anymore, but maybe it's because she's just got used to tuning out to my prattle...

How could you, Matt? Now I'll have to listen to the whole thing to find that line. I haven't read Charlotte's Web since I was 10, when I decided that I didn't like it. Do you know what chapter, at least?

...poor woman, of course she has. Survival instincts.

I never really liked the book either, but somehow, coming from him it has a certain resonance that makes me appreciate it.

how dare you insinuate I'm a figment of my own imagination

Only you could think up something so ghastly, that's why.


I see a certain ironic humour to it that I couldn't appreciate back then, but...

Well, the more I think about it, the more I can understand its general appeal, but I still don't think its a great book.

Still, listening won't hurt, I suppose.

Oh, I still don't see it as that great, although it's very useful in introducing children to the concept of death (I've used it on oncology wards in the past).

Ah, see, now you've got me all melancholy.

...he's a pretty companionable reader too, now that I think (hear?) about it.

Ooh. Introduction to death. Charlotte, I guess you mean. Interesting use.

And I suppose one could use Stuart Little to introduce children to the big wide world of real life. I didn't like that one either, cuz it had no ending.