The Fiction of Ellen Gilchrist This page intentionally left blank The Fiction of Ellen Gilchrist An Appreciation Brad Hooper PRAEGER Westport, Connecticut London Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Hooper, Brad The Fiction of Ellen Gilchrist: an appreciation / Brad Hooper. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-275-98593-8 (alk. paper) 1. Gilchrist, Ellen, 1935—Criticism and interpretation. 2. Women and literature— United States—History—20th century. I. Title. PS3557.I34258Z68 2005 813'.54—dc22 2004028070 British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data is available. Copyright © 2005 by Brad Hooper All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, by any process or technique, without the express written consent of the publisher. Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 2004028070 ISBN: 0-275-98593-8 First published in 2005 Praeger Publishers, 88 Post Road West, Westport, CT 06881 An imprint of Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc. www. praeger. com Printed in the United States of America @r The paper used in this book complies with the Permanent Paper Standard issued by the National Information Standards Organization (Z39.48-1984). 10 987654321 x This book, a labor of love, is dedicated to my parents, William and Elizabeth Hooper, of Charleston, Illinois, for their continued belief in everything I do. And to the staff oj^Booklist magazine at the American Library Association—my professional "family"—for such spirited and meaningful support of this project; in particular, Booklist editor-in-chief Bill Ott for granting me a sabbatical leave to finish it. And to Brendan Driscoll, buddy and muse, whose encouraging voice I heard in my ear as I wrote every sentence. This page intentionally left blank Contents 1. An IntroductionI 1 2. Gilchrist's Short Story Debut (In the Land of Dreamy Dreams) 9 3. Gilchrist's First Novel (The Annunciation) 31 4. Short Story Successes (Victory over Japan, Drunk with Love 41 5. Slight of Hand (The Anna Papers, I Cannot Get You Close Enough 61 6. More Visits with Recurrent Characters (Light Can Be Both Wave and Particle 73 7. Two Hits and a Miss (Net of Jewels, Starcarbon, Anabasi 83 8. Hitting Her Stride in Stories and Novels (Age of Miracles, Rhoda, Courts of Love, Sarah Conl 99 9. Even More Story Collections (Flights of Angels, The Cabal and Other Stories) 123 10. Ellen Gilchrist's Contribution and Further Evidence of Her Talent (Collected Stories and /, Rhoda Manning, Go Hunting with My Daddy 13 Conclusion 147 Notes 151 Bibliography 163 Index 165 This page intentionally left blank Chapter I An Introduction A FRIEND AND I, after attending a national conference of librarians held in New Orleans in January 1998, took a five-day car trip to the Louisiana plan tation country and then up into Mississippi. Our primary destination was Natchez, where we would spend most of our time. I have an abiding interest in southern history and literature, perhaps a product of early environmental influence, since my birthplace was Vandalia, Illinois, which actually is located south of what would be a continuation of the Mason Dixon Line if drawn farther westward. Vandalia (the second capital of the state; Spring field, the current one, is the third town to hold that distinction) lies nestled nearly forgotten in southern Illinois, which topographically and even cultur ally, linguistically, and historically has ties to the upper South, as if the blue Ohio simply did not exist as a geographical division between North South. Given my interest in southern culture, Natchez had for years been on my list of necessary places to visit; and now I had the opportunity. By popu lation, as I quickly learned during the travel planning stage, Natchez ranks as only a middle-size town in today's world, not a city at all; its historical signif icance, of course, extends well beyond its modest population. My traveling companion and I left New Orleans in early afternoon; we approached Natchez from the southeast, driving through the cool, clear January dusk, through lush, dark green pine forests. The car engine purred as we negotiated the road's slight rises and descents, drawing nearer to the town and, as if by the gravitational pull, to the great river itself. We entered the city limits just after nightfall and headed to the central business district, to the venerable hotel