New American Writing from the West Writers Forum 7 (1981) ed. by Alex Blackburn (review)

Book Reviews Alex Blackburn, ed. New American Writing from the West Writers Forum 7 (1981). Colorado Springs: University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, 1981. 193 p. If pressed to namejust onesignificant recent change on the U.S. creative writing scene, one might well cite the new importance ofsmall presses, little magazines, and ad hoc anthologies — in short, of alternative publishing. In earlier times, it could be assumed that a fair supply of new writers would be presented by such high visibility outlets as Harper's, Esquire, The Atlantic, etc. As these sources turned more to nonfiction prose and to a somewhat fixed set of writers, readers with a curiosity about developing poets and narrators were driven to search through publications of less luxurious format. These "small" ventures, while they certainly have the risktaking concern for new work, often have little way of gaining the public notice and distribution that they need to flourish. It is for this reason that the annual Writers Forum merits attention here, although space limitations make any serious consideration of its specific stories and poetry impossible. The current volume consists of ten short stories by as many authors and poetry by twenty-four poets. Poets and narrators range from the much heard of (Walt McDonald) to the unheard of (Jane Hixon) with a considerable representation of creative writing teachers. As per the subtitle, Western authors are predominant, although it is difficult to fit Maurice Browning Cramer into this category. This geographical factor should not cause leeriness among readers who associate "regional" with too many pickup trucks, porches, and aproned women settingdown pitchers of lemonade. The writing, if a generalization is necessary, is not altogether of evenly high quality but offers more than enough "good bits" to make the enterprise more than worth the trouble. The anthology will be kept available for fifteen months from the UCCS Writers Forum, the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs 80907. Back issues are available on microfiche. NAOMI LINDSTROM, University of Texas at Austin Horst S. Daemmrich. Wilhelm Raabe. Boston: Twayne, G. K. Hall, 1981. 171 p. Twayne World Author Series 594. Horst S. Daemmrich's attempt to compress twenty volumes of Raabe's works into the format of the Twayne World Author's Series focuses on the most familiar works, such as Die Chronik der Sperlingsgasse, Der Hungerpastor, Abu Telfan and Stopfkuchen, and a liberal sample of the lesser known ones, arranged not chronologically , but according to themes. The chapters of synopsis and interpretation are organized into Raabe's apprenticeship as a novelist, his use of history rather than historical background, his novels of development, the problem of transforming knowledge into action, the disparity between reality and ideas, and the bridging of that disparity by the art of living. Raabe is placed within the German Realist tradition with his themes designated as characteristic of German literature of the second half of the nineteenth century and his narrative technique in the European dimension. An interesting discrepancy arises between this claim and Daemmrich's own interpretations, which suggests that a stronger consideration throughout should be given to Daemmrich's own conclusion that "the dreams of unlimited free development of human potential cherished by a former generation have faded" (p. 155). As the author notes again and again, all the historical optimism, bourgeois selfconfidence , the sense that society's impact — be it the new industrialized society or ...