Friday, February 11, 2011

Favorite story

Whose story was your favorite? And, as a journalist, whose story resonated most with you?
Posted by at

6 comments:

Erin said...

I think my favorite story was the one about Ornella, the woman who was stuck in the '90s news-wise. It might have been my favorite because it seemed the most upbeat. Because, like you, I felt a little sad about how dreary and depressing some of the other stories were. But I also enjoyed the idea of this woman reading an old newspaper each day as if it were new. It was a sad thing, really, and the story of her husband's madness was pretty awful, but I liked that she was finally able to break free from it in the end.

11:59 AM, February 12, 2011
Erin said...

Oh, and I guess I resonated most (as a journalist) with the Ruby story, for the paranoia about making mistakes and getting in trouble, or the Herman story, for the delight of denouncing grammatical errors and bad writing.

12:11 PM, February 12, 2011
Ben said...

Arthur's story was my favorite. I absolutely loved Pickle and her relationship with her father. It was so awful when she died, and I had mixed feelings about the changes in him -- on one hand, it was nice to see him succeed, but it seemed like he should have been more devastated.

4:32 PM, February 12, 2011
cl said...

I thought Herman's story was the most upbeat. He realized he'd put a dear friend on a pedestal, but he also realized the richness of his own life once he realized the truth.

It's hard to relate to a charming dictator who publishes an internal newsletter called "Why?," but as a copy editor at heart, I could empathize with his mission. I think copy editors can be benevolent Iagos -- they love the behind-the-scenes, make-or-break elements they add to copy. They love to compare notes on what didn't get in, and they love to be the word snobs of the newsroom and general public. But do they need a byline? No.

1:46 PM, February 14, 2011
kc said...

I was riveted by all the stories. I really felt attached to, or at least extremely curious about, the fate of every single one.

Loved the crazy reader story. Not just a reader but a native Italian. That was a nice touch. Arthur's story, too, was interesting — the guy who "clawed his way to the bottom," as his dying subject brilliantly noted.

I'd agree that Herman's was the most upbeat, once the lifelong delusion was confronted. He had a long career, an interesting life abroad, a meaningful marriage, an ample enjoyment of food and wine. It's interesting to me that he seemed to be simultaneously lauded for keeping up standards at the paper and denounced for inhibiting technological progress. He was its salvation and its doom.

cl, that's a great description of how the copy editor's ego is essentially different from the "bylined" egos in a newsroom! Love it.

I think my favorite story, if I had to pick one, was Hardy Benjamin's. It was painful to read, but I thought it was a compelling account of how people can reach a certain point in life where they just surrender themselves to the nearest fate, no matter how abominable. It's like the death of their personality has begun while they're still technically living. Actually other people in this book seemed to have that issue, in one form or another, like the editor-in-chief's husband, who she knows will "cling to the marriage" no matter what she does because he doesn't have the strength/pride to do otherwise. And the news editor/inventor who is prepared to accept anything to keep his younger lover, including his perverse (but understandable) plan to kick her out and then invite her back. And the CFO who's so desperate for male affection. But I thought Hardy's story was the most compelling of that lot because she walked into her fate with such wide open eyes. It was chilling.

Also loved Ruby! The misanthropic misfit in me who wants to belong but not really belong really identified with her.

8:28 PM, February 14, 2011
cl said...

Yes, Hardy's choices were so, so disturbing! She had that split personality where her self-esteem thrived in the workplace and tanked in her personal life. You hope she chucks the guy, but later in the news editor's story, she's there trying to keep her fella in check.

5:04 PM, February 15, 2011

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)