{"product_id":"9780547526058","title":"Dictation: A Quartet","description":"\u003cb\u003e“Four expertly turned stories” of comedy, deception, and revenge from the acclaimed author of \u003ci\u003eHeir to the Glimmering World\u003c\/i\u003e (\u003ci\u003eThe\u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003eNew York Times Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e).\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e A New York Times Notable Book\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eDictation\u003c\/i\u003e brings together four long stories by this Pulitzer and Man Booker Prize finalist, forming a quartet of sly humor and piercing insight into the human heart.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e The title story imagines a fateful meeting between the secretaries to Henry James and Joseph Conrad at the peak of their fame. Timid Miss Hallowes, who types for Conrad, comes under the influence of James’s Miss Bosanquet, high-spirited, flirtatious, and scheming. In a masterstroke of genius, Ozick hatches a plot between them to insert themselves into literary posterity.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Each story in the collection starts in the comic mode, with heroes who suffer willful self-deceit. From self-deception, these not-so-innocents proceed to deceive others, who don’t take it lightly. Revenge is the consequence—and for the reader, a delicious if dark recognition of emotional truth.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e In \u003ci\u003eDictation\u003c\/i\u003e, an author whose stories have won four O. Henry first prizes “reveals herself a master” (\u003ci\u003eThe New York Times Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e)\u003ci\u003e.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “A testament to the seductions of language and the smoldering aspirations of art.” —\u003ci\u003eO, The Oprah Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “A brilliant book, a necessary book, a book that radiates the true intelligence of literature from every page.” —\u003ci\u003eThe New York Observer\u003c\/i\u003e","brand":"Houghton Mifflin Harcourt","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47106983559408,"sku":"9780547526058","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9780547526058_p0.jpg?v=1769896078","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9780547526058","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}