Had a Good Time: stories from American postcards by Robert Olen Butler
This collection of short stories by Pulitzer Prize winning author Butler was inspired by early 20th century postcards that Butler collected. The collection begins with a newspaper article from August 7, 1910 on the subject of picture postcards. Each story also ends with a newspaper article from August 7, 1910 that has some subject link to the preceding story, sometimes very tenuous. I found these most interesting as there was no explanation of them in the book, so I was left to my own devices in interpreting their inclusion.
Each story begins with the front and back of the original postcard, and the message on it written out (in case one has difficulty reading the original). The stories come out of the postcards, and they are wonderfully imagined. Butler is a master of character and these stories show how a simple idea can inspire.
A great collection that will leave you wanting more.
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