The Red Convertible: Selected and New Stories, 1978-2008

“Culled from 30 years as one of America’s most distinctive fictional voices . . . 36 affecting and inventive stories that dance around the Faulknerian world she’s created. . . . Within these stories there exist Erdrich’s poetic sentences and humane sensibility—and always another surprise on the next page.” — Boston Globe

A collection of breathtaking power and originality by one of the most innovative and exciting writers of our day

In Louise Erdrich's fictional world, the mystical can emerge from the everyday, the comic can turn suddenly tragic, and violence and splendor inhabit a single emotional landscape. The fantastic twists and leaps of her imagination are made all the more meaningful by the deeper truth of human feeling that underlies them. These thirty-six short works selected by the author herself—including five previously unpublished stories—are ordered chronologically as well as by theme and voice, each tale spellbinding in its boldness and beauty. The Red Convertible is a stunning literary achievement, the collected brilliance of a fearless and inventive writer.

Three decades of short fiction by one of the most innovative and exciting writers of our day

In Louise Erdrich's fictional world, the mystical can emerge from the everyday, the comic can turn suddenly tragic, and violence and splendor inhabit a single emotional landscape. The fantastic twists and leaps of her imagination are made all the more meaningful by the deeper truth of human feeling that underlies them. These thirty-six short works selected by the author herself—including five previously unpublished stories—are ordered chronologically as well as by theme and voice, each tale spellbinding in its boldness and beauty. The Red Convertible is a stunning literary achievement, the collected brilliance of a fearless and inventive writer.

“Few American writers write with more lyrical tenderness and magical power” - Wall Street Journal

“These tales, like the shining car in the title story, have a velocity all their own.” - O magazine

“A wondrous short story writer . . . creating a keepsake of the American experience. . . . A master tuner of the taut emotions that keen between parent and child, man and woman, brother and sister, man and beast. . . . With great delicacy, Erdrich handles the emotions of indelicate people, as they’re tripped up by the uneven terrain of their lives. [She] chronicles Native American ways, but also captures the voices of multitudes.” - New York Times Book Review

“A collection of brave and inventive stories.” - Ms. magazine

“Erdrich is a true original. . . . The myths and traditions of a people, whether Chippewa or German, inform the rich cadences of her storytelling. . . . Erdrich is one of our major writers: She illuminates large swaths of U.S. history and culture, and this volume is a good demonstration of her compelling stylistic innovations, not to mention her literary cunning.” - Washington Post Book World

“Erdrich is one of our major writers...and this volume is a good demonstration of her compelling stylistic innovations, not to mention her literary cunning.” - Washington Post Book World

“Culled from 30 years as one of America’s most distinctive fictional voices . . . 36 affecting and inventive stories that dance around the Faulknerian world she’s created. . . . Within these stories there exist Erdrich’s poetic sentences and humane sensibility—and always another surprise on the next page.” - Boston Sunday Globe

“Compiled from 30 years of work, spanning an enormous variety of registers . . . The Red Convertible reveals Erdrich to be one of America’s finest writers of short fiction.” - Dallas Morning News

“A wondrous short story writer…A master tuner of the taut emotions that keen between parent and child, man and woman, brother and sister, man and beast.” - New York Times Book Review

“Louise Erdrich is an immensely satisfying storyteller... She finds grace in action, using the gentlest of language.” - Los Angeles Times

“Erdrich’s characters are unforgettable... Grade: A.” - Rocky Mountain News

“Erdrich’s stories don’t grow old. They grow more astonishing for how fresh they still feel. . . . You only have to read the first story . . . to get a whiff of authorial wizardry.” - Chicago Tribune

“Erdrich can sketch a novel’s worth of character and incident in just a few pages.” - Entertainment Weekly