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“A Swim in a Pond in the Rain,” by George Saunders (Random House) Have you ever wondered what makes a story great? George Saunders has, and at Syracuse University, where he has taught for more than 20 years, he takes his students under the hood of great fiction to show them how it works. Now, […]
On the Shelf A Swim in a Pond in the Rain: In Which Four Russians Give a Master Class on Writing, Reading, and Life By George Saunders Random House: 432 pages, $28 If you buy books linked on our site, The Times may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookstores. About a decade back, Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Colson Whitehead had a nice sideline poking fun at people who make pronouncements about good writing. In a speech, he caricatured the plummy, officious critic delivering high-toned statements of the obvious. (“When we see a word, we must ask ourselv...