Walter Abish is a writer who has managed to resolve successfully some of the prominent contradictions facing authors of contemporary fiction. He is a boldly innovative, critically acclaimed writer committed to ludic compositional procedures; yet, Abish's fiction has been found to yield sharp social criticism.

He has been the recipient of many prestigious awards, some of which are: fellow of National Endowment for the Arts, 1979 and 1985; Guggenheim Fellowship, 1981; PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction, 1981, for How German Is It (1980); John D. MacArthur Foundation Fellowship, 1987-1992; and Award of Merit Medal for the Novel, American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters, 1991.

A collection of poetry, two experimental texts, two collections of short stories, two novels, and occasional fictions in various magazines constitute Abish's literary output over thirty years. This measured approach to publication has prompted Harold Bloom to call him "a patient, immensely careful craftsman." Paul West, a writer...