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Verlyn Klinkenborg
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The Last Fine Time Paperback – April 1, 2004

by Verlyn Klinkenborg (Author)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 46 ratings
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By turns, an elegy, a celebration, and a social history, The Last Fine Time is a tour de force of lyrical style. Verlyn Klinkenborg chronicles the life of a family-owned restaurant in Buffalo, New York, from its days as a prewar Polish tavern to its reincarnation as George & Eddie's, a swank nightspot serving highballs and French-fried shrimp to a generation of optimistic and prosperous Americans. In the inevitable dimming of the neon sign outside the restaurant, we see both the passing of an old world way of life and the end to the postwar exuberance that was Eddie Wenzek's "last fine time."
Previous page
  1. Print length
    209 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    University of Chicago Press
  4. Publication date
    April 1, 2004
  5. Dimensions
    8.5 x 5.48 x 0.65 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0226443353
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0226443355
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"The author evokes the old ways with such darting humor and restless trope-making that the moss of nostalgia has no chance to grow on his sentence structure."

― Washington Post

"Brings an era to life. . . . All at once, a small, bygone portion of America becomes so real that we seem to be not so much reading about it as drawing it forth from our own memories."

-- Anne Tyler ― Boston Globe

"Wittily lyrical. . . . The shining prose of The Last Fine Time radiates both in space and in time."

-- Christopher Lehmann-Haupt ― New York Times

"Klinkenborg understands the power of images and of signs. His more objective research in the city library is impeccable and unobtrusive, and there are hints almost of Faulkner in his handling of a community's origins and growth. . . . It is an astonishing achievement, one of the finest memoirs of recent years."

― New Statesman

"[A] lovingly poetic and gitty portrait of his father-in-law's bar just outside Buffalo, before its death by thoroughway and sprawl." -- Reamy Jansen ― Bloomsbury Review Published On: 2005-11-01

“The Wenzeks’ history joins what is finally the great American story, that of how the old world came to, and changed, the new. It’s a worthy subject for a writer of Klinkenborg’s talent, and he does it justice.” -- Robert Wilson ― USA Today


“[Klinkenborg] has wrapped a profound social history around, of all things, a family-owned taproom in Buffalo, NY. Researching both the city and the family . . . Klinkenborg sensitively addresses the shifts in consciousness with passing generations. Men and women born during the baby-boom years will recognize their own parents in this poignant social portrait.” -- Joseph F. Keppler ― Seattle Times

From the Inside Flap

By turns, an elegy, a celebration, and a social history, The Last Fine Time is a tour de force of lyrical style. Verlyn Klinkenborg chronicles the life of a family-owned restaurant in Buffalo, New York, from its days as a prewar Polish tavern to its reincarnation as George & Eddie's, a swank nightspot serving highballs and French-fried shrimp to a generation of optimistic and prosperous Americans. In the inevitable dimming of the neon sign outside the restaurant, we see both the passing of an old world way of life and the end to the postwar exuberance that was Eddie Wenzek's "last fine time."

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ University of Chicago Press; 1st edition (April 1, 2004)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 209 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0226443353
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0226443355
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 9.7 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8.5 x 5.48 x 0.65 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 46 ratings

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Verlyn Klinkenborg

Verlyn Klinkenborg

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Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
46 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Angelina
5.0 out of 5 stars Old-time Family-owned Bar
Reviewed in the United States on November 3, 2015
Verified Purchase
Written about a family-owned bar in Buffalo, I especially wanted to read this book as I loved THE RURAL LIFE by Verlyn Klinkenborg and wanted to see another example of his writing. Also, I am fascinated by close families and interaction of the various generations as to how they influenced each other and did not. The other aspect that I valued about this book was that the business the family ran was really a community gathering place much like an English pub once was (and no doubt, still is in some parts of the UK). Few of these types of places still exist where people can drop in and see the same faces, having been replaced by more commercial ventures where to sit there you constantly have to be laying out money. I appreciated the discussion of how the owner of the bar was such a "catch" as a young man as he was involved with the family business and the portrayal of an innocent form of courtship before The Pill changed everything in the early 60's. As a look back on small town America, I really enjoyed this book as well as Mr Klinkenborg's writing style.
6 people found this helpful
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New Harbor
5.0 out of 5 stars A great look back on the past
Reviewed in the United States on August 8, 2020
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A wonderful writing of the history of Buffalo, NY with vivid characters. The author takes you back to a simpler time, then moves forward to the recent past. He entwines the history of the city with the lives of the people. A very engaging and interesting book.
2 people found this helpful
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john moskal
5.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful documentary of Buffalo past
Reviewed in the United States on August 31, 2015
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A beautiful documentary of Buffalo past. His ability to bring back the past with names of streets businesses, products, locations awesome in scope. Warning... Keep a thesaurus next to you. His usage of the English language just amazing. John aurora Ohio
3 people found this helpful
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quesaisje
4.0 out of 5 stars Nice snapshot of the East Side of Buffalo
Reviewed in the United States on March 7, 2015
Verified Purchase
My grandparents had owned a bar on the East Side of Buffalo during the 1950s, so I was really interested in reading this book. I was born in the early 70's and love Buffalo history. Lately, I've seen many old pictures of what used to be on the East Side and was initially astonished at the contrast with today and just how much has been lost. In part, I wanted to read this book to help me get a clearer mental picture of what the East Side in this era might have been like.

Overall, I enjoyed the book and learned some things about Buffalo's history that I hadn't known. My main criticism is that the author often used, in my opinion, unnecessarily difficult or obscure words in his narrative. I have a Masters degree, so my vocabulary isn't terrible, but I found myself looking up sometimes multiple words per page. I'm the type of person who has a need to look up words I'm not totally sure about, even if I can understand the basic meaning of the sentence. So for me, the author's word choice sometimes made the narrative feel choppy and disjointed.
2 people found this helpful
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Clay Blasdel
3.0 out of 5 stars Not his best work, Uneven
Reviewed in the United States on April 27, 2012
Verified Purchase
KIlickenborg is a great nature writer but this book about rust belt Buffalo has moments of greatness, but other chapters of tedium. His writing flourishes can be intimidating. Have your dictionary ready. If you grew up in the east side of (Polish) Buffalo you will love the hundreds and hundreds of place references throughout W NY That alone will endear you. The story of a tavern owner and his extended Polish family is typical. (I heard that its really his inlaws) Its uneven but probalby the best book ever written about Buffalo, NY
3 people found this helpful
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Glenn R Hufnagel
5.0 out of 5 stars George and Eddie's
Reviewed in the United States on August 7, 2017
Verified Purchase
Well-written history of the Buffalo's Polish East Side in the early to mid-20th century. Author's style makes one want to read and re-read. Many interesting factoids and realia.
3 people found this helpful
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mildred s. Newman
5.0 out of 5 stars The Last Fine Time
Reviewed in the United States on April 13, 2013
Verified Purchase
This book was out of print for awhile. I'm delighted to be able to buy the paperback editions to give to friends. The Last Fine Time is a beautifully written book. I've reread it several times enjoying it more each time.
3 people found this helpful
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H Fox
5.0 out of 5 stars Wow! This guy can write. It brought me ...
Reviewed in the United States on July 18, 2015
Verified Purchase
Wow! This guy can write. It brought me back...To the youth of my father on the south side go Buffalo.
3 people found this helpful
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