House by Tracy Kidder (Profile Reading)

Tracy Kidder's House is a short but concise tale about the daily life and routine of a carpenter in Apple Corps, and also the ways they deal with imperfection. A noteworthy mention for this piece is Kidder's attention to detail and dialogue. Kidder selects specific details that bear meaning to his subject and uses short dialogues to make the reading more dynamic. A good example would be the cat's paw, which he writes:

Each carpenter owns a short handed crowbar with a rounded claw known as the cat's claw...

"What would a carpenter do without a cat's paw, Ned?"

"Buy one," Ned replies

None of them carries his cat's paw, but each knows where it is. If he makes a mistake, he has to get the tool

The details that Kidder emphasizes doesn't just describe the scene, but sought to tell readers a little about the people that is being mentioned in his piece--how the carpenters aren't pessimistic but still aware that errors occur. In addition, the short and well placed dialogues that Kidder employs also gives flesh to the characters. Dialogues create a sort of intimacy that makes readers feel like their reading a conversation. In this piece, Kidder includes the casual, raw dialogues of carpenters, which is ideal to get readers to feel the rhythm of the job.

This piece, in my opinion, has helped me understand how writing is about being selective of details. Everything has to play a part or make sense in the grand scheme of things. If Kidder highlighted every random description and dialogue that had no relation to the plot, readers would not have learned anything or feel the mixed-uppedness of wanting things to be perfect, but at the same time acknowledging that mistakes happen. An, I think Kidder does a great job in showing that through his descriptions and dialogue.