Both “The Maiden” and “A Modest Proposal” were only about 10 pages (small print) long. I didn’t love either of them, but I did find them a bit intriguing. “The Maiden” involves a dinner party in post-WWII Germany where both the Germans and the Americans attending are a bit on edge. The Americans think they have the upper hand until a story about a lawyer, a guillotine, and a marriage proposal is told.
In “A Modest Proposal,” some women are in the Caribbean so they can either divorce their husbands or be divorced by them. Swift’s story of “A Modest Proposal” is involved in this story, and best I could tell, Stafford’s story was meant to be satirical as well, but I never was quite sure.
Both of these stories were well-written and interesting, but they almost deserve a higher critical study, and that’s something I am unable and unwilling to do at this time in my life. So, I will plug on with reading this, but I won’t promise too much intellectual commentary as I do.
The Collected Stories of Jean Stafford won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1970. In my goal of reading all of the Pulitzers, I only recently decided that I am going to concentrate on all the female authors first. That doesn’t mean I won’t read any male authors until I’m finished with the females; it just means that females will have top priority.
Short story collections are difficult to get through all at once — I’ve found it much more successful to read them bits at a time. This particular story collection is a fairly thick book, 488 pages, so I imagine it will take me awhile to finish it. I’ll be reading Stafford’s stories throughout this year (and probably next as well).
“In the Zoo” takes place in Denver where two adult sisters meet for a visit. While at the zoo, they remark about how the polar bear reminds of them of Mr. Murphy, their only real friend in childhood. The story then takes us to their growing up years and what happens to them after they become orphans and meet Mr. Murphy.
The story is a sad one, illustrating how overly critical adults can truly kill the spirit of a child or even of other adults. After initially being lukewarm to the story, I ended up respecting it and thinking it was very well written. My initial dislike was a result of the characters’ dislike for their childhood town, “Adams,” 50 miles north of Denver, though she does admit that her memories of the town may have been colored by her experiences.
I grew up in Colorado, and as almost anyone who has been there can attest, the entire front range along the Rockies is absolutely beautiful (see picture below), and I can’t imagine anyone not liking it. In the introduction to the book I found out that apparently Jean Stafford grew up and went to college in Boulder and left as soon as she could. As someone who has been trying to get back to Colorado for all of my adult life and never quite made it, I was a little put off by her description of it. But, to each her own.
Nevertheless, I found Jean Stafford’s writing to be very good and am looking forward to reading the rest of the collection.
Did you know it was Jewish Book Month? I didn’t, but when I found out, I wanted to read a title from a Jewish author. Lara Vapnyar won the 2004 Goldberg Prize for Jewish Fiction by Emerging Writers forThere Are Jews in my House. She emigrated from Russia in 1994 when she was in her early twenties and now lives in New York.
“A Bunch of Broccoli on the Third Shelf” tells the story of Nina, a Russian immigrant who loves to shop for vegetables but rarely cooks them.
“Borscht” is a sad story about two people who come to the States to earn money for their families, but then their loved ones are indifferent to them going back home to Russia.
“Puffed Rice and Meatballs” is about Katya’s memory of a childhood incident that she refuses to share with her American boyfriend.
In “Salad Olivier,” a mother tries to find her daughter a boyfriend — but he must be Russian.
“Luda and Milena” was my favorite story. Two older women fighting over an older man with their cooking.
In “Slicing Sauteed Spinach,” Ruzena lets her lover choose her food for her. Until…
I really enjoyed this collection, but especially “Luda and Milena.” It was a pure gem. I now plan on reading There Are Jews in My House for the Jewish Literature Challenge.
Three more mini reviews from Roald Dahl’s Book of Ghost Stories, edited by Roald Dahl. I enjoyed all three!
“The Corner Shop” by Cynthia Asquith
A man goes into a corner shop on a foggy night and finds warmth and kindness from two sisters. So much so that he wants to go back. When he does, the shop is closed, but he finds a mysterious old man who lets him in. He purchases a small object with some curious consequences. This was a good one.
“In the Tube” by E. F. Benson
Just some quotes on this one:
Time indeed! There’s no such thing as Time really; it has no actual existence. Time is nothing more than infinitesimal point in eternity, just as space is an infinitesimal point in infinity. At the most, Time is a sort of tunnel through which we are accustomed to believe that we are travelling. There’s a roar in our ears and a darkness in our eyes which makes it seem real to us. But before we came into the tunnel we existed for ever in an infinite sunlight, and after we have got through it we shall exist in an infinite sunlight again.
Say that a man commits some crime of violence, can we not, with a good deal of truth, say that he really commits that crime when he definitely plans and determines upon it, dwelling on it with gusto? The actual commission of it, I think we can reasonably argue, is the mere material sequel of his resolve; he is guilty of it when he makes that determination. When, therefore, in the term of ‘before’ and ‘after’, does the crime truly take place? There is also in my story a further point for your consideration. For it seems certain that the spirit of a man, after the death of his body, is obliged to re-enact such a crime, with a view, I suppose we may guess, to his remorse and his eventual redemption. [ ] Perhaps he may have done his deed blindly in this life; but then his spirit recommits it with its spiritual eyes open, and able to comprehend its enormity. So, shall we view the man’s original determination and the material commission of this crime only as preludes to the real commission of it, when with eyes unsealed he does it and repents of it?
“Christmas Meeting” by Rosemary Timperley
An older woman and an aspiring young author keep each other company at Christmas. Good, and only 3 pages!
I read the first two stories of this book back in May and enjoyed them very much. You can read my review of those two here.
The third and fourth stories of The Secrets of a Fire King are equally good. I was particularly fascinated by “A Gleaming in the Darkness.”
“A Gleaming in the Darkness” is about two Maries. One is a cleaning woman for a university, and the other is the famous scientist, Marie Curie. (To avoid confusion, I’ll refer to the cleaning woman as Marie and the scientist as Curie.) While Marie cleans for and waits on Madame Curie, she is enthralled by Curie’s intelligence, will, stamina, and persistence. She defends her against her detractors and admires her work exceedingly. The story is told through flashbacks of Marie’s memories, while the aged Marie is in the hospital during World War II. Maybe you have to be a science geek like me to really appreciate this story, but I absolutely loved this one. I also loved the perspective of age looking back on youth.
They do not believe that their unlined skin, their smooth and agile limbs, will ever fall into such a state of disrepair as mine have done. They are sorry for my disabilities, my old age, my dying, and they pity me. They do not see I have no pity for myself. The young girls do not know it, and I cannot tell them, but I have discovered that past and present blur together, become one and the same, so that time means very little at the end.
“Balance” is about an aging couple, Marc and Francoise who perform a small circus-type show in the park at small cities. This one also deals with the loss of youth, but, unlike in the above story, the characters show great reluctance to the aging process. Once with perfect bodies, the tiniest decrease in abilities is perceived as a huge challenge for them, particularly because Francoise is a trapeze artist.
If I ever slipped…I could never do it again. I have to believe that it’s impossible for me to fall.
I really encourage you to pick up this book of stories by Kim Edwards. I’ve seen it at in the Bargain Books section of both Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
"For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil." Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? (1 Peter 3:12-13, ESV)
won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1970. In my goal of reading all of the Pulitzers, I only recently decided that I am going to concentrate on all the female authors first. That doesn’t mean I won’t read any male authors until I’m finished with the females; it just means that females will have top priority.
The third and fourth stories of The Secrets of a Fire King are equally good. I was particularly fascinated by “A Gleaming in the Darkness.”
