Alice Munro has the gift of weaving short stories with a very long life.
Much later the skeleton of a story might surface up and you might find yourself becoming completely silent, trying to flesh it out. You’ll move backwards in your mind… Trying to piece a story together. Posing and answering questions in solitude to yourself.
Some of the stories in this collection of ten are quite unforgettable.
I’ll remember ‘Child’s Play’ and ‘Face’. The first for its viciousness and the other for the unconditional love that children have for their best friend. Both stories are intricately built up, immensely readable.
“Wenlock Edge” makes me wonder if things like these do happen… That people take advantage of their money and position to fulfill their quirky idiosyncrasies, taking advantage of the young with impunity.
The peep she gives into people’s lives, makes one feel like a voyeur. It’s ‘none of my business’ I want to say to some stories or ‘get your act together’ to another.
“Deep-Holes” made my blood run cold. Any story, whether fact or fiction involving children disappearing, physically or emotionally, fills me with fear… There’s a helplessness to the situation that seems beyond anyone’s control.
There is roiling emotion, like a heaving sea, behind names and people and their stories. It’s a tremendous ability to capture them and Ms. Munro definitely has that gift.
How does one choose a certain title from a group of short stories, I’ve always wondered. ‘Too Much Happiness’ wasn’t my favourite story but it certainly was the title for which I bought this interesting book.
