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I fell hopelessly in love with Alice Munro! I find it hard to review short stories because they are some you love and adore that you can read over and over again but also some you dislike. (Not in this case though!) Our subject in the English lesson this year was Canada. We talked about environmental problems, multiculturalism and even read a few examples of Canadian "literature". Which my teacher picked out really, really bad I think and my opinion on this strengthened after I read this short stories. I thought: "Why didn't we read Alice Munro if she's a Canadian nobel prize winner?" So I started reading it on my own. And I still think: "Why didn't we read Alice Munro if she's a Canadian nobel prize winner?" Her stories are all set in Canada, landscapes and houses are always described, and you get a glimpse of the Canadian life style. I really loved the setting of the book. Every place she described felt so realistic and real, I thought I could just reach through the pages and words and simply touch the places. Every story gave a small insight into the life of a character and I have enjoyed the mosaic of figures and personal constellations. (But this is what I love about short stories all the time, the small cutting out of a person's life that you get). Moreover, I liked the subject of growing-up. A subject which concerns me as I go through the same thing now. I found her approach relatable and interesting. So why "only" 4 stars? I don't even dare to write this because her writing is so extraordinary and superior compared to others, BUT I need to feel something while reading. Really feel something and I think this is my main problem with short stories. They are always written in a manner which makes me so neutral and dull that I never feel a thing. It was the same with Munro's stories. I could not connect deeply with her characters (this doesn't mean they weren't deeply and greatly developed characters!) and I was always left without any feeling at all. And feelings always teach me something and give me a life-lesson. This didn't happen here. At least for me. Munro is a master of the words. It is incomprehensible to me how somebody can write so lovely and control the art of writing so much. Her style has recognition value and has really impressed me. My whole picture of short stories was completely turned upside down once again by her stories.
Mar 20, 2015
I fell hopelessly in love with Alice Munro! I find it hard to review short stories because they are some you love and adore that you can read over and over again but also some you dislike. (Not in this case though!) Our subject in the English lesson this year was Canada. We talked about environmental problems, multiculturalism and even read a few examples of Canadian "literature". Which my teacher picked out really, really bad I think and my opinion on this strengthened after I read this short stories. I thought: "Why didn't we read Alice Munro if she's a Canadian nobel prize winner?" So I started reading it on my own. And I still think: "Why didn't we read Alice Munro if she's a Canadian nobel prize winner?" Her stories are all set in Canada, landscapes and houses are always described, and you get a glimpse of the Canadian life style. I really loved the setting of the book. Every place she described felt so realistic and real, I thought I could just reach through the pages and words and simply touch the places. Every story gave a small insight into the life of a character and I have enjoyed the mosaic of figures and personal constellations. (But this is what I love about short stories all the time, the small cutting out of a person's life that you get). Moreover, I liked the subject of growing-up. A subject which concerns me as I go through the same thing now. I found her approach relatable and interesting. So why "only" 4 stars? I don't even dare to write this because her writing is so extraordinary and superior compared to others, BUT I need to feel something while reading. Really feel something and I think this is my main problem with short stories. They are always written in a manner which makes me so neutral and dull that I never feel a thing. It was the same with Munro's stories. I could not connect deeply with her characters (this doesn't mean they weren't deeply and greatly developed characters!) and I was always left without any feeling at all. And feelings always teach me something and give me a life-lesson. This didn't happen here. At least for me. Munro is a master of the words. It is incomprehensible to me how somebody can write so lovely and control the art of writing so much. Her style has recognition value and has really impressed me. My whole picture of short stories was completely turned upside down once again by her stories.
Mar 20, 2015
