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alm0ndwitch's review against another edition
3.0
Once again, shocked by how much I enjoyed this short story. Such a good commentary on class consciousness in her time. It was very enjoyable and a little whimsical. Good read.
thestoryofaz's review against another edition
reflective
4.75
This is my introduction to Katherine Mansfield's work and I was not disappointed. I particularly love her use of adjectives, the comparisons she makes, and the way she explores the psyche of characters in a moving and at times haunting way. -0.25 solely because some of these stories did not click with me, even though the writing was incredible. My favorites were At the Bay, The Garden Party, Miss Brill, Mr. and Mrs. Dove, An Ideal Family and The Lady's Maid.
lindseysparks's review against another edition
1.0
I had heard nothing but good things about Mansfield's short stories so I was excited to snag this at a library book sale and I'm glad i paid just fifty cents for it because I didn't like it. There was just one story in the collection that I liked - The Voyage, which perfectly captured a scene between grandmother and granddaughter. My love for my own grandmother may be part of why it stood out. The others just felt like little scenes of nothing. I wasn't wowed by the writing and really didn't have much of a reaction at all. I've utterly forgotten most of the stories already and I usually have quite a good memory when it comes to books. Others clearly see something I don't.
bolotareads's review against another edition
3.0
I think modernism just isn't my cup of tea.
At the Bay - ☆☆
The Garden Party - ☆☆☆☆☆
The Daughters of the Late Colonel - ☆☆☆☆☆
Mr and Mrs Dove - ☆☆☆☆☆
The Young Girl - ☆☆
Life of Ma Parker - ☆☆☆☆
Marriage à la Mode - ☆☆☆
The Voyage - ☆☆☆☆
Miss Brill - ☆☆
Her First Ball - ☆☆☆
The Singing Lesson - ☆☆☆☆
The Stranger - ☆☆☆
Bank Holiday - ☆☆
An Ideal Family -☆☆☆
The Lady's Maid - ☆☆☆
At the Bay - ☆☆
The Garden Party - ☆☆☆☆☆
The Daughters of the Late Colonel - ☆☆☆☆☆
Mr and Mrs Dove - ☆☆☆☆☆
The Young Girl - ☆☆
Life of Ma Parker - ☆☆☆☆
Marriage à la Mode - ☆☆☆
The Voyage - ☆☆☆☆
Miss Brill - ☆☆
Her First Ball - ☆☆☆
The Singing Lesson - ☆☆☆☆
The Stranger - ☆☆☆
Bank Holiday - ☆☆
An Ideal Family -☆☆☆
The Lady's Maid - ☆☆☆
deamaggio's review against another edition
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Quite melancholic from start to finish, as expected, but didn’t quite sell a purpose to me. Some great stories, some less. Fave was Mr and Mrs Dove or Her First Ball. Both sweet and simple.
jsisco's review against another edition
4.0
I've read this collection in various pieces in the past 6 years or so, but I also read it in its entirety in my Modern British Literature course in sophomore year. Mansfield is one of the more talented and underrated authors of the 20th century, and this collection surely highlights her immense talents.
One of my favorites was by far "Miss Brill," a haunting tale of true oblivion, isolation, and self-denial. In a matter of pages you can actually watch the woman's walls and self-constructed pedastal crumble into dust. It's truly heartbreaking to read.
One of my favorites was by far "Miss Brill," a haunting tale of true oblivion, isolation, and self-denial. In a matter of pages you can actually watch the woman's walls and self-constructed pedastal crumble into dust. It's truly heartbreaking to read.
lgpiper's review against another edition
4.0
My awesome niece, Becca, a Wellesley grad who majored in English, seemed to think I should read some Katherine Mansfield. I was interested anyway because it seems that Mansfield had influenced both Willa Cather and Sarah Orne Jewitt, two women authors of whom I've become rather fond in my declining years. So anyway, I picked up this book (well downloaded it to my kindle) and am glad I did.
This is a collection of fifteen stories, some quite short. The first one, At the Bay is rather longer and probably counts as a novelette (7500–17,500 words).
Many of the stories seem rather like pictures in words. Pictures of an instant in time in someone's life or some family's life. The picture might be an hour, an afternoon, or a day. The writing and imagery are imaginative and arresting. I can now see why Becca thought I should expand myself a bit.
----------------------------- 5 Dec 2023 -----------------------
This is a second reading. My first reading was in 2017, and I thought then that this was a rather fine book. My second reading happened because my spouse conned me into signing up for a geezer course at Tufts University on several stories in this book. I believe we read and discussed six of the fifteen stories in the book.
I can't imagine how people conjure up such minutiae to discuss from within the bowels of a short story, especially a short story in which nothing much happens. Clearly, I was not cut out for literary criticism. It's a good thing I had physical chemistry as a back up plan.
This is a collection of fifteen stories, some quite short. The first one, At the Bay is rather longer and probably counts as a novelette (7500–17,500 words).
Many of the stories seem rather like pictures in words. Pictures of an instant in time in someone's life or some family's life. The picture might be an hour, an afternoon, or a day. The writing and imagery are imaginative and arresting. I can now see why Becca thought I should expand myself a bit.
----------------------------- 5 Dec 2023 -----------------------
This is a second reading. My first reading was in 2017, and I thought then that this was a rather fine book. My second reading happened because my spouse conned me into signing up for a geezer course at Tufts University on several stories in this book. I believe we read and discussed six of the fifteen stories in the book.
I can't imagine how people conjure up such minutiae to discuss from within the bowels of a short story, especially a short story in which nothing much happens. Clearly, I was not cut out for literary criticism. It's a good thing I had physical chemistry as a back up plan.
adriancurcher's review against another edition
4.0
It has been a long time since I last feel quite so deeply for a collection of short stories. there's such a quiet beauty and melancholy in these stories. Yet they still managed to be funny and cutting. A wonderful combination. I cannot wait to search out more of Mansfield's collections.
_rosie_reads's review against another edition
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
bertacreus's review against another edition
4.0
Amb Mansfiled m'ha passat una cosa: la vaig començar a les palpentes, la vaig anar llegint a trompades bastant perduda i un dia, de cop i volta, mentre llegia un dels relats, vaig veure la llum. I va ser un obrir d'ulls tan bèstia que vaig tirar enrere i em vaig rellegir tot el que havia llegit a cegues.
Aquest recull de contes, a diferència de tants altres, és força homogeni. De segur que tothom hi trobarà relats que gaudirà més o menys, però és difícil que les diferències entre uns i altres siguin abismals. Què tenen en comú? Tots passen a principis del segle XX i giren entorn de les relacions familiars, d'amistats, de parella i de veïns, però sempre amb un rerefons molt introspectiu. Dit així, pot sonar avorrit, però el que precisament fa Mansfield és agafar les coses més quotidianes i plantar-te-les a la cara amb el seu llenguatge peculiar. Aparentment, sembla que no passi res, escenes costumistes i majoritàriament alegres, però et trobes, de cop, amb subtileses que capgiren el relat. És una mica com quan al mig de la festa veus de reüll aquella persona del racó, grisa, capcota i aïllada, i ja no te la treus del cap en tota l'estona.
És el primer cop que llegeixo Mansfield i ara entenc per què Woolf deia que li tenia enveja: em sembla, ras i curt, una escriptora excepcional. Té molts colors amb poca parafernàlia; és increïble com, durant la lectura, podia visualitzar-ho tot: sap crear l'atmosfera i els personatges perfectes per a cada relat amb una naturalitat inigualable. A més, les seves descripcions (de persones, de llocs) són diferents, és que no hi pots trobar ni un tòpic. Mira que a mi les descripcions se m'acostumen a fer costa amunt, però en aquest cas són petites obres d'art enmig de l'art en si que ja són els contes.
La veritat és que no puc fer punta de res negatiu. Com sempre, alguns relats potser se m'han fet un xic més lents, però quan arribes al final li ho perdones tot. Mansfield: als teus peus, reina.
Aquest recull de contes, a diferència de tants altres, és força homogeni. De segur que tothom hi trobarà relats que gaudirà més o menys, però és difícil que les diferències entre uns i altres siguin abismals. Què tenen en comú? Tots passen a principis del segle XX i giren entorn de les relacions familiars, d'amistats, de parella i de veïns, però sempre amb un rerefons molt introspectiu. Dit així, pot sonar avorrit, però el que precisament fa Mansfield és agafar les coses més quotidianes i plantar-te-les a la cara amb el seu llenguatge peculiar. Aparentment, sembla que no passi res, escenes costumistes i majoritàriament alegres, però et trobes, de cop, amb subtileses que capgiren el relat. És una mica com quan al mig de la festa veus de reüll aquella persona del racó, grisa, capcota i aïllada, i ja no te la treus del cap en tota l'estona.
És el primer cop que llegeixo Mansfield i ara entenc per què Woolf deia que li tenia enveja: em sembla, ras i curt, una escriptora excepcional. Té molts colors amb poca parafernàlia; és increïble com, durant la lectura, podia visualitzar-ho tot: sap crear l'atmosfera i els personatges perfectes per a cada relat amb una naturalitat inigualable. A més, les seves descripcions (de persones, de llocs) són diferents, és que no hi pots trobar ni un tòpic. Mira que a mi les descripcions se m'acostumen a fer costa amunt, però en aquest cas són petites obres d'art enmig de l'art en si que ja són els contes.
La veritat és que no puc fer punta de res negatiu. Com sempre, alguns relats potser se m'han fet un xic més lents, però quan arribes al final li ho perdones tot. Mansfield: als teus peus, reina.