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lnatal's review
3.0
From BBC Radio 4 - Afternoon reading:
Stacy Aumonier's life as a stage performer, 'society entertainer', World War One private and draughtsman all contributed to his unrivalled reputation as a short-story writer in the 1920's.
Nobel Prize winner and Forsyte Saga author John Galsworthy described Stacy Aumonier as "one of the best short-story writers of all time." Other famous admirers included Alfred Hitchcock, who had several of his stories adapted for television, and James Hilton, author of Goodbye, Mr Chips, who once said of Aumonier: "I think his very best works ought to be included in any anthology of the best short stories ever written."
However since his untimely death at the age of 51, Aumonier has been rather forgotten. This is particularly ironic considering Galsworthy's belief - expressed in his foreword to a posthumously published collection of short stories - that Aumonier would, through his writing, "outlive nearly all the writers of his day."
Sadly, this did not happen. Yet the recently published collection of Aumonier's Extremely Entertaining Short Stories has certainly helped bring this overlooked talent to a new audience. Aumonier's stories are not only hilarious, full of wit and genuine warmth for his subjects, but also beautifully constructed insights into the various absurdities of human behaviour; be it in the drawing rooms of London high society or the trenches of World War I.
'The Brown Wallet' read by Mark Heap.
CONTENTS:
The Brown Wallet
A Source of Irritation
The Room
Stacy Aumonier's life as a stage performer, 'society entertainer', World War One private and draughtsman all contributed to his unrivalled reputation as a short-story writer in the 1920's.
Nobel Prize winner and Forsyte Saga author John Galsworthy described Stacy Aumonier as "one of the best short-story writers of all time." Other famous admirers included Alfred Hitchcock, who had several of his stories adapted for television, and James Hilton, author of Goodbye, Mr Chips, who once said of Aumonier: "I think his very best works ought to be included in any anthology of the best short stories ever written."
However since his untimely death at the age of 51, Aumonier has been rather forgotten. This is particularly ironic considering Galsworthy's belief - expressed in his foreword to a posthumously published collection of short stories - that Aumonier would, through his writing, "outlive nearly all the writers of his day."
Sadly, this did not happen. Yet the recently published collection of Aumonier's Extremely Entertaining Short Stories has certainly helped bring this overlooked talent to a new audience. Aumonier's stories are not only hilarious, full of wit and genuine warmth for his subjects, but also beautifully constructed insights into the various absurdities of human behaviour; be it in the drawing rooms of London high society or the trenches of World War I.
'The Brown Wallet' read by Mark Heap.
CONTENTS:
The Brown Wallet
A Source of Irritation
The Room
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