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dkberlin's review against another edition
2.0
I'm sure that my feelings toward this book reflect more negatively on me than on the book, and that I most likely just don't appreciate it like I should. I didn't actively dislike it, but I didn't make it through a single story in this book without falling asleep.
ja3m3's review against another edition
4.0
Life is made up of small, ordinary moments, and sometimes those moments are bound-up in choices that will end up changing the direction of a life. Munroe has effortlessly captured these occurrences in a collection of short stories that will have the reader remembering the fork in the road and understanding that we are all “holding on for dear life.”
margaretmechinus's review against another edition
4.0
A collection of short stories. Some I have already forgotten or gotten confused and mixed up with the others in the book. But just reading Alice Munro makes me a better writer and better observer of life. Most of the stories are about how one incident or small decision can change the course of our lives.
bunburyist's review against another edition
4.0
It was pretty good. I borrowed it from the library on my kindle and didn't finish it by the time it was due back. Then I waited a bit before checking it back out again. So the second half was read much later than the first. I love that most of the short stories are connected by a theme or a feeling such as travel, trains, aging, change, coming of age, or first experiences. The four semi autobiographical stories at the end were my favorite.
meghan111's review against another edition
4.0
Ontario, post-World War II, is full of trains, lakes, loneliness, unspoken feelings, the search for human connection, and the possibilities of escape to Toronto. That's the impression I get.
beemanguen's review against another edition
2.0
El final del libro, que son como mini crónicas de su vida, es mejor que muchos de los cuentos que hay en la antología. Lo leí en español de España y eso me alejó un poco de la narrativa. Tengo ganas de leer más de ella en inglés y ver si así me atrapa. Había uno que otro cuento interesante pero nada me atrapaba. Hubo uno que me tarde hasta 3 días leyendo, y eso creo, ya es mucho para un cuento. Si alguien ya lo leyó en inglés, o leyó algo más de ella díganme ¿se pone bueno? ¿si engancha? o porqué entonces el premio Nobel.
clare_tan_wenhui's review against another edition
4.0
This is my first try with this Nobel Literature Prize winner, and I'm impressed with her nuance and finesse, in conveying multitudes of layered emotions with such deceptively laidback prose and relatably ordinary setups, characters and plots. However for the less introspective and contemplative reader, this may prove a tad too mundane and uneventful.
amycrea's review against another edition
5.0
There are some wonderfully haunting pieces in this book. I love how she looks back in time, but her nostalgia is very clear-eyed and honest.
chamomiledaydreams's review against another edition
3.0
I checked out this collection from the library, because it was in the staff-picks section, and also because I recognized the author from course listings I never took in school. It took me a couple of stories to adjust to Munro's writing style, and I've gone from thinking it's strange that her short stories are more about general tone than specific plot, to thinking that it's impressive.
I've often been daunted away from writing short stories myself, because I imagine them like "Twilight Zone" episodes, where they need shocking plot twists and high concepts more than characters experiencing mundane events. But Alice Munro does a great job of establishing characters in a short amount of pages, and I admire how she paints a narrative through seemingly random anecdotes that come together to create a rich and detailed tapestry of a fictional life. Her protagonists all seem very different, as well, which shows skill in alternating between distinct character voices and not writing from the same, neutral perspective each time.
The title is also worth mentioning, because its meaning to me changed as I moved through the collection. At first, I wasn't sure whether to interpret "Dear Life" as the beginning of a letter or a general description (though I was leaning toward the latter, since I often get a specific line from "Frankenstein" stuck in my head: "Life, although it may only be an accumulation of anguish, is dear to me, and I will defend it"). But the final story in this collection (which is called"Dear Life" and is probably the reason for the overall title) threw my reading of the title for a loop, since it turned out to be a pull-out quote from a line about running away and hiding "for dear life."
I'm still not quite sure what to make of this twist, but I enjoy how the titles in this collection ("Dear Life" especially but not exclusively) kept me on my toes and shifted in meaning as I progressed through each story. I would be interested in reading more Alice Munro in the future, but I probably won't check out another one of her books anytime soon, mostly because I prefer stories with less somber tones and clearer resolutions at the end.
I've often been daunted away from writing short stories myself, because I imagine them like "Twilight Zone" episodes, where they need shocking plot twists and high concepts more than characters experiencing mundane events. But Alice Munro does a great job of establishing characters in a short amount of pages, and I admire how she paints a narrative through seemingly random anecdotes that come together to create a rich and detailed tapestry of a fictional life. Her protagonists all seem very different, as well, which shows skill in alternating between distinct character voices and not writing from the same, neutral perspective each time.
The title is also worth mentioning, because its meaning to me changed as I moved through the collection. At first, I wasn't sure whether to interpret "Dear Life" as the beginning of a letter or a general description (though I was leaning toward the latter, since I often get a specific line from "Frankenstein" stuck in my head: "Life, although it may only be an accumulation of anguish, is dear to me, and I will defend it"). But the final story in this collection (which is called"Dear Life" and is probably the reason for the overall title) threw my reading of the title for a loop, since it turned out to be a pull-out quote from a line about running away and hiding "for dear life."
I'm still not quite sure what to make of this twist, but I enjoy how the titles in this collection ("Dear Life" especially but not exclusively) kept me on my toes and shifted in meaning as I progressed through each story. I would be interested in reading more Alice Munro in the future, but I probably won't check out another one of her books anytime soon, mostly because I prefer stories with less somber tones and clearer resolutions at the end.
kemanuel's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5