Reviews

The Celestial Omnibus and Other Stories: ( Annotated ) by E. M. Forester

derhindemith's review against another edition

4.0

A wonderful pastoral collection. I've known for a while that he was really into the outdoors, but this was an excellent collection of stories about nature and the desire to connect to it or be a part of it.
Really, it was close to magical realism, between the release of dryad and the creation of a faun. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

kibiiiariii's review against another edition

slow-paced

2.0

aleatha's review against another edition

5.0

Very fey. I love E.M. Forster. The title story was my favorite.

caitpoytress's review against another edition

4.0

I have to admit that I am still getting used to Forster's style. He's not especially descriptive, which can be a good thing. I've read books that take pages upon pages to describe something as inconsequential as the front porch of a random building, down to the individual hues and intricate pattern of the wood grain. Um, no thanks. That's when I start skimming, in an attempt to keep my eyes from glazing over and drooping shut. However. Forster, in my opinion, goes too far in the opposite direction. Although I did notice it here and there in A Room With a View, it was much more obvious in this collection, probably due to the short story form. It was a bit disconcerting to begin a story and find myself plopped in mid-conversation amongst characters who are completely indistinguishable from one another (I am thinking specifically of Other Kingdom). Forster eventually gets around to sorting them out and the stories' backdrops and characters become clearer, but it does make for slightly uncomfortable reading in the first few pages.

I feel like the above is making it seem as if I didn't like his stories, but I did. I loved them. I loved the weaving together of Edwardian era characters and sensibilities with fantasy and fable. The Story of a Panic, The Celestial Omnibus, Other Kingdom, and The Road from Colonus were standouts, but honestly there's not a bad one in the bunch.

aebus's review against another edition

3.0

Awesome set of short stories. All are chock full of allusions to and lessons from Greek mythology, reframed for modern-ish eyes. My favorites were The Story of a Panic and The Celestial Omnibus; both had mad Peter Pan vibes.

cianishere's review against another edition

adventurous funny reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

dixiet's review against another edition

5.0

I do not generally enjoy short stories as much as novels, but I LOVE these, especially the title story and "The Story of a Panic."

kittenscribble's review against another edition

4.0

Short stories, allegorical fable type. Forster, in his trademark beautiful prose, provides several short stories of practical British people who find themselves either able or completely unable to deal with a slight amount of otherworldliness. In the title story, a young boy finds an omnibus that goes to Heaven; however, try though he might to share this vision with the adults around him, he finds himself surrounded by disbelievers. The end result is fair, almost frighteningly so.

lberestecki's review against another edition

3.0

I'm pretty picky with short story collections, and this one didn't really draw me in. The stories and writing were fine, but there was nothing that I loved.

Received from Netgalley.

mcassin's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0