Scan barcode
A review by sloatsj
Too Much Happiness by Alice Munro
5.0
My second Munro collection this year and I have the feeling there'll be another.
One of my favorite stories was "Child's Play," about an only child who becomes an anthropologist. The character writes a book about the attitude towards "unique people," meaning, mostly, handicapped. Having chosen to remain single and distanced, the anthropologist finds her one notable relationship was with another girl named Charlene, whom she met at summer camp. Charlene remains attached to the main character into later life, though their one interaction is a letter from Charlene. There is something of a revelation at the end that changes your understanding of the character's choices.
I also enjoyed "Fiction" a lot, about a woman who's left by her husband.
In a couple of cases I felt the end was a bit pat, or too blankly stated where it didn't need to be. Nevertheless, very engaging and wonderfully written stories.
One of my favorite stories was "Child's Play," about an only child who becomes an anthropologist. The character writes a book about the attitude towards "unique people," meaning, mostly, handicapped. Having chosen to remain single and distanced, the anthropologist finds her one notable relationship was with another girl named Charlene, whom she met at summer camp. Charlene remains attached to the main character into later life, though their one interaction is a letter from Charlene. There is something of a revelation at the end that changes your understanding of the character's choices.
I also enjoyed "Fiction" a lot, about a woman who's left by her husband.
In a couple of cases I felt the end was a bit pat, or too blankly stated where it didn't need to be. Nevertheless, very engaging and wonderfully written stories.