A review by _marco_
Selected Stories: Introduction by Catriona Seth by Guy de Maupassant

dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

5.0

Maupassant, as always, is brilliant. Each and every one of these short stories present different characters in different settings, yet they are all connected by something, a certain angst, an implicit cynicism that’s difficult to place, yet abundantly apparent in the sardonic tone with which the author writes. Despite this, there is still an inherent beauty in each of the characters he presents, a humanity that demands sympathy from the reader and forces identification with each of their individual plights. 

“The Earthquake burying a whole nation beneath the ruins of their houses; the river bursting its banks, drowning peasants and their cattle, tearing rafters from roofs and sweeping all away; the triumphant army slaughtering all who resist, making prisoners of the rest, pillaging in the name of the sword and giving thanks to God amid the roar of cannon: all alike are terrifying visitations which shatter our belief of eternal Justice and the confidence we have been taught to place in divine protection and human reason.”

There is plenty to say about these stories, not the least of which is the way with which Maupassant describes place. He doesn’t just list time and location, but paints landscapes and genre scenes with his words. While the settings are beautiful in and of themselves, the way in which they reflect the actions of the characters is even more potent: to fall into neurotics in the obliterating snow of the alps; to plead divine aid among a grove of olive trees; to wait for death in the debilitating summer heat; all of these stories punctuated and inflated by their milieu. 

Additionally, the rawness of emotions are exquisitely rendered: The longing for youth, the desire to return to the past, the internal debate between human’s biology and intellect, grief, loss, ire, ecstasy, and infinite others. I only long to feel as deeply and as completely as some of the characters in this anthology. 

I also found interesting the characters that Maupassant had chosen to depict: prostitutes, peasants, widows, unhappy women — he gives them such dignity, such humanity that to them is usually not afforded. 

Overall, I deeply enjoyed all of these stories. My favourites were: Boule de Suif, the Vendetta, Maison Tellier, Moonlight, Miss Harriet, the Olive Grove, A Portrait, and Idle Beauty. I cannot recommend this book enough. The more of Maupassant I read, the more of myself I see, the more I can say with certainty that he is one of my favourite authors. 
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