Pack of Cards

by Penelope Lively

In Pack of Cards, Penelope Lively introduces the reader to slivers of the everyday world that are not always open to observation, as she delves into the minutiae of her characters' lives. Whether she writes about a widow on a visit to Russia, a small boy's consignment to boarding school, or an agoraphobic housewife, Penelope Lively takes the reader past the closed curtains, through the locked door, into a world that seems at first mundane and then at second glance, proves to be uniquely memorable.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, British Literature, Literary Fiction, Literature

336 pages, Paperback

First published August 11, 1986

About the author

Penelope Lively is the author of many prize-winning novels and short-story collections for both adults and children. She has twice been shortlisted for the Booker Prize: once in 1977 for her first novel, The Road to Lichfield, and again in 1984 for According to Mark. She later won the 1987 Booker Prize for her highly acclaimed novel Moon Tiger.

Her other books include Going Back; Judgement Day; Next to Nature, Art; Perfect Happiness; Passing On; City of the Mind; Cleopatra’s Sister; Heat Wave; Beyond the Blue Mountains, a collection of short stories; Oleander, Jacaranda, a memoir of her childhood days in Egypt; Spiderweb; her autobiographical work, A House Unlocked; The Photograph; Making It Up; Consequences; Family Album, which was shortlisted for the 2009 Costa Novel Award, and How It All Began.

She is a popular writer for children and has won both the Carnegie Medal and the Whitbread Award. She was appointed CBE in the 2001 New Year’s Honours List, and DBE in 2012.

Penelope Lively lives in London. She was married to Jack Lively, who died in 1998.

Reviews

[Paul Secor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wherein, Ms. Lively shows that, in addition to writing wonderful novels, she can write wonderful short stories.

"Nothing Missing But the Samovar" is a classic.

[Stef Smulders · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very enjoyable stories, most of them amusing, some hilarious and some rather moving. Very English as well: I just love the use of understatement. Lively also likes to introduce some absurdity now and then.
The first story is moving and the picture that she sketches of the impoverished upper class is shocking. In the Voice of God story I like the way the author sketches the renters and how they interact. Lively has a keen and mostly forgiving and ironic eye for human weakness. Interpreting the past is a good story as well, profound. Servants talk about people is hilarious. Help is painful, a bit nasty and reminds one of Roald Dahl. Miss Carlton is a sweet and entertaining story that I liked very much. Revenant seemed a bit old-fashioned too me. At the Pitt-Rivers was one of the stories I liked less. A world of her own is a devastating portrait of an egotistic personality who thinks she is an artist. Presents of Fish and Game is another one that has not withstood time very well, I think. A clean death, on the contrary, is a more profound story that remains with you after finishing it. Corruption is hilarious again. Halfway the collection there are a few stories that I find less interesting. Th Art of Biography is entertaining a again with a touch of Dahl. A long night at Abu Simbel is another portrait of the less likeable part of human character. The French Exchange as well, with the added brilliance of the portrait of French student. Pack of Cards is another very good one in the same sphere. The Crimean Hotel has a touch of melancholy that is another trait that characterizes some stories. The last two stories have a touch of the absurd that is very enjoyable as well.

An excellent collection of a writer that is not very well known outside the UK, but very much worth the discovery.

[Jana]

I found this book of short stories in a lovely little shop in Bozeman, Montana. I started them immediately in our snowy Victorian lodging. Four read thus far, and they are excellent! I'm in no rush to finish them and am actually happy that it's teeny tiny print in my used copy.

[Esdaile · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having found this among my mother's books after she died, I thought I would give it a try. I am glad I did. The stories are very enjoyable, might be described as a cliché of what is thought to be an English sensibility (subdued tones, understatement, hint rather than statement, implication rather than dogma, sentiment rather than emotion) with the English literary tendency nevertheless (or so it seems to me) to create subdued caricatures in the guise of authentic characters, so I hesitated between four and three stars. Some of the themes are pretty unoriginal and some rather forced but most people awarding stars in Good Reads on the basis of the amount of pleasure they gave, not on the basis of an objectively assessed literary accomplishment; on that basis, I decided to award four stars, although definitely a low four but a four all the same-the stories are both easy to read and intelligent, a welcome combination in fiction in our hectic times, where there is so little time to enjoy and digest the hard to access literary work. I can recommend these stories to anybody on the move who occasionally has a little time in a train or parked car and wants a change from the daily news with its predictable platitudes, horrors and crises.

[Patti Flanagin · Rating 4 out of 5]

An especially good selection of Lively's short stories. They are all 30+ years old, so some cultural things are dated now, but in some instances this adds to their charm.

[J · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nothing Missing but the Samovar - A beautifully rendered story told from the perspective of a German student visiting the estate of an arisrocratic English family who have fallen on hard times yet maintain a wonderfully staid optimism and love of their farm and way of life. Very English.

Servants Talk about People: Gentlefolk discuss things - I'll remember this every time I dine in a restaurant. funniest story I've read in years!


Long Night at Abu Simbel - Very funny tale of how rapidly our veneer of civility wears away in the face of a bit of difficulty far from home.

The Art of Biography - Loved the juxtaposition of a great historical love affair and the narrator's rather pedestrian one.

[Banbury · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lively writes with keen understanding of lesser discussed human feelings and subterranean thoughts. Most of the stories have a moral stance-- but not in a preachy way -- more in the sense of what is moral is what makes the actor happy, and truth and morality are inextricably intertwined. The Darkness Out There captures that moment when we realize that much evil is wrapped in goodness.

[Neenie Gove · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is with regret and satisfaction that I finally finish Pack of Cards, Penelope Lively's amazeballs short story collection about, basically, nothing. And.... everything. I can't remember when I last looked forward to returning to a book so much, unless you count every Barbara Pym book ever written, which I don't.
Each story was just so perfectly written, perceptive, unsentimental. To try to describe them would just make them seem boring and trite, and they are utterly the opposite. I typically don't enjoy short stories at all, I just use them as filler between "real" books, but Penelope Lively is completely different. I'm terrible at describing why I loved this collection, but I did. So much!

[Lana · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although some pieces in this collection possess brilliant moments they overly dull. It seems, when we begin each short story, that their is much to be told and potential oozes from opening paragraphs. But by the end of the vignette nothing has happened except an unfinished description of mundane existence.

Each story offers something, a possibility of adventure, of catharsis, of didactic ending, but seldom forms anything except a harsh unfinished finish.

[Kyra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Riveting and unputdownable. The only story I found a little derivative was the ghost story, but the remaining stories held my attention more than well. Little bits of ordinary life transmogrified into suspenseful vignettes. Penelope Lively shows us what writing is all about. Thank you.

[Joan · Rating 5 out of 5]

in this collection there were one or two I didn’t care for, many that I liked, and several (especially The French Exchange) that I loved. But all were beautifully written.

[Louise Davy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short stories are such a specialist skill but Penelope Lively has it. I loved the variety of her material.

[Barbpie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charming stories. My favorite was “a long night in Abu Simbel.” Sometimes travelers get what they deserve.

[Susan Rogers · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the stories that I read but didn't finish the whole book

[Kathryn Tilson]

Scintillating

These stories are brilliant, each a separate world, with characters of a wide range, all fully dimensional. Each story is a memorable treat.

[Kerryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

[Diana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb! Reading Lively's writing is pure pleasure. Each story presented here is a a slice of life - a tale you can recognize and understand. Haunting and mesmerizing. Not soon to be forgotten. I can't wait to read Penelope's next book of stories coming out in May!

[Ken · Rating 3 out of 5]

- Miss Carlton and a pop concert is a 5* brilliantly crafted story.

- I could also relate to A Clean Death about an English girl having grown up in India.

- What the Eye Doesn’t See is a funny story about a sixty eight yrs old lady being “surprised”

- dream merchant is good, in the genre of Fantasy?.

- titled story pack of cards is witty on class snobbism.

= Got a good laugh re A dream of fair women re a Professor seeing his ex girlfriends in the audience of a talk.

a stronger collection than The Purple Hen stories but i much prefer her full-length novels.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm reading this one story at a time. Yellow Trains--very stream of consciouness and strange. No plot just thoughts of regret ending with the down to earth thought of eating a pizza. Ghost of a Flea--too weird and scary really--unpleasant. Bus Stop--what happened before and what happened next? We'll never know! What the Eye Doesn't See--strange older women and a precocious strangle little girl who knows more than they know. Clara's Day--a teenager takes off all her clothes and walks through a school assembly in the nude--so strange--she is crying at the end. Lively has a perverse imagination. The French Exchange--Lively makes such an ordinary even so real with its awkwardness.

[Peter Burton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Always a wonderful writer - perceptive,understated,very English.

[Jeff Hobbs]

Read so far:

*Nothing missing but the samovar --
The voice of God in Adelaide Terrace --
Interpreting the past --
Servants talk about people: gentlefolk discuss things --
Help --
Miss Carlton and the pop concert --
*Revenant as typewriter --
*Next term, we'll mash you --
At the Pitt-Rivers --
Nice people --
A world of her own --
Presents of fish and game --
A clean death --
Party --
*Corruption --
Venice, now and then --
Grow old along with me, the best is yet to be --2
*The darkness out there --
The pill-box --
Customers --
Yellow trains --
'The ghost of a flea' --
The art of biography --
What the eye doesn't see --
The emasculation of Ted Roper --
*A long night at Abu Simbel --
Bus-stop --
*Clara's day --
The French exchange --
The dream merchant --
*Pack of cards --
The Crimean hotel --
A dream of fair women --
Black dog--3
***
The five thousand and one nights
Uninvited ghosts

[Barbara]

This was my introduction (by Joan Berman) to Penelope Lively, who is certainly a prolific writer, for adults and children. The short stories are engaging, a bit odd, and certainly have enticed me to do some more reading from this woman. Each the stories starts out with a little ordinary tale, with slightly particular people in it. Soon the level of twisting emerges, all within the context of ordinary people in ordinary situations. Most will resonate as, “Ah yes, I understand that” or “I was inclined to do that” (even if you never would) or “I always wondered about that” and an occasional “Oh, good grief.” Ms. Lively has a mastery of the English language, periodically using words I did not know, and thus is enjoyable to read. Her descriptions are detailed and precise, as are her characters. Quite worthy of reading more – I will report when I do.

[Colin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've always enjoyed Penelope Lively's wonderful children's books, but it's only recently that I've come to read and enjoy her adult fiction. I picked this collection of her short stories written between 1978 and 1986 in a second-hand bookshop for just a couple of pounds, and that's definitely money very well-spent! The stories vary widely in subject matter - there are ghost stories (Revenant as Typewriter), comic tour de forces (A Long Night at Abu Simbel), tart studies of class and prejudice (including the wonderful title story) and many stories of family frustration and anxiety, but despite a couple that unfortunately haven't quite stood the test of time (The Voice of God in Adelaide Terrace and Miss Carlton and the Pop Concert), they are all engaging and, above all, entertaining. A thoroughly enjoyable read.

[F · Rating 4 out of 5]

She writes very well, very understated, but insightful and acutely observed. However, by the end of this collection of short stories written between 1978 and 1986 I begin to find her precision and 'cold eye' slightly irritating. It is all very 'British', very middle-class, very clever. These are better dipped into now and then, when it is easier to be surprised by her keen observation, and clever wit.

[Cynthia · Rating 3 out of 5]

The stories are anything from vignettes to complete stories, and some feel rather unfinished. Some are excellent, others less so, but generally good. There's a very British feel and atmosphere, which I enjoyed.

[Moirad · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wide range of short stories - I still prefer her novels and non-fiction, but these are amusing and contain shrewd and witty observations of human nature.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thoroughly enjoyed this collection of stories with varied themes, humor, and quirky characters.