Wind and Birds and Human Voices

by Ellen Wilbur

Book by Wilbur, Ellen

Genres: Short Stories

113 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 1984

Reviews

[Erik · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to Peter Orner’s “Still No Word From You” for pointing me to this obscure book of stories. I tracked down a paperback online and it happened to have an inscription from the author, written to a friend, thanking them for their hospitality, on Oct. 5, 1988. “I *quail* about how you are about to vote — but thanks,” she said. I wish there was more from Ellen Wilbur to read. The writing is very good. I wonder what she might have done next.

[Ian Hamilton · Rating 3 out of 5]

I saw this book cited by an interviewee in Believer magazine a while back and flagged it as an eventual to-read because it was given some seriously high praise. Evidently this collection of short stories was the only substantial thing this author released, and the book was never widely-read (though I did score an inexpensive copy off of eBay). I'm very glad I ultimately picked this one up because there are some pretty moving stories within the batch, most notably the title story. Wilbur delves into the Southern Gothic, which I'm always a sucker for. I think there's more to glean from the others so I think I'll plan to reread in the Fall. I'll give a placeholder 3.25 in the interim!

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, it's not bad. The stories are good or interesting, for the most part, and written well.
But really there are 3 stories within this collection of stories that are really good. Either by topic or writing or intrigue. And for better or worse, it's those 3 stories that make the book.

[Emily Kestrel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm giving this four stars for the long title story, which was both unusual and effective. The others stories weren't bad, but they shared a certain quiet, almost repressed tone that made them run together.