Short Stories: The Thoroughly Modern Collection

by CSA Word (Editor)

Short Stories: The Thoroughly Modern Collection - carefully selected from our catalogue of over 300 short stories. This stunning and original collection features a famous array of literary talent and quality performance. A unique and utterly collectable edition, with stories spanning many themes and incidents, it is also a varied and accessible way into spoken word for newcomers. Stories: MOTHERS AND FATHERS by Angela Huth read by Janet McTeer SHARED CREDIT by Frederic Raphael read by Martin Jarvis THE YEAR'S MIDNIGHT by Helen Simpson read by Harriet Walter A PLACE FOR EVERYTHING by Barry Unsworth read by Janet McTeer THE GHOST OF THE RAIN FOREST by Barry Unsworth read by Rosalind Ayres A FEELING FOR BIRDS by Lisa St. Aubin de Teran read by Janet McTeer BATTLEFIELDS by Alan Sillitoe read by Janet McTeer WHO? by Fay Weldon read by Julie Christie MRS ALCOTT DANCES NAKED IN THE RAIN by Rosie Thomas read by Janet McTeer PRESTO BARBARO by Ronal Frame read by Janet McTeer SEA LION by Douglas Hurd read by Martin Jarvis THE SONS OF UPLAND FARM by George Mackay Brown read by Martin Jarvis DRESSING UP by Angela Huth read by Rosalind Ayres TWENTY YEARS by Doris Lessing read by Rosalind Ayres HUMPHREY'S MOTHER by Penelope Mortimer read by Martin Jarvis THE HERO by Joanna Trollope read by Martin Jarvis SHREDS AND SLIVERS by Ruth Rendell read by Martin Jarvis BRUT MILLESIME by Ludovic Kennedy read by Rosalind Ayres ON SEEING THE 100% PERFECT GIRL ONE BEAUTIFUL APRIL MORNING by Haruki Murakami read by Walter Lewis BAGLADY by A.S. Byatt read by Rosalind Ayres HOTEL DES VOYAGEURS by William Boyd read by Martin Jarvis TOY BOY by Edwina Currie read by Rosalind Ayres SIMON by Patrick O'Brien read by MartinJarvis

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Audiobook

Audiobook

First published April 1, 2009

Reviews

[Natalia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I must genuinely say that the short stories written by women were wonderful. Showing imperfect women, deepening the understanding of womens' experiences. But then it was so easy to recognize the stories written by men by their casual sexism (describing a woman by her tight pants), bizarre misunderstanding of woman's perspective (her consoling a guy after he ra*ed her because he seemed sad???) and boomer humor. I know these short stories have their years and they gave me a good insight into certain mindsets of the past so I must give it 3 stars. But truly this is a collection of both interesting and very boring stories and I'd recommend to skip about half of them.

[Clayton Yuen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Too depressing

[Gloria · Rating 2 out of 5]

Great readers!

[J. Alston · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love a good short stories, and these were fun little stories. Some of them weren't great but I liked that it was a range of authors so you got more of a taste for different styles. Good reads.

[Cmw · Rating 3 out of 5]

About 25% are lovely stories, the rest not do much. We’ll narrated, especially loved my favourite Harriet Walter !

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short stories aren't for everyone but they certainly are for me.

[A · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice selection of short stories, many which make you apprehensive, if just a little. There is also a lot of bickering. Some seem to end abruptly.

[Barbarac · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have mixed feelings about compilations of short stories.
On the one hand, short stories are great for when you don't have time to commit to longer books. You pick a story, read it and put the book down without worrying about whether you'll remember the characters or the plot next time you pick it up. You can even read them out of order.
But on the other hand, these compilations are a bit like most music CDs. You buy them knowing that you'll like at most 50% of the songs, and the rest...eh.
So I picked this up from the library to listen during workouts mainly because I saw names like Doris Lessing and Haruki Murakami.
Interestingly enough, I don't even remember what the short stories from these 2 authors were about. I must have completely dismissed them from my memory, or, I guess it could have been a glitch in the recording. After all, there were at least 3 short stories where the ending was completely cut off by the recording. How frustrating!
But there were some stories I did like. And also some narrators I did really enjoy (Martin Jarvis). And the short stories worked nicely into a very hectic week when I couldn't have picked up a longer book.

[Any Length · Rating 2 out of 5]

A very nice collection of stories, but the fact that they didn't have a twist at the end of each story left me wanting.

[Lee · Rating 1 out of 5]

too many stories and all too short.
Not really stories most are just
short fillers.I read this for free,
not worth paying good money for
too much boring stuff

[Tether Campbell · Rating 1 out of 5]

Depressing! I am so tired of depressing books. Perception is so much about life and this collection is about wrong decisions, misguided actions, and heaven forbid anyone look on the bright side.