Underground: Tales for London

by Ann Bissell (Editor), Matthew Plampin (Contributor), Joanna Shriver (Contributor)

Every line tells a different story …




A troubled young woman travels across London to end an abusive relationship. An agitated father gets lost in the city with an injured toddler. Two men – who unknowingly cross paths every day – finally meet one life-changing afternoon. A sudden death on the platform at Blackfriars sparks rumours of murder.


Underground, we are at once isolated and connected. We avoid eye contact and conversation while our lives literally intersect with those of strangers. As we stand on the tube, it becomes possible to travel far further than expected – and this sense of possibility lies at the heart of this stunning collection.


Twelve writers explore life on the London Underground through eleven short stories and one memoir, commissioned to mark the opening of the Elizabeth line.

Audible Audio

First published September 6, 2018

Reviews

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting collection of stories and fun to read. It was a bit challenging (but rather a fun game) to figure out what time period each story took place in (only one identifies the year at the start), and the narrator is rarely clarified until well into the chapter. This means you have to focus on the environment and what's going on around the protagonist more than the person themselves, which is, actually, in line with (no pun intended) the purpose of the book: To honor the underground, rather than exploring the people of London.

Not all of these were enjoyable stories, and a couple leave you hanging with no real resolution and a sense of "what was even the POINT of that??", but overall, taking an underground journey of London through a book is a unique experience, and rather feels a bit like experiencing it in person. There are slices of life all around you, and you can't always know what's underneath the surface, but for a brief moment in time, you're connected to a random group of strangers.

This book has quite a lot of tragedy, actually, and I'm not sure if that speaks to those particular writers or the state of humanity in general, but several stories (maybe all?) involve tragedy: someone grieving one, someone experiencing one, someone imagining one. To be clear, no, it isn't an uplifting book.

I'm glad I finally got to read this book (I had to buy it on eBay because no libraries in the States seem to have it), but I will never read it again. It's a one-and-done book, but I'm happy to be able to check it off my list, and I don't regret reading it.

[Connie Kelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful read but not for everyone unless you've traveled a great deal on London's underground. Many thanks to my friend for choosing this gift during our stay.

[Jamie Bowen · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting collection of short stories all linked with each tube line in London, celebrating the launch of the new Elizabeth line. Next time I'm looking around a tube train I will be wondering where all these people are from ;) No spoilers

[Lizixer · Rating 3 out of 5]

A varied selection of short stories that vary from excellent to okay. Published in 2018 to mark the (non) opening of the Elizabeth Line, each author takes a different line and a different aspect or time of London life to explore.

I particularly like the stories that have a supernatural or fantasy element because who has not ridden the underground and had the distinct impression that they are seeing something not quite of this world (on three separate occasions I’ve “seen” fairy folk, and a couple of witches. I’ve never seen a ghost but then how would I know that I had?) or that the station they are pulling up at feels strange.

The underground is also a place for people watching and many of these stories muse on the passengers and their stories. This is probably also familiar to regular travellers who might eschew their devices to covertly admire the outfits of a group of party goers, or wonder why someone is looking so sad, or crane their necks to see what someone is reading and wonder what it tells you about them (c’mon, not just me!).

Short stories are a chance to play, experiment and follow thoughts. They might capture single incidents that are illustrative of something bigger, they might follow a single character for an hour, an afternoon, a day. They might recall something terrible that happened and focus on the actions of just one or two caught up in it. They are the author picking out that one person on their journey and mentally following them.

Some of the stories are sharply written and poignant tales, others feel a bit less formed. All of them highlight something key about London, past or present be it loneliness, fear, death, history or disasters but also love, and happiness.

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

The concept for this book was very appealing and the cover design, a kind of cross between those icons the Tube Map and Cadbury's Dairy Milk colours added to the appeal. However this collection of commissioned stories inspired by the Tube did not, as a whole, enthrall.

Joanna Cannon's offering, which had been a further enticement, was as worthwhile as hoped, a clear-eyed but compassionate story of regular visits to a severely disabled sibling and the husband's puzzlement at his wife's attitude, with Cyril and Margaret and Jessica all rich characters.

Some stories reflect the better known parts of London Underground history - sheltering from the Blitz, the King's Cross fire (the subtle hints at the date through reference to the student grant adding to the poignancy) Layla AlAmmar's story from the perspective of the father of a raped daughter is interesting, but most others seem patchy, unimportant, and ultimately don't 'stick' The final contribution, memoir, races round too fast.

[Alexander Wright · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short story collection commissioned, somewhat ironically, for the “opening” of the Elizabeth line in 2018 (still not open in 2022). The backplate tells us of the Underground’s 12 lines (there are still 11) and 270 stations (now 272 following the Northern line extension to Battersea Power Station before any sign of the central section of Liz’s line opening up)!

Hit and miss but a few gems in here. Not least, again somewhat ironically, ‘Elizabeth’ which opens the collection and sets the bar high with a tight and emotional short story.

‘Piccadilly’, ‘Circle’ and the closing memoir, ‘Hammersmith & City’ are also good. I found I could take or leave the rest.

[Luke Esdale · Rating 3 out of 5]

As someone who loves the tube and is from London I was really excited to read this story when I picked it up (at London Bridge station of course!) A charming set of stories revolving around each of London’s tube lines. Each story was completely different and took a different turn. Some were thrilling, some were grounding and some made you grateful for the human experience. If you love London definitely give this a read!

[shan · Rating 2 out of 5]

this was a solid 3 star read... up until the last story which was just boring, and I feel as though one of the other tales would’ve been better in its place. some of the stories were pretty good, but I feel I would’ve liked the book more if I was actually a frequent commuter on the London Underground - appreciated it more, perhaps?

[Lina Quiñones · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book very much, although it's probably not as enjoyable if you haven't spent a lot of time on the London Underground. A love letter (12 actually) to London and its transport system, to the millions of lives and stories that it moves daily.

[Jo · Rating 1 out of 5]

Unfortunately, I did not realise these were individual short stories - perhaps I should read the cover!
A lovely cover, but the first story was supernatural which is not my taste.
Pass it on ... someone will enjoy it.

[Rachael Taylor · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a slow burner for me. I usually enjoy a book of short stories as they are great for my commute to and from work but I wasn’t as hooked as I’d hoped!

[Esther Huntington-Whiteley · Rating 3 out of 5]

'Nothing is demanded of you on the underground except to wait and stare, suspended in time and place, as life transfers you from one situation to the next. I have always thought a journey was the perfect opportunity to reflect. To think about what comes next.'

Not quite cohesive enough but then again I probably didn't try very hard.