Listen to the Voice: Selected Stories

Canongate Classics #49

by Iain Crichton Smith

This collection of the best of Iain Crichton Smith's short fiction brings together not one but many voices, both public and private. Ranging from inner promptings towards self-discovery, through the unconscious comedy of everyday speech, to the rantings of near madness, these stories display the peaks of Smith's wry, surrealistic humour, and his confessional mode in re-telling the past. The longer stories, illustrative of Smith's novels, are represented by 'Murdo' and the seminal 'The Black and the Red'. There are also outstanding short pieces such as 'Listen to the Voice' and the poignant vignette, 'The Dying'.

Genres: Short Stories

344 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1994

About the author

Iain Crichton Smith (Gaelic: Iain Mac a' Ghobhainn ) was a Scottish man of letters, writing in both English and Gaelic, and a prolific author in both languages. He is known for poetry, short stories and novels.

He was born in Glasgow, but moved to the isle of Lewis at the age of two, where he and his two brothers were brought up by their widowed mother in the small crofting town of Bayble, which also produced Derick S. Thomson. Educated at the University of Aberdeen, Crichton Smith took a degree in English, and after serving in the National Service Army Education Corps, went on to become a teacher.

He taught in Clydebank, Dumbarton and Oban from 1952, retiring to become a full-time writer in 1977, although he already had many novels and poems published. He was awarded an OBE in 1980.

Reviews

[Duntay · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was initially put off Iain Crichton Smith by my husband's dire warnings about Remember the Lilies but was glad I read this in the end