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Telling Tales
Rarely have world writers of such variety and distinction appeared together in the same anthology. Their stories capture the range of emotions and situations of our human universe: tragedy, comedy, fantasy, satire, dramas of sexual love and of war in different continents and cultures. They are not about HIV / AIDS. But all twenty-one writers have given their stories--chosen by themselves as representing some of the best of their lifetime work as storytellers--without any fee or royalty.
Telling Tales is being published in more than twelve countries. The publisher's profits from the sales of this book will go to HIV / AIDS preventive education and for medical treatment for people living with the suffering this pandemic infection brings to our contemporary world.
Contents
Acknowledgements
Introduction
Bulldog (Arthur Miller)
The Centaur (José Saramago)
Down the Quiet Street (Es´kia Mphahlele)
The Firebird´s Nest (Salman Rushdie)
Cell Phone (Ingo Schulze)
Death Constant Beyond Love (Gabriel García Márquez)
The Age of Lead (Margaret Atwood)
Witnesses of an Era (Günter Grass)
The Journey to the Dead (John Updike)
Sugar Baby (Chinua Achebe)
The Way of the Wind (Amos Oz)
Warm Dogs (Paul Theroux)
The Ass and the Ox (Michel Tournier)
Death of a Son (Njabulo S. Ndebele)
The Letter Scene (Susan Sontag)
To Have Been (Claudio Magris)
A Meeting, At Last (Hanif Kureishi)
Associations in Blue (Christa Wolf)
The Rejection (Woody Allen)
The Ultimate Safari (Nadine Gordimer)
Abandoned Children of This Planet (Kensaburo Oe)
The Contributors
Source Notes
----
21 weltberühmte Autorinnen und Autoren erzählen ihre Lieblingsgeschichten; ein Short-Story-Band der Superlative
Telling Tales is being published in more than twelve countries. The publisher's profits from the sales of this book will go to HIV / AIDS preventive education and for medical treatment for people living with the suffering this pandemic infection brings to our contemporary world.
Contents
Acknowledgements
Introduction
Bulldog (Arthur Miller)
The Centaur (José Saramago)
Down the Quiet Street (Es´kia Mphahlele)
The Firebird´s Nest (Salman Rushdie)
Cell Phone (Ingo Schulze)
Death Constant Beyond Love (Gabriel García Márquez)
The Age of Lead (Margaret Atwood)
Witnesses of an Era (Günter Grass)
The Journey to the Dead (John Updike)
Sugar Baby (Chinua Achebe)
The Way of the Wind (Amos Oz)
Warm Dogs (Paul Theroux)
The Ass and the Ox (Michel Tournier)
Death of a Son (Njabulo S. Ndebele)
The Letter Scene (Susan Sontag)
To Have Been (Claudio Magris)
A Meeting, At Last (Hanif Kureishi)
Associations in Blue (Christa Wolf)
The Rejection (Woody Allen)
The Ultimate Safari (Nadine Gordimer)
Abandoned Children of This Planet (Kensaburo Oe)
The Contributors
Source Notes
----
21 weltberühmte Autorinnen und Autoren erzählen ihre Lieblingsgeschichten; ein Short-Story-Band der Superlative
320 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2004
29 people are currently reading
623 people want to read
About the author
Nadine Gordimer
325 books953 followersNadine Gordimer was a South African writer, political activist, and recipient of the 1991 Nobel Prize in Literature. She was recognized as a woman "who through her magnificent epic writing has – in the words of Alfred Nobel – been of very great benefit to humanity".
Gordimer's writing dealt with moral and racial issues, particularly apartheid in South Africa. Under that regime, works such as Burger's Daughter and July's People were banned. She was active in the anti-apartheid movement, joining the African National Congress during the days when the organization was banned. She was also active in HIV/AIDS causes.
Gordimer's writing dealt with moral and racial issues, particularly apartheid in South Africa. Under that regime, works such as Burger's Daughter and July's People were banned. She was active in the anti-apartheid movement, joining the African National Congress during the days when the organization was banned. She was also active in HIV/AIDS causes.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 57 reviews
April 24, 2018
There are two real gems in this collection - The Centaur by Jose Saramago - my introduction to this brilliant author - and The Ass and the Ox by Michel Tournier.
March 4, 2016
This collection is a great introduction to the amazing writers, if you ever want to have a taste of these incredible authors, this is a great collection to see if their writing style is your thing.
The best in my opinion are:
"Bulldog" by Arthur Miller, "The Firebird's Nest" by Salman Rushdie, "Death Constant Beyond Love" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, "The Age of Lead" by Margaret Atwood, "Witness of an Era" by Gunter Grass (from his book "My Century"), "Sugar Baby by Chinua Achebe, and "The Ultimate Safari" by Nadine Gordimer
The best in my opinion are:
"Bulldog" by Arthur Miller, "The Firebird's Nest" by Salman Rushdie, "Death Constant Beyond Love" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, "The Age of Lead" by Margaret Atwood, "Witness of an Era" by Gunter Grass (from his book "My Century"), "Sugar Baby by Chinua Achebe, and "The Ultimate Safari" by Nadine Gordimer
June 17, 2014
A curious 2004 collection of short stories edited by Nadine Gordimer and contributed by twenty-one outstanding living writers (at the time of publishing) including five Nobel Prize winners (José Saramago, Gabriel García Márquez, Günter Grass, Kenzaburo Oe and Nadine Gordimer herself) for the benefit of the estimated 40 million people infected with HIV/AIDS.
None of the stories is directly about HIV/AIDS and it is interesting to speculate on what went through the minds of the writers when they were asked to contribute a story in order to help support The Treatment Action Campaign (TAC), "an independent non-profit organization whose funds are used for the treatment and support of people suffering from HIV and AIDS, and for the prevention of the diseaese, in the world´s most afflicted region, Southern Africa". Do you rummage through some old, previously unpublished stories or stories you hold the copyright to? This seems to have been the case for some of the contributions, such as Es´kia Mphahlele´s 1954 Down the quiet street, Claudio Magris´1991 To have been or Ingo Schulze´s 1999 Cell Phone. Do you wrangle with your publishers to have them release a story you feel is particularly appropriate for this collection, as the majority of the writers seem to have done? Do you write a story for the collection, as appears to have the case for Christa Wolf´s 2003 Association in Blue? In any case one of the stories dates from the 1950s, one from the sixties, two from the seventies, three from the eighties, eleven from the nineties and the remaining three from the 2000s.
What sort of story would you contribute to such a collection? Only four stories are set in Africa: Chinua Achebe´s Sugar baby which lightly brushes on the extreme behaviour war shortages bring about, in this case, on a man with an addiction to sugar, Es´kai Mphalele´s rather picaresque and, to my mind, rather inappropriate Down the Quiet Street in which coffins turn out to hide contraband bottles, Njabulo Ndebele´s emotionally charged protest in Death of a son and Nadine Gordimer´s wrenching story about refugees The ultimate safari. At least half the stories explore death or disease: Margaret Atwood´s The Age of Lead, Gabriel García Márquez´s Death constant beyond love, Njabulo Ndebele´s Death of a son, Amos Oz´s The way of the wind, Paul Theorux´s Warm dogs, Nadine Gordimer´s The ultimate safari, John Updike´s The Journey to the dead and some of them like Günter Grass´s Witnesses of an era, Kenzaburo Oe´s Abandoned Children of the Planet, José Saramago´s The Centaur or Claudio Magris To have been taking pains to explore the theme at (almost) mythical distance. Would you rather contribute a funny story, like Woody Allen´s light-hearted and satirical The rejection or a story about love or the end of love like Hanif Kureishi´s A meeting, at last, Arthur Miller´s warm Bulldog, Ingo Schulze´s Cell Phone, Susan Sontag´s The Letter Scene or Michel Tournier´s religious The Ass and the ox?
All the stories are well-structured and well-written, but of course each reader will find stories he loves, stories he merely likes and even stories which he or she will dislike for his or her own particular reasons.
In my case, I feel only four stories deserve four stars: Susan Sontag´s The letter scene, John Updike´s "The journey to the dead", Margaret Atwood´s The Age of Lead and Nadine Gordimer´s The Ultimate Safari, and three stories strike me as three and a half stars: Salman Rushdie´s The Firebird´s Nest, José Saramago´s The Centaur and Günter Grass´Witness of an era.
Nadine Gordimer also asked each writer to provide his or her own one-paragraph presentation. Interestingly enough these presentations range from Woody Allen´s stark twelve word minimalist presentation:
None of the stories is directly about HIV/AIDS and it is interesting to speculate on what went through the minds of the writers when they were asked to contribute a story in order to help support The Treatment Action Campaign (TAC), "an independent non-profit organization whose funds are used for the treatment and support of people suffering from HIV and AIDS, and for the prevention of the diseaese, in the world´s most afflicted region, Southern Africa". Do you rummage through some old, previously unpublished stories or stories you hold the copyright to? This seems to have been the case for some of the contributions, such as Es´kia Mphahlele´s 1954 Down the quiet street, Claudio Magris´1991 To have been or Ingo Schulze´s 1999 Cell Phone. Do you wrangle with your publishers to have them release a story you feel is particularly appropriate for this collection, as the majority of the writers seem to have done? Do you write a story for the collection, as appears to have the case for Christa Wolf´s 2003 Association in Blue? In any case one of the stories dates from the 1950s, one from the sixties, two from the seventies, three from the eighties, eleven from the nineties and the remaining three from the 2000s.
What sort of story would you contribute to such a collection? Only four stories are set in Africa: Chinua Achebe´s Sugar baby which lightly brushes on the extreme behaviour war shortages bring about, in this case, on a man with an addiction to sugar, Es´kai Mphalele´s rather picaresque and, to my mind, rather inappropriate Down the Quiet Street in which coffins turn out to hide contraband bottles, Njabulo Ndebele´s emotionally charged protest in Death of a son and Nadine Gordimer´s wrenching story about refugees The ultimate safari. At least half the stories explore death or disease: Margaret Atwood´s The Age of Lead, Gabriel García Márquez´s Death constant beyond love, Njabulo Ndebele´s Death of a son, Amos Oz´s The way of the wind, Paul Theorux´s Warm dogs, Nadine Gordimer´s The ultimate safari, John Updike´s The Journey to the dead and some of them like Günter Grass´s Witnesses of an era, Kenzaburo Oe´s Abandoned Children of the Planet, José Saramago´s The Centaur or Claudio Magris To have been taking pains to explore the theme at (almost) mythical distance. Would you rather contribute a funny story, like Woody Allen´s light-hearted and satirical The rejection or a story about love or the end of love like Hanif Kureishi´s A meeting, at last, Arthur Miller´s warm Bulldog, Ingo Schulze´s Cell Phone, Susan Sontag´s The Letter Scene or Michel Tournier´s religious The Ass and the ox?
All the stories are well-structured and well-written, but of course each reader will find stories he loves, stories he merely likes and even stories which he or she will dislike for his or her own particular reasons.
In my case, I feel only four stories deserve four stars: Susan Sontag´s The letter scene, John Updike´s "The journey to the dead", Margaret Atwood´s The Age of Lead and Nadine Gordimer´s The Ultimate Safari, and three stories strike me as three and a half stars: Salman Rushdie´s The Firebird´s Nest, José Saramago´s The Centaur and Günter Grass´Witness of an era.
Nadine Gordimer also asked each writer to provide his or her own one-paragraph presentation. Interestingly enough these presentations range from Woody Allen´s stark twelve word minimalist presentation:
Woody Allen is a writer, director and actor for stage and screento Michel Tournier´s one hundred and eighteen word curriculum vitae. This diversity underlines the unique style and perspective each writer contributes to the book.
February 6, 2015
A great collection of short stories from around the world, it might be one of the best collections of such world renowned writers who have achieved prestigious prizes in literature, and they gather here to show our world’s cultural diversity and allocate the money of publishing this anthology to fund the researches and educational programs to combat AIDS/HIV.
“Bulldog” by Arthur Miller, it reminded me of my family when we bought Piny through an ad in the paper. My sister’s desperately missed our former German shepherd at Baghdad, she cried for days remembering him. Then my dad decided to buy a new puppy for her. We checked the advertisements in Al-Waseet ad newspaper, and she chose that Pekinese dog. As mentioned in the story she also was not that familiar with this species and went in a far away journey to 6th October neighborhood with dad to buy it. I was not that happy at the beginning, while my mom loved it as she saw it enters our home despite her refusal at first knowing she will be the only one taking care of him – as in the story. My sister told us a year later that she did not like Piny on first sight but she hesitated to say that at that time. Now Piny is an inseparable part of our family and accompanies us wherever we go. The story reminds me of many similarities with myself including the fact that I cannot play music but always try to record my own tunes. The story depicted how unreal desires might lead to awaken another real on. As the thirteen year old lad fall in love with the owner of the puppies and wished to meet her again, and invented lies so as to meet her, and actually her nice playing her mother admired – as she is a professional pianist – was the fruit of that secret love.
“The centaur” by Jose Saramago, as in his novel “the stone raft” where Saramago mentioned the Cerberus inspired from Greek mythology, here he talks on the centaur mixing mythology with his great talent in describing the wilderness of Iberia, the dry rivers and the mountainous borders between countries. The end of the story reminded me of the cloven viscount by Italo Calveno but here the last man-horse died separating his two components. Personally I saw a deep meaning in this fantasy story, as it represents the life and grief of creatures or minor peoples on the brink of extinct, the ones who are able to continue existing only by hiding away – as if they were not here – or be seen, persecuted and killed by others, such people are forced to choose between metaphorical extinct by keep hiding and let people do not know about them or to present themselves and be killed to face the real extinct. They are not here in all cases. The separation of the human torso and that of the horse as well as their powers, needs and desires are well depicted in this story. The role of the woman in bringing the centaur back to existence and his following death, reminds me of the role of woman in bringing Enkidu back to his humane race and introducing him to civilization and his following death too.
“Down the quiet street” by Es’kia Mphahlele, this is the first time I read for this notable South African novelist and activist and a previous nominated of Nobel Prize in literature. The short story depicted poverty, death, racism, diseases and over population in South Africa in the times of Apartheid rule. What is considered a quiet street, Nadia Street, seemed to be quite different and a way where the increasing daily funeral processions pass through. The story shows us the poor population’s lifestyle starting from dirt, need, gossip and depairs.
“The Firebird’s nest” by Salman Rushdie. the story talks on drought and hot weathers in India, it discusses the traditions of Indian society, the old legends and superstitions and show us how princes lost their old positions, and how the old prince’s American bride was seeing the place. I loved how he described the festival in the palace, how he described the dancers, the music and the lights, it gave us an impression of fairy tales. He mentioned the marriages that lack love, the underestimating of women who go with men before marriage in India. It gave us a mix of environments, American cities, Indian traditions, palaces and folklore, Persian rugs, Arabesque tableaus, and European Operas. I wished to listen to the “Firebird” by Stravinsky while reading it but unfortunately, it was not on my mobile. I loved how they pursue omens and how the marriage continues and the rain falls at last. The language of the story was so poetic.
“The cell phone” by Ignu Schulze, the story was short but I was too tired till I could not catch its main point, but it was on someone with fears, and how cell phone had abolish the sense of loneliness forever according to the story.
“Sugar baby” by Chinua Achebe, it talks on the bad conditions and poverty during the civil war in Nigeria and how simple and naïve the dreams of people were. It also discusses how they asked traveling persons for simple things to bring with them while coming back. It talks also on sugar addiction, which is a truth as sugar influences the same centers in the brain that opium works on.
Amos Oz “the way of the wind”, the story talks on the differences between generations in a Kibbutz, how an important labor party’s member’s son wanted to prove himself a brave man, thus he joined the parachutists to celebrate the independence day in May. The story discussed politics, familial relations, how the only son of a certain family should get written permission from both parents to join the army, and how children might be braver that commanders sometimes as shown in the end of the story. I liked it and found it so relevant to the values many families in our region bring their sons up to them.
“The Ass and the ox” by Michel Tournier, the story was on Christmas eve, the author mixed the story in such an indirect way with the birth of Apis in ancient Egypt. The main things in the story is how amazingly he described the silent night and the natural reactions to the birth of Jesus, and how he condemned the cruelty against animals when sacrificing them, he mentioned that on the tongue of Silas the Samaritan, who refused to sacrifice his lamb. Archangel Gabriel told him that the sacrifice of Isaac was a mistake, but Silas insisted that Yahweh had chosen Cain’s bloody sacrifice earlier to that, and wondered if people are worshiping a bloodthirsty god. Gabriel promised Silas that this would be different with the birth of the Messiah and that God will sacrifice his only son instead of receiving further bloody sacrifices in the future. The story also mentioned that asses were praised by Archangel Gabriel - as the ass telling the story was there in the barn on that night - and it wondered if asses will never be mentioned. but the angel told him that a female ass will be chosen to carry the Christ on entering Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, and that they will carry the holy family in its flight into Egypt. Still asses will suffer the bad treatment of human beings and be just like martyrs. I loved the story and read it quickly and it helped me bearing the long way to the city center. An information attracted me was the name of the ass in the story, it was Kadi Shuya (Kadi = judge or priest – shuya = small or of no importance” so he referred that people were making fun of donkeys by calling them with a name formed of a mixture of praising and underestimating at the same time. The point here is that Kadishuya have something to do with “Kedish” which is used to describe donkeys and mules in Iraq and Syria. I think it might have some old Aramaic or Hebrew origin.
“Death of a son” by Njabulo S. Ndebele, which talks on the lost dreams of a mother in South Africa to bring up her only son to have a great future before being killed in random raids by police officers on their district. The story showed how cruel police were during the apartheid time in South Africa and how they have killed the little boy and captured his body so as not to announce what had happened. The main character in the story also had enough of her husband’s vows to do something, the vows she saw nothing of them, she condemned the weakness of men and see their inability to feel free to fear stands behind their inability to defeat their fears. She hated to hear a lot and see nothing. She mentioned other racial actions against black people, and how she started to live for her present day at last, and ignoring her dreams, she saw her home as nonsense despite having everything; it was but a bird nest that a predator might attack at any time. They were rich and educated but they cannot realize their dreams, because of irrational racism. The story was so touching, and it insisted to leave us with hope that life will continue and we will endure everything at last.
“The letter scene” by Susan Sontag – I found this story a little bit confusing, many acts as if it was a play not a short story, the events were not that clear for me. However, I loved some of the ideas it discussed, the importance of old letters; and how precious they were, incomparable with emails and SMS. The story told us how people usually love to receive letters, but not writing ones, how they prefer giving advices- which they will not follow themselves if it was their own business – and hate being the recipients of advices. It shows us how it is easier to write “no, never, no longer” in letters than in face-to-face occasions. I felt as if the writer is longing to the old fashion lifestyle and trying to depict its charming side.
“To have been” by Claudio Magris – it was a trial to make us accept our fate, to welcome the end through a speech said in the funeral of a guitarist who had committed a suicide, it is also a trial to understand those who end their lives for whatever reason they have. I loved it especially when he compares our lives with stories. Every epilogue is happy, because it is an epilogue.
“A meeting at last” by Hanif Kureishi – it is a sad story depicting one scene summarizing the story of a person and a family as a whole, it is about the meeting of a man with his wife’s lover. He was eager to know why she preferred that man to him, why she forgot about her marriage and two kids. The lover at last knew that the wife was lying and that her husband is not superficial. The whole scene is well structured and depicted.
“Associations in blue” by Christa Wolf – it is a lovely and intellectual discussion of phrases from Pablo Neruda’s poem where Blue color’s birth is mentioned. Christa tries to discover what our great poet means by that through summarizing the importance of blue color in proverbs, music, novels, poetry, histology colors, politics, history, national symbols, fashions and other things. The essay – if I can say so – is perfect and especially at the end when she said that those who were shouting with joy when the blue was born were the extraterrestrial creatures when our earth was born.
“The rejection” by Woody Allen – it is an exaggeration comedy to depict how silly things might be taken so serious sometimes. It talks about the rejection of a little kid’s in a prestigious kindergarten in Manhattan and how the father felt ashamed in front of his colleagues, being derived out of a restaurant because of that issue, how a friend told him about a person who was destroyed just because he was in the wrong kindergarten. The story is funny and the family ends up homeless at last.
The ultimate Safari by Nadine Gordimer – it talks on the misery of a rural family from Mozambique, and its suffer because of the war. It shows us how they have lost their father and mother, how they cross a natural park amid dangers in order to find a shelter in a neighboring country, how journalists come to see their miserable living conditions, how the grandmother lost her hope while the younger generations keep their hope alive out of their ignorance of the reality.
Abandoned Children of this planet by Kenzaburo Oe – is a little bit confusing story talking on the funeral of an elderly man in a Japanese village, then a discussion on composing music and finally a theory on how life has started on earth when a spaceship brought a group of children from somewhere else to be abandoned on our planet. I found it a little bit confusing.
Thanks a lot for my dear friend Mr. David Wheeler for dedicating this book to me on our last meeting.
Gilgamesh Nabeel
December 25, 2014
A great collection of short stories from around the world, it might be one of the best collections of such world renowned writers who have achieved prestigious prizes in literature, and they gather here to show our world’s cultural diversity and allocate the money of publishing this anthology to fund the researches and educational programs to combat AIDS/HIV.
“Bulldog” by Arthur Miller, it reminded me of my family when we bought Piny through an ad in the paper. My sister’s desperately missed our former German shepherd at Baghdad, she cried for days remembering him. Then my dad decided to buy a new puppy for her. We checked the advertisements in Al-Waseet ad newspaper, and she chose that Pekinese dog. As mentioned in the story she also was not that familiar with this species and went in a far away journey to 6th October neighborhood with dad to buy it. I was not that happy at the beginning, while my mom loved it as she saw it enters our home despite her refusal at first knowing she will be the only one taking care of him – as in the story. My sister told us a year later that she did not like Piny on first sight but she hesitated to say that at that time. Now Piny is an inseparable part of our family and accompanies us wherever we go. The story reminds me of many similarities with myself including the fact that I cannot play music but always try to record my own tunes. The story depicted how unreal desires might lead to awaken another real on. As the thirteen year old lad fall in love with the owner of the puppies and wished to meet her again, and invented lies so as to meet her, and actually her nice playing her mother admired – as she is a professional pianist – was the fruit of that secret love.
“The centaur” by Jose Saramago, as in his novel “the stone raft” where Saramago mentioned the Cerberus inspired from Greek mythology, here he talks on the centaur mixing mythology with his great talent in describing the wilderness of Iberia, the dry rivers and the mountainous borders between countries. The end of the story reminded me of the cloven viscount by Italo Calveno but here the last man-horse died separating his two components. Personally I saw a deep meaning in this fantasy story, as it represents the life and grief of creatures or minor peoples on the brink of extinct, the ones who are able to continue existing only by hiding away – as if they were not here – or be seen, persecuted and killed by others, such people are forced to choose between metaphorical extinct by keep hiding and let people do not know about them or to present themselves and be killed to face the real extinct. They are not here in all cases. The separation of the human torso and that of the horse as well as their powers, needs and desires are well depicted in this story. The role of the woman in bringing the centaur back to existence and his following death, reminds me of the role of woman in bringing Enkidu back to his humane race and introducing him to civilization and his following death too.
“Down the quiet street” by Es’kia Mphahlele, this is the first time I read for this notable South African novelist and activist and a previous nominated of Nobel Prize in literature. The short story depicted poverty, death, racism, diseases and over population in South Africa in the times of Apartheid rule. What is considered a quiet street, Nadia Street, seemed to be quite different and a way where the increasing daily funeral processions pass through. The story shows us the poor population’s lifestyle starting from dirt, need, gossip and depairs.
“The Firebird’s nest” by Salman Rushdie. the story talks on drought and hot weathers in India, it discusses the traditions of Indian society, the old legends and superstitions and show us how princes lost their old positions, and how the old prince’s American bride was seeing the place. I loved how he described the festival in the palace, how he described the dancers, the music and the lights, it gave us an impression of fairy tales. He mentioned the marriages that lack love, the underestimating of women who go with men before marriage in India. It gave us a mix of environments, American cities, Indian traditions, palaces and folklore, Persian rugs, Arabesque tableaus, and European Operas. I wished to listen to the “Firebird” by Stravinsky while reading it but unfortunately, it was not on my mobile. I loved how they pursue omens and how the marriage continues and the rain falls at last. The language of the story was so poetic.
“The cell phone” by Ignu Schulze, the story was short but I was too tired till I could not catch its main point, but it was on someone with fears, and how cell phone had abolish the sense of loneliness forever according to the story.
“Sugar baby” by Chinua Achebe, it talks on the bad conditions and poverty during the civil war in Nigeria and how simple and naïve the dreams of people were. It also discusses how they asked traveling persons for simple things to bring with them while coming back. It talks also on sugar addiction, which is a truth as sugar influences the same centers in the brain that opium works on.
Amos Oz “the way of the wind”, the story talks on the differences between generations in a Kibbutz, how an important labor party’s member’s son wanted to prove himself a brave man, thus he joined the parachutists to celebrate the independence day in May. The story discussed politics, familial relations, how the only son of a certain family should get written permission from both parents to join the army, and how children might be braver that commanders sometimes as shown in the end of the story. I liked it and found it so relevant to the values many families in our region bring their sons up to them.
“The Ass and the ox” by Michel Tournier, the story was on Christmas eve, the author mixed the story in such an indirect way with the birth of Apis in ancient Egypt. The main things in the story is how amazingly he described the silent night and the natural reactions to the birth of Jesus, and how he condemned the cruelty against animals when sacrificing them, he mentioned that on the tongue of Silas the Samaritan, who refused to sacrifice his lamb. Archangel Gabriel told him that the sacrifice of Isaac was a mistake, but Silas insisted that Yahweh had chosen Cain’s bloody sacrifice earlier to that, and wondered if people are worshiping a bloodthirsty god. Gabriel promised Silas that this would be different with the birth of the Messiah and that God will sacrifice his only son instead of receiving further bloody sacrifices in the future. The story also mentioned that asses were praised by Archangel Gabriel - as the ass telling the story was there in the barn on that night - and it wondered if asses will never be mentioned. but the angel told him that a female ass will be chosen to carry the Christ on entering Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, and that they will carry the holy family in its flight into Egypt. Still asses will suffer the bad treatment of human beings and be just like martyrs. I loved the story and read it quickly and it helped me bearing the long way to the city center. An information attracted me was the name of the ass in the story, it was Kadi Shuya (Kadi = judge or priest – shuya = small or of no importance” so he referred that people were making fun of donkeys by calling them with a name formed of a mixture of praising and underestimating at the same time. The point here is that Kadishuya have something to do with “Kedish” which is used to describe donkeys and mules in Iraq and Syria. I think it might have some old Aramaic or Hebrew origin.
“Death of a son” by Njabulo S. Ndebele, which talks on the lost dreams of a mother in South Africa to bring up her only son to have a great future before being killed in random raids by police officers on their district. The story showed how cruel police were during the apartheid time in South Africa and how they have killed the little boy and captured his body so as not to announce what had happened. The main character in the story also had enough of her husband’s vows to do something, the vows she saw nothing of them, she condemned the weakness of men and see their inability to feel free to fear stands behind their inability to defeat their fears. She hated to hear a lot and see nothing. She mentioned other racial actions against black people, and how she started to live for her present day at last, and ignoring her dreams, she saw her home as nonsense despite having everything; it was but a bird nest that a predator might attack at any time. They were rich and educated but they cannot realize their dreams, because of irrational racism. The story was so touching, and it insisted to leave us with hope that life will continue and we will endure everything at last.
“The letter scene” by Susan Sontag – I found this story a little bit confusing, many acts as if it was a play not a short story, the events were not that clear for me. However, I loved some of the ideas it discussed, the importance of old letters; and how precious they were, incomparable with emails and SMS. The story told us how people usually love to receive letters, but not writing ones, how they prefer giving advices- which they will not follow themselves if it was their own business – and hate being the recipients of advices. It shows us how it is easier to write “no, never, no longer” in letters than in face-to-face occasions. I felt as if the writer is longing to the old fashion lifestyle and trying to depict its charming side.
“To have been” by Claudio Magris – it was a trial to make us accept our fate, to welcome the end through a speech said in the funeral of a guitarist who had committed a suicide, it is also a trial to understand those who end their lives for whatever reason they have. I loved it especially when he compares our lives with stories. Every epilogue is happy, because it is an epilogue.
“A meeting at last” by Hanif Kureishi – it is a sad story depicting one scene summarizing the story of a person and a family as a whole, it is about the meeting of a man with his wife’s lover. He was eager to know why she preferred that man to him, why she forgot about her marriage and two kids. The lover at last knew that the wife was lying and that her husband is not superficial. The whole scene is well structured and depicted.
“Associations in blue” by Christa Wolf – it is a lovely and intellectual discussion of phrases from Pablo Neruda’s poem where Blue color’s birth is mentioned. Christa tries to discover what our great poet means by that through summarizing the importance of blue color in proverbs, music, novels, poetry, histology colors, politics, history, national symbols, fashions and other things. The essay – if I can say so – is perfect and especially at the end when she said that those who were shouting with joy when the blue was born were the extraterrestrial creatures when our earth was born.
“The rejection” by Woody Allen – it is an exaggeration comedy to depict how silly things might be taken so serious sometimes. It talks about the rejection of a little kid’s in a prestigious kindergarten in Manhattan and how the father felt ashamed in front of his colleagues, being derived out of a restaurant because of that issue, how a friend told him about a person who was destroyed just because he was in the wrong kindergarten. The story is funny and the family ends up homeless at last.
The ultimate Safari by Nadine Gordimer – it talks on the misery of a rural family from Mozambique, and its suffer because of the war. It shows us how they have lost their father and mother, how they cross a natural park amid dangers in order to find a shelter in a neighboring country, how journalists come to see their miserable living conditions, how the grandmother lost her hope while the younger generations keep their hope alive out of their ignorance of the reality.
Abandoned Children of this planet by Kenzaburo Oe – is a little bit confusing story talking on the funeral of an elderly man in a Japanese village, then a discussion on composing music and finally a theory on how life has started on earth when a spaceship brought a group of children from somewhere else to be abandoned on our planet. I found it a little bit confusing.
Thanks a lot for my dear friend Mr. David Wheeler for dedicating this book to me on our last meeting.
Gilgamesh Nabeel
“Bulldog” by Arthur Miller, it reminded me of my family when we bought Piny through an ad in the paper. My sister’s desperately missed our former German shepherd at Baghdad, she cried for days remembering him. Then my dad decided to buy a new puppy for her. We checked the advertisements in Al-Waseet ad newspaper, and she chose that Pekinese dog. As mentioned in the story she also was not that familiar with this species and went in a far away journey to 6th October neighborhood with dad to buy it. I was not that happy at the beginning, while my mom loved it as she saw it enters our home despite her refusal at first knowing she will be the only one taking care of him – as in the story. My sister told us a year later that she did not like Piny on first sight but she hesitated to say that at that time. Now Piny is an inseparable part of our family and accompanies us wherever we go. The story reminds me of many similarities with myself including the fact that I cannot play music but always try to record my own tunes. The story depicted how unreal desires might lead to awaken another real on. As the thirteen year old lad fall in love with the owner of the puppies and wished to meet her again, and invented lies so as to meet her, and actually her nice playing her mother admired – as she is a professional pianist – was the fruit of that secret love.
“The centaur” by Jose Saramago, as in his novel “the stone raft” where Saramago mentioned the Cerberus inspired from Greek mythology, here he talks on the centaur mixing mythology with his great talent in describing the wilderness of Iberia, the dry rivers and the mountainous borders between countries. The end of the story reminded me of the cloven viscount by Italo Calveno but here the last man-horse died separating his two components. Personally I saw a deep meaning in this fantasy story, as it represents the life and grief of creatures or minor peoples on the brink of extinct, the ones who are able to continue existing only by hiding away – as if they were not here – or be seen, persecuted and killed by others, such people are forced to choose between metaphorical extinct by keep hiding and let people do not know about them or to present themselves and be killed to face the real extinct. They are not here in all cases. The separation of the human torso and that of the horse as well as their powers, needs and desires are well depicted in this story. The role of the woman in bringing the centaur back to existence and his following death, reminds me of the role of woman in bringing Enkidu back to his humane race and introducing him to civilization and his following death too.
“Down the quiet street” by Es’kia Mphahlele, this is the first time I read for this notable South African novelist and activist and a previous nominated of Nobel Prize in literature. The short story depicted poverty, death, racism, diseases and over population in South Africa in the times of Apartheid rule. What is considered a quiet street, Nadia Street, seemed to be quite different and a way where the increasing daily funeral processions pass through. The story shows us the poor population’s lifestyle starting from dirt, need, gossip and depairs.
“The Firebird’s nest” by Salman Rushdie. the story talks on drought and hot weathers in India, it discusses the traditions of Indian society, the old legends and superstitions and show us how princes lost their old positions, and how the old prince’s American bride was seeing the place. I loved how he described the festival in the palace, how he described the dancers, the music and the lights, it gave us an impression of fairy tales. He mentioned the marriages that lack love, the underestimating of women who go with men before marriage in India. It gave us a mix of environments, American cities, Indian traditions, palaces and folklore, Persian rugs, Arabesque tableaus, and European Operas. I wished to listen to the “Firebird” by Stravinsky while reading it but unfortunately, it was not on my mobile. I loved how they pursue omens and how the marriage continues and the rain falls at last. The language of the story was so poetic.
“The cell phone” by Ignu Schulze, the story was short but I was too tired till I could not catch its main point, but it was on someone with fears, and how cell phone had abolish the sense of loneliness forever according to the story.
“Sugar baby” by Chinua Achebe, it talks on the bad conditions and poverty during the civil war in Nigeria and how simple and naïve the dreams of people were. It also discusses how they asked traveling persons for simple things to bring with them while coming back. It talks also on sugar addiction, which is a truth as sugar influences the same centers in the brain that opium works on.
Amos Oz “the way of the wind”, the story talks on the differences between generations in a Kibbutz, how an important labor party’s member’s son wanted to prove himself a brave man, thus he joined the parachutists to celebrate the independence day in May. The story discussed politics, familial relations, how the only son of a certain family should get written permission from both parents to join the army, and how children might be braver that commanders sometimes as shown in the end of the story. I liked it and found it so relevant to the values many families in our region bring their sons up to them.
“The Ass and the ox” by Michel Tournier, the story was on Christmas eve, the author mixed the story in such an indirect way with the birth of Apis in ancient Egypt. The main things in the story is how amazingly he described the silent night and the natural reactions to the birth of Jesus, and how he condemned the cruelty against animals when sacrificing them, he mentioned that on the tongue of Silas the Samaritan, who refused to sacrifice his lamb. Archangel Gabriel told him that the sacrifice of Isaac was a mistake, but Silas insisted that Yahweh had chosen Cain’s bloody sacrifice earlier to that, and wondered if people are worshiping a bloodthirsty god. Gabriel promised Silas that this would be different with the birth of the Messiah and that God will sacrifice his only son instead of receiving further bloody sacrifices in the future. The story also mentioned that asses were praised by Archangel Gabriel - as the ass telling the story was there in the barn on that night - and it wondered if asses will never be mentioned. but the angel told him that a female ass will be chosen to carry the Christ on entering Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, and that they will carry the holy family in its flight into Egypt. Still asses will suffer the bad treatment of human beings and be just like martyrs. I loved the story and read it quickly and it helped me bearing the long way to the city center. An information attracted me was the name of the ass in the story, it was Kadi Shuya (Kadi = judge or priest – shuya = small or of no importance” so he referred that people were making fun of donkeys by calling them with a name formed of a mixture of praising and underestimating at the same time. The point here is that Kadishuya have something to do with “Kedish” which is used to describe donkeys and mules in Iraq and Syria. I think it might have some old Aramaic or Hebrew origin.
“Death of a son” by Njabulo S. Ndebele, which talks on the lost dreams of a mother in South Africa to bring up her only son to have a great future before being killed in random raids by police officers on their district. The story showed how cruel police were during the apartheid time in South Africa and how they have killed the little boy and captured his body so as not to announce what had happened. The main character in the story also had enough of her husband’s vows to do something, the vows she saw nothing of them, she condemned the weakness of men and see their inability to feel free to fear stands behind their inability to defeat their fears. She hated to hear a lot and see nothing. She mentioned other racial actions against black people, and how she started to live for her present day at last, and ignoring her dreams, she saw her home as nonsense despite having everything; it was but a bird nest that a predator might attack at any time. They were rich and educated but they cannot realize their dreams, because of irrational racism. The story was so touching, and it insisted to leave us with hope that life will continue and we will endure everything at last.
“The letter scene” by Susan Sontag – I found this story a little bit confusing, many acts as if it was a play not a short story, the events were not that clear for me. However, I loved some of the ideas it discussed, the importance of old letters; and how precious they were, incomparable with emails and SMS. The story told us how people usually love to receive letters, but not writing ones, how they prefer giving advices- which they will not follow themselves if it was their own business – and hate being the recipients of advices. It shows us how it is easier to write “no, never, no longer” in letters than in face-to-face occasions. I felt as if the writer is longing to the old fashion lifestyle and trying to depict its charming side.
“To have been” by Claudio Magris – it was a trial to make us accept our fate, to welcome the end through a speech said in the funeral of a guitarist who had committed a suicide, it is also a trial to understand those who end their lives for whatever reason they have. I loved it especially when he compares our lives with stories. Every epilogue is happy, because it is an epilogue.
“A meeting at last” by Hanif Kureishi – it is a sad story depicting one scene summarizing the story of a person and a family as a whole, it is about the meeting of a man with his wife’s lover. He was eager to know why she preferred that man to him, why she forgot about her marriage and two kids. The lover at last knew that the wife was lying and that her husband is not superficial. The whole scene is well structured and depicted.
“Associations in blue” by Christa Wolf – it is a lovely and intellectual discussion of phrases from Pablo Neruda’s poem where Blue color’s birth is mentioned. Christa tries to discover what our great poet means by that through summarizing the importance of blue color in proverbs, music, novels, poetry, histology colors, politics, history, national symbols, fashions and other things. The essay – if I can say so – is perfect and especially at the end when she said that those who were shouting with joy when the blue was born were the extraterrestrial creatures when our earth was born.
“The rejection” by Woody Allen – it is an exaggeration comedy to depict how silly things might be taken so serious sometimes. It talks about the rejection of a little kid’s in a prestigious kindergarten in Manhattan and how the father felt ashamed in front of his colleagues, being derived out of a restaurant because of that issue, how a friend told him about a person who was destroyed just because he was in the wrong kindergarten. The story is funny and the family ends up homeless at last.
The ultimate Safari by Nadine Gordimer – it talks on the misery of a rural family from Mozambique, and its suffer because of the war. It shows us how they have lost their father and mother, how they cross a natural park amid dangers in order to find a shelter in a neighboring country, how journalists come to see their miserable living conditions, how the grandmother lost her hope while the younger generations keep their hope alive out of their ignorance of the reality.
Abandoned Children of this planet by Kenzaburo Oe – is a little bit confusing story talking on the funeral of an elderly man in a Japanese village, then a discussion on composing music and finally a theory on how life has started on earth when a spaceship brought a group of children from somewhere else to be abandoned on our planet. I found it a little bit confusing.
Thanks a lot for my dear friend Mr. David Wheeler for dedicating this book to me on our last meeting.
Gilgamesh Nabeel
dnf
May 19, 2024DNF @ 45/303 pages
This wasn't what I expected when I picked it up. I'd assumed the stories would be related to HIV/AIDS but they're not. I read the first three and just didn't care for any of them, and I hadn't realised that one of the stories is by Woody Allen, and I really have no interest in reading that, so I'm dropping this one. It was a spur of the moment charity shop purchase and those are either terrible or fabulous. This one definitely feels like the former.
This wasn't what I expected when I picked it up. I'd assumed the stories would be related to HIV/AIDS but they're not. I read the first three and just didn't care for any of them, and I hadn't realised that one of the stories is by Woody Allen, and I really have no interest in reading that, so I'm dropping this one. It was a spur of the moment charity shop purchase and those are either terrible or fabulous. This one definitely feels like the former.
November 11, 2019
Este libro es una selección de cuentos de autores de primera linea (entre ellos, 5 premios Nobel). De entrada, me llamó la atención que -a diferencia de la mayoría de las antologías, tendentes a la unidad (partiendo de un criterio que da sentido a la selección)- es un libro muy diverso. Hay cuentos de escritores y escritoras, y salvo de Oceanía, de todos los continentes, lo que aporta una riqueza tremenda.
Algunas de las escritoras y escritores ya los conozco y están entre mis autores preferidos (García Márquez, Atwood, Rushdie...) pero también he podido descubrir a otros de quienes no había leído nada previamente, por ejemplo la propia Gordimer, y también algún otro escritor africano de quien buscaré alguna novela (Chinua Achebe, para empezar)
Las selecciones de cuentos siempre me han gustado, bien sean con un tema unificador o de un/a escritor/a particular. Nos permiten leer la literatura de forma condensada y hacernos una idea del estilo, los temas, de cada autor/a.
En este libro, además, se nos presenta una panorámica de la literatura actual de múltiples procedencias; Oriente y Occidente, Hemisferio Norte y Hemisferio Sur, escrita originalmente en inglés, en español, en portugués, en alemán, en japonés... lo que aporta una riqueza tremenda.
Desde luego, una gran lectura
Algunas de las escritoras y escritores ya los conozco y están entre mis autores preferidos (García Márquez, Atwood, Rushdie...) pero también he podido descubrir a otros de quienes no había leído nada previamente, por ejemplo la propia Gordimer, y también algún otro escritor africano de quien buscaré alguna novela (Chinua Achebe, para empezar)
Las selecciones de cuentos siempre me han gustado, bien sean con un tema unificador o de un/a escritor/a particular. Nos permiten leer la literatura de forma condensada y hacernos una idea del estilo, los temas, de cada autor/a.
En este libro, además, se nos presenta una panorámica de la literatura actual de múltiples procedencias; Oriente y Occidente, Hemisferio Norte y Hemisferio Sur, escrita originalmente en inglés, en español, en portugués, en alemán, en japonés... lo que aporta una riqueza tremenda.
Desde luego, una gran lectura
July 29, 2009
Missed Opportunity
There are a few good short stories in this collection, however the majority are average or below average. It seems like most of these writers choose their stories on the basis of trying to show how clever they could be, or to impress academics or maybe just their writer friends. They were definitely not thinking of their audience: an average fiction reader who wants to learn about different cultures, worlds, and wants to have a bit of entertainment, along with wanting to help combat the plague of HIV/AIDS.
I imagine this book didn't sell very well and therefore there would be little money generated to go to HIV/AIDS prevention education and for medical treatment. Definitely a missed opportunity.
There are a few good short stories in this collection, however the majority are average or below average. It seems like most of these writers choose their stories on the basis of trying to show how clever they could be, or to impress academics or maybe just their writer friends. They were definitely not thinking of their audience: an average fiction reader who wants to learn about different cultures, worlds, and wants to have a bit of entertainment, along with wanting to help combat the plague of HIV/AIDS.
I imagine this book didn't sell very well and therefore there would be little money generated to go to HIV/AIDS prevention education and for medical treatment. Definitely a missed opportunity.
August 10, 2017
Like all story collections, there are some really good, some really average and some really not enjoyable pieces included.
I did feel that death was a recurring theme, though obviously that wasn't true in all submissions. (Woody Allen's piece was very funny and had nothing to do with that, and little to do with the other pieces in general.)
Several of the pieces depicted man's inhumanity to man so made for intense reading.
That worked since the collected works were donated and the proceeds from the books' sales were given to help fight HIV/AIDs...the sufferers of which often faced grim treatment then and some still do now.
I did feel that death was a recurring theme, though obviously that wasn't true in all submissions. (Woody Allen's piece was very funny and had nothing to do with that, and little to do with the other pieces in general.)
Several of the pieces depicted man's inhumanity to man so made for intense reading.
That worked since the collected works were donated and the proceeds from the books' sales were given to help fight HIV/AIDs...the sufferers of which often faced grim treatment then and some still do now.
September 26, 2020
Unusual collection in that there are many recognizable names among the authors, such as Susan Sontag, John Updike and Margaret Atwood. There are Nobel prize winners like José Saramago, Kenzaburo Oe and Nadine Gordimer. There are stories about Africa, Japan, Germany. Nothing holds the collection together so one reads for the sheer act of discovering voices not heard before. Worth picking up if you enjoy the short story form.
August 10, 2025
Simply a brilliant collection. My second time reading.
A great introduction to some of the world’s finest authors. It’s hard to pick out any particular story, as they are all strong in their own way. A perfect gift to any aspiring writer, as they will be presented with countless examples of mastery of the craft.
A great introduction to some of the world’s finest authors. It’s hard to pick out any particular story, as they are all strong in their own way. A perfect gift to any aspiring writer, as they will be presented with countless examples of mastery of the craft.
February 27, 2018
Alternando contos sombrios e alguns bem humorados, é uma boa coletânea de escritores muito competentes no que fazem.
Detalhe para o menor conto de todos, do Woody Allen, que é uma crítica sensacional à paranoia dos pais de hoje em dia.
Detalhe para o menor conto de todos, do Woody Allen, que é uma crítica sensacional à paranoia dos pais de hoje em dia.
August 6, 2020
A great collection of short stories that features a couple of my favorite themes. Most of them are written by authors I encountered for the first time and I think it's a nice preview of what I should read next.
November 29, 2018
Three great stories in this collection: José Saramago's "The Centaur," Susan Sontag's "The Letter Scene," and Amos Oz's "The Way of the Wind."
September 28, 2021
3,5/5
Nebloga knyga mėgstantiems trumpąją prozą. Bet kurie rašytojai-novelistai XX amžiuje buvo didieji – galima diskutuoti...
Nebloga knyga mėgstantiems trumpąją prozą. Bet kurie rašytojai-novelistai XX amžiuje buvo didieji – galima diskutuoti...
April 11, 2022
These were some lovely stories! I really enjoyed the variety in genres and plots. Is it weird that I was hoping for more funny/happy stories? Maybe it's just the mood I'm in.
December 10, 2022
Favorites:
The Centaur- Jose Saramago
The Letter Scene- Susan Sontag
Death Constant Beyond Love- Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Associations in Blue- Christa Wolf
The Centaur- Jose Saramago
The Letter Scene- Susan Sontag
Death Constant Beyond Love- Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Associations in Blue- Christa Wolf
Want to read
August 2, 2023How do we read the book,I new here
March 11, 2024
So-so collection of short stories. The Rejection, Warm Dogs, and Death of a Son are the only ones that stand out.
May 29, 2008
The awesome thing about this book, which is an anthology of contemporary short stories, is that none of the authors received any royalties for having their stories appear in the book, and none of the publishers made any profit from producing it -- all of the book proceeds went to AIDS research and treatment for African communities. None of the stories were about AIDS, but it was nice to participate in something like that.
The charitable assets aside, the anthology itself was incredibly diverse and interesting. A few of the headlining authors were Margaret Atwood, Woody Allen, Chinua Achebe, Gunter Grass, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Arthur Miller, Salman Rushdie, Jose Saramago, Susan Sontag, John Updike, and Christa Wolf. Some of the stories were of course better than others, but it was amazing to read stories set in so many different locations, representing so many different genres, and from authors of such diverse talents. I highly recommend this anthology if you want to get a sampling of some of the best fiction writers out there today without actually committing yourself to a full novel.
The charitable assets aside, the anthology itself was incredibly diverse and interesting. A few of the headlining authors were Margaret Atwood, Woody Allen, Chinua Achebe, Gunter Grass, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Arthur Miller, Salman Rushdie, Jose Saramago, Susan Sontag, John Updike, and Christa Wolf. Some of the stories were of course better than others, but it was amazing to read stories set in so many different locations, representing so many different genres, and from authors of such diverse talents. I highly recommend this anthology if you want to get a sampling of some of the best fiction writers out there today without actually committing yourself to a full novel.
March 16, 2011
Man.
Telling Tales is the literary equivalent of your favourite variety snack pack. Margaret Atwood, Chinua Achebe, Susan Sontag, Günter Grass, Arthur Miller and Christa Wolf (and so on!) all pop up with brilliant tales. Pretty sure at least five of the twenty-one authors are Nobel Prize Winners in Literature, and there are a few perhaps not so widely known authors with their own gems as well. And let's not forget Woody Allen.
The best part of this anthology is that all profits go to HIV/AIDS education, research and treatment. Since I only borrowed a copy from the library, I'm quite happy to purchase a copy for the first person to message me expressing interest in getting a free book. It will be delivered right to you. So---write me if you please.
Anyway! I'm so pleased I read these stories, and I reckon you will be too, when you do. Enjoy.
Telling Tales is the literary equivalent of your favourite variety snack pack. Margaret Atwood, Chinua Achebe, Susan Sontag, Günter Grass, Arthur Miller and Christa Wolf (and so on!) all pop up with brilliant tales. Pretty sure at least five of the twenty-one authors are Nobel Prize Winners in Literature, and there are a few perhaps not so widely known authors with their own gems as well. And let's not forget Woody Allen.
The best part of this anthology is that all profits go to HIV/AIDS education, research and treatment. Since I only borrowed a copy from the library, I'm quite happy to purchase a copy for the first person to message me expressing interest in getting a free book. It will be delivered right to you. So---write me if you please.
Anyway! I'm so pleased I read these stories, and I reckon you will be too, when you do. Enjoy.
June 27, 2007
Something of a greatest-hits list of authors currently living. They primarily have very, very different styles, which makes this a perfect before-bed read. Gordimer does an excellent job of mixing them so that two consecutive stories aren't alike, but aren't different enough to be abrasive if read in order. One of the most interesting parts was the last few pages when the contributors are able to describe themselves; I was a bit surprised by who submitted a laundry list of impressive accomplishments (Nobel Prizes! Pulitzers! 200 million novels published in 30 languages!) and who provided a short, usually somewhat self-effacing professional biography.
Quick, enjoyable, and definitely worth reading.
Quick, enjoyable, and definitely worth reading.
July 27, 2010
I don't generally read short stories by choice because I find them dissatisfying. When I read, I want something I can crawl inside and absorb into, and with a short story, I barely have time to look around when suddenly it's over. But I chose this collection looking for stories to read with my seniors this year, and it is a good one. Not sure how much of it I'll use with my students, but I actually enjoyed it a great deal. The selection of authors is impressive -- Achebe, Atwood, Marquez, Saramago, and many more. And the stories are well-chosen, if somewhat dark. A lot about loss and shifting relationships and coming to terms with harsh reality. Not much warm fuzziness to be found here, but the stories are well-crafted and thought-provoking.
March 30, 2009
I love short stories as they make me feel like iI have accomplished something in an evening. Not all of the short sotries resonated with me though, like Susan Sontag´s short, I´m still trying to unravel that. Overall the book was an emotional roll-a-coaster and I have revisited "Death of a Son" twice now because of the beauty in the story telling but the pain in the narrative also. I recommend pruchasing the book for two reasons a.) proceed benefit AIDS in Africa research and the authors of the short stories are not seeking royalties b.) an amazing collection of beyond talented writers waits for you.
July 20, 2012
I was initially drawn to this collection because I lost both my parents to AIDS but found these master storytellers offered far reaching and broader life lessons. Arthur Miller's "Bulldog" powerfully presented a young boy's loss of innocents. I was affected by the way he focused on small moments, memory and mystery. Paul Theroux's "Warm Dogs" left me to reflect on my own struggle with the "heart vs. head/intuition vs. logic" balance. I could go on and on. Each story was wonderful and certainly worthy of your attention. I wish more authors would come together and support causes like this. Thank you Nadine Gordimer!
October 18, 2016
I really only wanted to review one of the stories, but couldn't find it individually.
A Meeting, At Last by Hanif Kureishi.
I initially had difficulty getting to grips with Eric's frenetic pace of speech, but got into it as I realised that the breaks with Morgan's narrative reflected their characters. Eric was frantic and wanted to get to the bottom of things, while Morgan was drawing things out in his anxiety, still trying to avoid fully engaging.
Favourite part:
"...Morgan and Caroline, dawdling in a bar with their hands playing on one another, loved to discuss the relationships of mutual acquaintances, as if together they might distil the spirit of a working love."
A Meeting, At Last by Hanif Kureishi.
I initially had difficulty getting to grips with Eric's frenetic pace of speech, but got into it as I realised that the breaks with Morgan's narrative reflected their characters. Eric was frantic and wanted to get to the bottom of things, while Morgan was drawing things out in his anxiety, still trying to avoid fully engaging.
Favourite part:
"...Morgan and Caroline, dawdling in a bar with their hands playing on one another, loved to discuss the relationships of mutual acquaintances, as if together they might distil the spirit of a working love."
May 31, 2007
Telling Tales edited by Nadine Gordimer
This book was a gift from my roomate. It is one of the best gifts that I have ever recieved as a writer and avid reader. I am normally disappointed by anthologies or short story collections, but this book is the best of the best as selected by themselves. There are some true gems in this book. While quite a few are centered on death or relationships, these are the major drives in our nature, I suppose. Also the proceeds go to a good cause, the fight against AIDS. Go and buy it, buy it as gifts, and read! Enjoy!
This book was a gift from my roomate. It is one of the best gifts that I have ever recieved as a writer and avid reader. I am normally disappointed by anthologies or short story collections, but this book is the best of the best as selected by themselves. There are some true gems in this book. While quite a few are centered on death or relationships, these are the major drives in our nature, I suppose. Also the proceeds go to a good cause, the fight against AIDS. Go and buy it, buy it as gifts, and read! Enjoy!
Read
January 27, 2009i picked this up at the UN when i was working there and had *salman rushdie*, john updike, and nadine gordimer sign inside the coverpage!! DREAM! i looked into the eyes of RUSHDIE and exchanged a few words with UPDIKE the darling of the newyorker. such a thrill!!
the collection of short stories from incredible writers all over the world is such a treasure. the contributors were told to contribute one of their own favorite pieces of writing.
it's been a great read on these long train rides through kazakhstan.
the collection of short stories from incredible writers all over the world is such a treasure. the contributors were told to contribute one of their own favorite pieces of writing.
it's been a great read on these long train rides through kazakhstan.
August 28, 2016
I realized when I started reading this that I had torn out the Woody Allen story upon purchase of the book and that made me happy because fuck Woody Allen. Still, it wasn't my favorite anthology. A few of the stories were very good. I loved the Margaret Atwood one. A few of them tried to be very deep or to ~capture the essence of human nature and they just didn't click with me. I will say, I liked the cause, all of the money went to HIV/AIDS research, and they were all very well written. It's just that there were only a couple that really resonated with me.
January 6, 2013
Great authors, great writing, but sooo depressing. Do we define great literature now by how dark it is? Can't good writers write anything nice, inspiring and uplifting? At least the essays by African authors opened my eyes to a very different (and more difficult) life than my own. But all the essays were sad, which just doesn't seem necessary.
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