A review by michael_taylor
To Build a Fire and Other Stories by Jack London

3.0

My thoughts regarding this collection of short stories is conflicted. On the one hand, Jack London is capable of writing some of the most evocative short stories I've ever read (the physical sensation of cold is captured exactly). On the other hand, this is a rather dour assembly of stories. Mr. London's world is a hard, unforgiving one. Slavery, misogyny and racism run rampant. He's not shy about the violence people commit against one another. If I were to rate this solely on content, I'd say 4/10. If I were to rate it solely on quality of writing, I'd say 8/10. It's more consistent than most collections of short stories. If you read the first one and aren't into it then you won't be into the rest. I think it's telling that it took me a long while to read the entire collection. If I hit a story that didn't quite jive with me I'd put this aside for months at a time. I think that if you were curious about Jack London as an author this would sum him up.