A review by captainjemima
Ox-Tales: Fire by William Sutcliffe, Sebastian Faulks, Mark Haddon, Lionel Shriver, John le Carré, Geoff Dyer, Ali Smith, Mark Ellingham, Xiaoulu Guo, Victoria Hislop, Peter Florence, Vikram Seth, Jeanette Winterson
4.0
This was a charming collection of short stories by some famous authors:
The Island by Mark Haddon
Playing with... by Geoff Dyer
Aflame in Athens by Victoria Hislop
A Family Evening by Sebastian Faulks
The King Who Never Spoke by John le Carré
Into the World by Xiaolu Guo
Sandcastles: A Negotiation by William Sutcliffe
Last by Ali Smith
Long Time, No See by Lionel Shriver
Dog Days by Jeanette Winterson
Whether I'd heard of or read these authors before or not didn't seem to matter in this collection. The stories were fresh and interesting. This book, Fire, is supposed to focus on conflict, as well as the element of fire itself. A couple of the stories left me thinking, "What was the point of that?", but my favourites (The Island, The King Who Never Spoke, Into the World, and Dog Days) really made an impact on me.
The Island follows a woman in some rustic century who lives in a rich household but decides to elope with one of the prisoners in the dungeon. In the end he deserts her on a strange island and she has to try to survive on her basic knowledge of the world, after having lived a privileged, waited-on life.
The King Who Never Spoke showed just how important words are when we use them. The King's kingdom slowly but surely lost its conflict, and everything turned to peace.
Into the World shows how ambition can lead you through life, but at some point we need to step back from ambition and recede into simplicity.
Lastly, Dog Days is a touching memoir about a spaniel and an astute analysis of love - how it forms us and our lives.
I enjoyed reading a book of short stories because it was easy to dip into when I was tired or didn't have enough days left before getting my new book club book.
The Island by Mark Haddon
Playing with... by Geoff Dyer
Aflame in Athens by Victoria Hislop
A Family Evening by Sebastian Faulks
The King Who Never Spoke by John le Carré
Into the World by Xiaolu Guo
Sandcastles: A Negotiation by William Sutcliffe
Last by Ali Smith
Long Time, No See by Lionel Shriver
Dog Days by Jeanette Winterson
Whether I'd heard of or read these authors before or not didn't seem to matter in this collection. The stories were fresh and interesting. This book, Fire, is supposed to focus on conflict, as well as the element of fire itself. A couple of the stories left me thinking, "What was the point of that?", but my favourites (The Island, The King Who Never Spoke, Into the World, and Dog Days) really made an impact on me.
The Island follows a woman in some rustic century who lives in a rich household but decides to elope with one of the prisoners in the dungeon. In the end he deserts her on a strange island and she has to try to survive on her basic knowledge of the world, after having lived a privileged, waited-on life.
The King Who Never Spoke showed just how important words are when we use them. The King's kingdom slowly but surely lost its conflict, and everything turned to peace.
Into the World shows how ambition can lead you through life, but at some point we need to step back from ambition and recede into simplicity.
Lastly, Dog Days is a touching memoir about a spaniel and an astute analysis of love - how it forms us and our lives.
I enjoyed reading a book of short stories because it was easy to dip into when I was tired or didn't have enough days left before getting my new book club book.