Four brand new tales are now added to New Directions' original 1997 cloth edition of Open to the Public. This new and complete paperback edi...
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Nov 30, 2009
Tony
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Spark, Muriel. THE GO-AWAY BIRD and other stories. (1958). ****. Muriel Spark was born Muriel Camberg in Edinburgh, Scotland in 1918. She was a prolific writer throughout her career and remains popular today after her death in 2006. When she married, she traveled with her husband to Southern Rhodesia and lived there many years. Much of her writing reflects experiences in that area. This collection of her short stories gives a representative look at her major themes and styles. It is dif
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Jan 16, 2012
MetalPuff
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M-a pocnit iar sentimentul ăla de „Vreau să fiu prietena ta, mai povestește-mi” odată cu cartea integralei de povești a scânteiuței de Muriel. La librărie am prins-o de-o copertă ca pe un ostatic periculos și-am zis A mea! bâlbâind neinteligibil ceva de cotidianul și domnișoara Brodie. Am dus-o acasă, girls party all night long ziceam eu. Citesc prima poveste, Serafimul și Zambezi. Stupoare zic...nu prea bună idee s-o iau pe fată cu mine-acasă. Dar nu se poate, mă gândesc, domnișoara Brodie mi-
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Feb 20, 2011
Jennifer
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its not my favorite because they put together stories that take place in South African colonies, so far, and they don't reflect her bitter spare best. Her life story is amazing, living in bedsitters to just sharpen her observation and skill ruthlessly. Her last book, which she wrote at 90, is so clean spare and funny. Like Ruth Rendell, this woman had no illusions on the human race, but unlike Rendell, she just couldn't or wouldn't hack write her way through to some kind of solvency. Still its
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Dec 05, 2008
Sam
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Any author's collected stories are usually a mixed bag, especially when the editors reach deep into the past to dredge up work, and when the writer in question isn't particularly well known for their short fiction. Muriel Spark has both of these strikes against her; the first few stories in this collection represent a phase in her fiction and life - referring to Colonial Africa - that she grew out of pretty quickly, and it was novels, not short stories, that made her reputation. That being sai
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Dec 15, 2009
Jail
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"The Portobello Road" is one of the best stories ever. It was the first thing I read by Spark, and I initially had no idea that it was written in the 50's, the style and politics seemed much more current, almost similar to Patrick Mccabe.Also hillarious is "The Black Madonna"
Jul 02, 2008
Sarah
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The great joy of this collection is its eclecticism. Muriel Spark is perhaps best known for her acerbic wit and her economic style which some call ‘sparse’. Certainly, her later novels, like The Finishing School, are pared down to the extent that they read a little like film scripts. Readers who know Spark for her novels may be surprised by the range of style and subject matters tackled in her short stories. Nearly every genre is covered here, from the ghost story to the surreal fantasy, social
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Nov 19, 2011
Jenny
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I didn't read all of these for class, but I certainly intend to read the rest of them. Spark has an incredibly distinctive style and a dark, witty sense of humor. The stories are excellent.
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Nov 07, 2011
Lynne
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I’ve been reading All the Stories of Muriel Spark, slowly because All in the title means there won’t be any more. She’s an acquired taste, something like Campari and grapefruit juice: her odd, bitter humor hits first, and then something lingers that might be sweet or very sad. There are ghost stories like the rightfully famous “The Portobello Road,” but I’ve noticed the book is full of other kinds of hauntings, as if any intense relationship could give you the shivers.
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Jul 22, 2010
Alison
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I liked these better than I thought I would; I liked seeing the same kind of vibe that I enjoyed in Patricia Highsmith's stories (which also surprised me). In the best stories there were an attractive viciousness, a quality of observation, and an adventurousness of plot and characterization. However, at no point did I feel that the stories had been dictated by God.
Jun 02, 2010
Cindy
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this is a collection of ..... odd stories, all kinds of odd stories told with sparse prose.
Jul 12, 2007
Zard
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The particular story I enjoyed the most was "The Driver's Seat." It is a strange story that will, as far as Im concerned leave you pondering what you just read. It seems as though there could be so much more to the story, but the author has chosen to leave it out. The reader is left to fill in the blanks. The characters are developed rather well given the length of the story. I dug that story the most.
Sep 14, 2007
Jay
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An interesting book. It seems as if the plot is going nowhere, but it really sums itself up in the end. The first three quarters of the book are a bit odd and uneventful. I found myself reading along but not really getting into the book, that is until the last quarter. Its pretty exciting and still odd, but in a good way.
Jul 20, 2010
Thom
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How's this for an endorsement : "Our best living fiction writer--Muriel Spark's diamond-sharp prose illuminates stories which are always original and funny, and frequently profound"-- John Mortimer. ?
May 06, 2011
Amanda
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This is my favorite book. I go back to it quite often. My favorite is "Bang Bang You're Dead."
Jul 18, 2007
I love Spark (thanks Mr. Hosmer!) and I bet she rocks the short stories
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