I have a fascination with old collections of short stories. First, it is a great way to stumble across old favorites. (Case in point for this book – Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery”. Never gets old. And, in fact, still speaks to some political things going on as I write this.) It is also a good way to discover older selections that have been missed. (From this collection – Thomas Mann’s “Mario and the Magician:” How, exactly have I never read this.)

But, in general, it is interesting to see what someone in the past thought was important and, thereby, get a different snapshot of the times.

This book serves that purpose as it was printed in 1950. Accordingly, many of the stories are set during or just before the second world war. Therefore, they provide insight into the people of the times and the mindsets of authors in those times. It is an interesting snapshot.

And this collection adds another layer of interesting. It is meant to be used within the classroom. The introduction is literally titled “The Editor to the Teacher.” Now, many of these types of collections, at least the ones I run across/purchase, are meant for schools – colleges and high schools. But this one provides suggestions and approaches the teacher might use in helping students better understand what is going on.

And that gives us an even deeper look into the editor and, potentially, the mindset of those that were shaping the development of literature during this time. Particularly in the introductions, it is apparent the editor has his favorites. No problem there, but he has also included a couple of authors who then goes on to chastise for not being that good. Note that at least one of those authors wound up having greater fame than a number of the ones the editor gushes on about.

Well, none of us are perfect prognosticators.

This all makes the book good and bad. Some of the introductions, with their particular slants, are almost intolerable. Yet, they all provide insight into the authors, the editors, and the culture of the time. The stories themselves are a mixed bag. And, here again, the editors may have failed the reader. He says in the introduction (and this is not an exact quote; I just don’t feel like trying to find it) he has included great stores and some that are not that good in an attempt to provide a wide range of experiences and examples. (Reminds me of a sit-com from the 60s or 70s – don’t know which one – where the star was excited that a publisher wanted to buy his book, only to find it was going to be used as a bad example.)

This results in a collection elicits different feelings throughout the reading. There are good stories and great stories that are interrupted with the not-so-great. But that happens in almost every collection. But then there is the mixed bag of the editor’s comments which adds a different dimension to how much the reader enjoys reading this book.

And two quick, random thoughts. First, it is very interesting to see what he includes in a section titled “Fantasy.” It is quickly apparent that the editor has no knowledge or cares to have no knowledge of what fantasy (not to mention science fiction) is. The best is Kafka’s “The Hunger Artist”. But the inclusion of this story shows where the editor is coming from. And the three other stories are, at best, pedestrian examples of the genre

Second, it may be petty to pick on single classic story, but I realized something as I read this collection. I’m tired of Thurber’s “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty”. I enjoyed it when I read it in high school. And, I seem to remember enjoying when I came across it later in life. But its cleverness has worn thin. I desperately hope it no longer maintains its prominence in high school assignments.

Enough of the random thoughts, I’ll just say that this is not a book I think anyone needs to rush out and find. (Not even sure if you could.) But it is a reminder that, in general, reading these old collections can lead to a number of revelations and enjoyments. Go find an old book and, in between some of your more current readings, take this kind of step back in time.… (meer)

Gemarkeerd

figre | Apr 11, 2020 |