The Collected Stories (FSG Classics)

These are some of the most enjoyable stories that I have ever read. They are a diverse group, and full of surprises. There are some laugh out loud moments and some very moving moments, too. Although the reviews that I read before buying the book made me think that I might like the stories, even with that expectation, I have been surprised throughout at how good they are.

Grace Paley was a compulsive writer and I consider that a good thing. But I don't believe that she intended everything she wrote to be published.she was a busy mother and active community member. I'm sure there were times she wrote to relieve herself of the pressures she felt. At least that is the impression that I had with many of the shorter articles. They seemed like lonely musings without relevance to any time, place or event.that was about one-third of the writings and they were scattered throughout the book.Others--longer ones--were well-written, their relevance to an issue stated clearly and had a thought-provoking end. Or they presented a well-defined personality in an instance of their life. Yes, I enjoyed those whether I agreed with the stance taken or not. She was a fluent writer.

This book arrived in good condition. I don't however recommend the book as I find that there were too many stereotypical references.

It is unfortunate that Grace Paley is rather not well known as she should be. Yes, her writing is very New York City Jewish, but she is very funny, engaging and engrossing. I am getting a Master's in Literature and she isn't even mentioned in the curriculum of any class. I love 20th century writers and have just discovered her. I am not Jewish or live in a big city, but she touches women's hearts and minds especially appealing to a women who are mature. Subjects range from child raising experiences to finding love over 50 and beyond. Wonderful and engaging.

I was so excited to get this for my vacation. I love Grace's writing and the short stories are perfect for limited time frames.

You see the world through the eyes of a fascinating, quirky character, Grace Paley.

What a great author! Sounds like my gramma.

a wonderful writer, very witty, pleasure to read.

I bought this for a dear friend as Grace Paley is one of my favourite writers. Her wit, her observation and her humanity make every sentence a joy. I feel I have handed my friend a great treasure.

Got what I expected in no time.

A while ago on Facebook some of my friends with far more experience in good fiction than me were enthusing over the short story writing of Grace Paley, so I determined to give her writing a go. I'm glad I did - but, if I'm honest, the stories just don't work for me and I gave up about two thirds of the way through. I had two problems with these mostly short short stories set in a seedy period New York (contemporary when written) - the style and the content.The style problems were a mix of language and Paley trying a bit too hard to be 'literary'. As far as language goes, the experience of reading this was a little like reading Shakespeare - it takes a while to tune into the style - the use of words here just isn't quite normal. All too often I'd have to read a phrase two or three times and would still think 'I haven't a clue what that means.' Because I was having to concentrate on every word, the reading experience was less enjoyable than usual and it also meant that I found myself going into editing mode: 'That's a comma splice - how could she do that! There shouldn't be a capital letter after that colon!' Perhaps worst of all, I hate the affectation that Paley regularly exhibits of writing speech without inverted commas. Sometimes the writing verged on the arch with statements such as 'Nighttime came and communication was revived at last by our doorbell, which is full of initiative.' No it's not.As for content, I'll be honest I'm not particularly interested in what it was like to live in the poor parts of New York back in the day, but more critically it's the type of content that doesn't do it for me. Just as Radio 4's series The Listening Project is like Big Brother for the chattering classes, replacing well-written material with the wonders of 'reality', but in a very middle class way, the content of Paley's stories provides soap opera for the same kind of audience. And that's just not something that engages me.I don't deny that these are well-crafted stories, or that some will find them wonderful. I hope you will. They just don't work for me.

I fell in love with Grace Paley's writing in the 70's and have read and re-read them for years. Still reading them and still loving them.

Not as well known as Alice Munro or William Trevor but she is a true genius who deserves to be much better known in this country.