Not bad, kind of quirky short stories. Some are kind of racy for back then (1880s) but not anymore ! ( )

I rarely laugh out loud at a book or movie. This book is a notable exception. The humor is sometimes dry and subtle, and at other times it borders on the completely absurd. Amazingly descriptive story-telling is on display in every story. ( )

Maupassant's stories have the distinction, for me at least, of having something in common with Chekhov: their stories are beautifully written, but after a day, with a few exceptions, what happens in the story is forgotten. Maybe that is true of most short stories by anyone, especially when several are read at a sitting. They are, after all, a snapshot of a place, a moment, a person rather than an epic or a bildungsroman. Chekhov is the superior writer, based on my experience of Maupassant. There is something about the atmosphere that Chekhov creates in his stories that linger. This is not to say that Maupassant is a mediocre writer, just that looking at the titles of the stories, only about 3 out of the 30 stories left any kind of impression on me.
Many stories center on prostitutes or women who are sexually open, but the stories cannot be considered pornographic in any way except by innuendo. One of his more famous stories, "The Horla", is about a man who is losing his mind. Many of the stories are about the meanness of people, when there is no advantage to being kind. My favorites were: "Boule de suif", "Two Friends", "The Horla".

Contains:
Boule de Suif
In the Spring
The Graveyard Sisterhood
Madame Tellier's Establishment
A Ruse
An Old Man
Rust
Two Friends
The Jewels
The Conservatory
The Matter with Andre
My Uncle Jules
A Duel
The Convert
In the Bedroom
Regret
The Decoration
The Piece of String
The Model
The Hand
Idyll
Mother Savage
Guillemot Rock
Imprudence
The Signal
In the Woods
The Devil
The Horla
The Mask
Mouche ( )

There is an introduction, entitled, "The Art of Guy De Maupassant", which was written by Holbrook Jackson. The introduction is well worth reading and is the type of introduction that should be an introduction: it introduces Maupassant's life history, his introduction into the world of writing, and his rise to fame as France's master of the short story form and in no way spoils the experience of reading the body of the book. So many introductions should be an afterword or left out entirely.

Apparently Maupassant benefitted from the tutelage of Gustave Flaubert, who was a friend of Maupassant's mother.

There are fourteen stories in the collection which is a nice sample from the author's over 300 short stories. The book I have was published in 1927, 34 years after Maupassant's death. Reading this rather delicate book added to the experience of reading stories from the nineteenth century, stories that deal with real life and, one can sense, real people.

The stories demonstrate the writer's skill at capturing the essence of real life situations. His stories are about ordinary people and the life they had. Having been a French soldier in the Franco-Prussian war of the 1870s his stories about the experiences of people during that episode are brought to life with real feeling and a sense of authenticity. His stories do not shy from portraying the horror of war or the hatred felt by the characters caught up in conflict.

These stories are of their era and do not contain the clever switches of plot or viewpoint that today's readers often want. This strengthens the stories in my mind. They show the short story at a particular stage in its evolution, and, in the case of Maupassant's stories, give us a glimpse into life in 1800s France. It is interesting to see what has changed and what has not. His stories also show what is the same in France and other parts of the world: prejudice; snobbery; caddish behaviour; ill treatment of women; brutality in war.

Humour is also a strong point in his stories. His word selection when describing characters is excellent and very pointed. "Boule de Suif" (Ball of Fat) is regarded by Holbrook as Maupassant's best story and it is a wonderful example of the writer's skill at humour, and irony, in his characterisation. It also demonstrates his attitude to the hypocrisy of the aristocracy, upper and middle classes, and the holier-than-thou religious.

I always enjoy reading a story by Maupassant. There are many of his stories on-line and I would strongly recommend that people dip into his work and step back in time to enjoy life at a different pace.

Lest you be left in any doubt, yes, I enjoyed this book and the whole reading experience I had with it. ( )

Maupassant's stories are superb-- simply superb. I find myself re-reading many of these stories from time to time; they're that good.

(10/10) ( )