The Collected Stories

Someone else here refers to the problems of 'star' hyperbole. He's right. The five stars Trevor deserves must be especially large and dazzling.He goes wrong, just a little, once in a while. So did every truly great writer we know. Most of the time he opens a door on the world of two or three people, and shows us the universe in the process. He is a breathtaking artist. Witness 'Another Christmas' - in a dingy living room and... Read Full Review

Not all stars are created equal. By awarding 5 stars to this book, the implication must be that they are stars of the purest gold. I have read some "5-star" novels and short story collections before, but little, in my experience, compares with this: the combination of an extraordinarily beautiful prose style, the seemingly effortless creation of literally hundreds if not thousands of alternately sympathetic and detestable... Read Full Review

I had given up reading for pleasure since my teen years and consumed only history, science and technology readings until the fateful Sunday, listening to NPR, heard William Trevor's, short story "Broken Homes", read by Meryl Strip. I could not take myself from the car to shop, Meryl had not finished the reading!I then knew I would read more William Trevor and ordered this book straight away. Even since my life has changed!... Read Full Review

This book sits perched in the backseat of my car, easily accessed for a quick William Trevor fix. Trevor is, for me, God's greatest current gift to literature. Each of these stories is a gem. The characters are complex and the situations they find themselves in moving, funny and unique. I recommend this book to anyone who loves language, wit and perfect storytelling.

This is, perhaps,the finest of all books. With 85 magnificent stories, virtually every one a solid masterpiece,William Trevor stands at the ultimate heights of his genre. Each story is a compressed gem and,while I have to admit that not every one is the greatest thing ever written, when you are blown away by about 1100 pages of a 1261 page opus, it is worth it in the end. Even the lesser stories have their merits, beautiful... Read Full Review