Twenty-One Stories

very well written and interesting

I read Graham Greene's collection of short stories after reading "The Power and the Glory" and "The End of the Affair" and before I read "The Quiet American". I think they were largely quite good with some very solid stories. They range from the appalling in "The Destuctors" to the very amusing such as "The Blue Film". However, I still prefer the author as a novelist and "The Power and the Glory" in particular.

These are excellent stories, though not on a par with his best novels. Saying this, "The Destructors" reminded me very much "Brighton Rock." "When Greek meets Greek" is very funny. "A Drive in the Country" is one of the best stories I've ever read. "I Spy" and "The End of the Party" demonstrate there can be as much horror in a child's life.

Graham Greene just doesn't get the recognition he deserves as a short story writer. As a novelist, his reputation has been well-established, fortunately. This collection, "Twenty-One Stories" is a fine sampler of Greene's abilities in the shorter genre. Many of the elements that feature so prominently in his novels also figure in these stories: the spontaneity of violence; ruthless polictics; looming secrets; greed; and the complex situations that life drops on you.Here are some brief looks at my favorite stories:"The Destructors" is Greene's examination of horrific, calculated vandalism in the extreme, made even more horrifying by the coolness with which it is carried out.An event in a man's past comes back to haunt him in "The Blue Film". Strangely, the haunting specter doesn't frighten him so much as saddens him.Purely-plot driven, "The Case for the Defence" is still a brilliant tale worthy of an Alfred Hitchcock Presents."Brother" explores the nature of political allegiances and the risks of making them known.Lastly, "The End of the Party" is a harrowing tale of identical twins playing hide and seek at a party. The ending paragraph left goosebumps on my skin for days. For those who have never read Graham Greene, "Twenty-One Stories" ought to be your starting point.