“The Beggar Maid” Alice Munro

2014-03-20T20:08:42-04:00

"The Beggar Maid" was originally published in "The New Yorker" in June 1977. It's hard to imagine that chunk of glossy pages, for it's one of the longer stories (with "Mischief") in the collection. It's also hard to imagine reading "The Beggar Maid" without knowing everything about Rose

“The Beggar Maid” Alice Munro2014-03-20T20:08:42-04:00

“Wild Swans” Alice Munro

2014-03-20T20:08:53-04:00

"Flo said to watch out for White Slavers." The opening line. There's Flo with her tales of abuse and mistreatment, with the litany of threats, near and far, posed to women and girls. She also warns Rose about the retired undertaker, with his also-retired hearse, about the the way that he

“Wild Swans” Alice Munro2014-03-20T20:08:53-04:00

“Half a Grapefruit” Alice Munro

2014-03-20T20:09:05-04:00

In "Health and Guidance" class, the teacher goes up and down the rows, asking what the students had for breakfast. On the surface of it, she is checking to see if they are keeping to Canada's Food Rules, making solid nutritional choices. In fact, this is one more way in

“Half a Grapefruit” Alice Munro2014-03-20T20:09:05-04:00

An Act of Preservation: Telling Stories

2014-03-17T13:52:40-04:00

The stories in Birds of a Lesser Paradise are so consistently good that I almost didn't want to read them. Beginning Megan Mayhew Bergman's collection, I had no expectations. She's been much-anthologized, and has a nice list of publishing credits, but that doesn't guarantee a good match between

An Act of Preservation: Telling Stories2014-03-17T13:52:40-04:00

“Privilege” Alice Munro

2014-03-20T20:09:16-04:00

This story was originally published in Ms in September 1978, under the title "The Honeyman's Daughter". Thinking about this changes the focus of the story somewhat because the honey-dumper goes around cleaning toilets. That's his job. And Cora is his granddaughter. Rose greatly admires Cora (and Rose is at the heart

“Privilege” Alice Munro2014-03-20T20:09:16-04:00
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