15 Sept 2000

London Transports (by Maeve Binchy)

'London Transports' is a collection of short stories by Maeve Binchy, set in London.  I like Maeve Binchy's novels, on the whole, but have not been so taken with her short stories. Still, I found this volume in a charity shop and thought it worth reading.

I enjoyed some of these stories.  But many of them seemed almost unfinished, with no real resolution or conclusion. I assume that was deliberate: the author left the reader to decide on their own conclusions.  I prefer closure, or at least some clear indication of where a story is going.

Having said that, there are likeable and believable characters in these stories.  There are some interesting ideas, too.  But - especially in the earlier stories - I found most of them rather frustrating.

Perhaps I should re-read them again in another ten years, and see if I 'get' them rather better. 

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