Book Review: Old Babes in the Woods by Margaret Atwood (story collection)

 I love reading Margaret Atwood's story collections, so I was thrilled to discover that she had released another one. I purchased the book at my earliest convenience. And... Let me tell you what I found within the covers of this book.

Old Babes in the Woods

Margaret Atwood

McClelland & Stewart

2023

15 stories

Old Babes in the Woods is a collection of fifteen stories that is sure to entertain, inspire and surprise the reader. The collection would be of special interest to those fifty-five years of age and older as the book addresses many of our concerns--how to age well, death and evolving family dynamics. By my count, six of the fifteen stories are about a married couple--Nell and Tig. They are a warmly human, sympathetic and relatable couple. Other stories range in genre from literary fiction to speculative fiction. 

As most know, Atwood is a skilled author and I filled many pages in my notebook with her clever turn of phrase and sound advice. Such as...

'Better to march along through the golden autumn woods, not very well prepared, poking icy ponds with your hiking pole, snacking on chocolate, sitting on frozen logs, peeling hard-boiled eggs with cold fingers as the early snow sifts down and the day darkens.'

"First Air" (p. 15) 

Reviews of other books by Margaret Atwood...

The Robber Bride

Cat's Eye

Bluebeard's Egg

Something a hairdresser once confided to me inspired the creation of this short story...

Writing about Writers (list of quotes) collected by Leanne Dyck

On October 10th this blog will be nine years old. Do you believe it? Nine. To celebrate, I re-read the quotes I gathered since 2012--when I started reviewing books for this blog. I'll offer these quotes in thematic collections over the next three months--including October, including today. Please click on the links provided under each quote to read my book reviews.

"An Autumn Road" photo by ldyck

Writing about Writers

To be a successful writer:  ' "You must have talent. A thick skin. And most important luck... To make luck you must be clever, or blessed." ' The Delusionist, Grant Buday

'I wonder if I'll ever write anything worth anything.' 

The Help, Kathryn Stockett

'What's the point of writing something that no one will ever read? I forget who said that a work of art does not exist without an audience--that it's not enough for it to be made.' 

Motherhood, Sheila Heti

'[N]early everything seems a letdown after a writer has finished writing something.' 

The World According to Garp, John Irving

'This is how we go on:  one day at a time, one meal at a time, one pain at a time, one breath at a time... If you write books, you go one page at a time.' Bag of Bones, Stephen King

'As a child I wrote small books which I began with the words The End. I needed to know the end was guaranteed.' 

Bluebeard's Egg, Margaret Atwood

'The writing had burned off all thoughts of the real world, at least temporarily. I think that, in the end, that's what it's for. Good or bad, it passes the time.' Bag of Bones, Stephen King

My teacher 'said that when you are writing a book you have to include some descriptions of things... She also said that I should describe people in the story by mentioning one or two details about them so that people could make a picture of them in their head.' 

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, Mark Haddon

'When you make your daily bread in the land of make-believe, the line between what is and what seems to be is much finer.' 

Bag of Bones, Stephen King

'Writers are a strange breed. Magpies, scavengers. So fearful of the world they would prefer to describe it than live in it, yet brave to the point of idiocy when in pursuit of inspiration. The real ones will slip their heads into the noose and pull the lever themselves if they think a hanging would make a good tale.' 

The Only Child, Andrew Pyper

'[B]ut in dreams, perhaps everyone is a novelist.' 

Bag of Bones, Stephen King

'Flowers in the Fall' photo by ldyck

Next Sunday evening on this blog... 

23 Book Bloggers
a list of 23 bloggers who review books

If you enjoyed this list of quotes, you'll also enjoy...

Writing about Writing (list of quotes)

will be published on this blog on Sunday, November 3

Hmm... (list of quotes)
I invite you to select a quote to focus on during December--a challenging month for many.
will be published on this blog on Sunday, December 1

Book Review: Bluebeard's Egg by Margaret Atwood (short story collection)

photo by ldyck

Buy this Book

Bluebeard's Egg is an ideal book club read. There's plenty of fuel for literary discussion, lots of symbolism, lots of hidden meaning.

Author Margaret Atwood dedicated this collection to her parents and four of the twelve stories appear to be about them (Significant Moments in the Life of My Mother, Hurricane Hazel, Betty, and Unearthing Suite)--to a greater or lesser degree. All twelve stories in the collection focus on the relationship between women and men--our differences and, reading more carefully, our similarities.

A question to guide your club's discussion:  As viewed through the lens of this collection, what does it mean to be female--for ourselves, our sisters, and our mothers?

Maybe [the egg is] a symbol of virginity, and that is why the wizard requires it unbloodied. Women with dirty eggs get murdered, those with clean ones get married. (p. 159)

McClelland and Stewart published this collection in 1983 (during that same year Coach House Press published Atwood's short story collection Murder in the Dark and Salamander Press published her poetry collection Snake Poems) and, 36 years later, these stories are still relevant.

More...

Stone Mattress by Margaret Atwood
published by McClelland & Stewart (2014)

Buy the book
In this nine story collection, the grand dame of Canadian literature writes for her age cohorts. I was delighted to discover that many of the stories were written about writing. In Alphinland, an aging author finds comfort from her lonely reality in the world she created. In Revenant, a senior poet dies but lives on in his work. In Dark Lady, the poet's female muse deals with his death. In The Dead Hand Loves You, an elder horror author confronts the toll his fame has taken on his relationship with three-decades-old friendships. Torching the Duties is a horror story set in a manor house for the elderly. In Stone Mattress an elderly woman finally takes revenge on the man who sexually assaulted her. Lusus Naturne and The Freeze-Dried Groom don't feature senior protagonists. Both fit into the horror genre.

I closed the book with increased respect and passion for short stories.


Book Review:  The Robber Bride by Margaret Atwood

Book Review: The Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood


Atwood was first published in 1961--Double Persephone (a poetry collection)--by Hawkshead Press (a small press)--when she was 22 years old. In total, she's published 71 books--including (20) novels, (8) short story collections, (8) books for children, (24) poetry collections, (10) non-fiction books and a graphic novel. And she has written for television, radio and stage. And she has...

Margaret Atwood's full bibliography

And she's not done yet...

Margaret Atwood is currently working on a sequel to A Handmaid's Tale.

Atwood has won the Governor General award and the Man Booker Prize and...

Special Award Spotlight:  Margaret Atwood

photo by ldyck

Next Post...

Sunday, April 21 at approximately 5 PM PST

Something for Everyone (short story collection) by Lisa Moore

longlisted for the 2018 Scotiabank Giller Prize
stories uniting theme:  Newfoundland

Book review: Nine Stories by J.D. Salinger

I always manage to find an intriguing read at the church fair and this year was no exception.

A Perfect Day for Bananafish was recommended in an online article I read recently. And it is included in this collection. In fact, it is the first story in this collection. This is my only complaint. Not that I didn't enjoy reading it, I did. Simply because it casts a certain hue on the rest of the stories.

It's plain to see, especially in stories such as Uncle Wiggly in Connecticut, J.D. Salinger ability to develop young adult characters. An ability that is utilized to great effect in his young adult best-seller The Catcher in The Rye. 

First published by Little, Brown in 1953 and again in 1965 (with subsequent printings by Modern Library in 1959, and Bantam in 1964 and 1981), some of the language and attitude is dated but the underlying messages in the stories are timeless.

Favourite Quote...

'The worst that being an artist could do to you would be that it would make you slightly unhappy constantly.' -from the short story De Daumier-Smith's Blue Pencil

More...

If you enjoy reading this book, you may also enjoy Stone Mattress and The Path of Most Resistance. I did.

Stone Mattress by Margaret Atwood
published by McClelland & Stewart (2014)

In this nine story collection, the grand dame of Canadian literature writes for her age cohorts. I was delighted to discover that many of the stories were written about writing. In Alphinland, an aging author finds comfort from her lonely reality in the world she created. In Revenant, a senior poet dies but lives on in his world. In Dark Lady, the poet's female muse deals with his death. In The Dead Hand Loves You, an elder horror author confronts the toll his fame has taken on his relationship with three decades-old friendships. Torching the Duties is a horror story set in a manor house for the elderly. In Stone Mattress an elderly woman finally takes revenge on the man who sexually assaulted her. Lusus Naturne and The Freeze-Dried Groom don't feature senior protagonists. Both fit into the horror genre.

I closed the book with an increased respect and passion for short stories.

The Path of Most Resistance by Russell Wangersky
published by House of Anansi (2016)

The first story in this collection--Rage--is a work of genius. The ending draws from the story--everything points to it--and yet it surprised me. Having written all of that, if I had to choose, I'd say Farewell Tour was my favourite story in this collection.

On the whole, I'm impressed by Wangersky's mastery of description but puzzled by his sparse dialogue--both internal and external. It's like he's afraid to allow his characters to speak.

photo by LDyck

Sometimes endings are very hard to write...

Book Review: Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood

Some writers don't read while they work. They use the excuse that they don't want their writing to be influenced. But influence has long tentacles. You can be influenced by something you read months or even years ago. I need to read to prime the pump. Not only do other authors influence me, they also teach me. And I need to learn to develop my own voice. I need to read, I need to write, daily. It's a deep hungry. Writing is my voice. 

I wrote this after reading the third chapter of Cat's Eye. Can you tell that Atwood is influencing me?

The artist in Cat's Eye is staging a retrospective of her work, but by way of vivid memories she shares a retrospective of her life.

What stands out for me in Atwood's work is her use of language. 

It is poetic...

We are survivors, of each other. We have been shark to one another, but also lifeboat. (p. 17)

I hadn't yet encountered the foreign hairpins left in the bathroom like territorial dog pee on snowy hydrants. (p. 190)

It is political...

An artist is a tawdry, lazy sort of thing to be, as most people in this country will tell you. (p. 15)

Atwood is teaching me how to weave the senses into narrative... 

 Around me is the scent of newsprint and floor wax, the bureau drawer smell of my itchy stockings mingled with that of grimy knees, the scratchy hot smell of wool plaid and the cat box aroma of cotton underpants. (p. 59)

And as I read, I am learning to develop my own voice.

"Scene from my outside writing area"

Photo by L Dyck

Atwood...

On her head is the felt hat like a badly done-up package that she used to wear on Sundays. (p. 358)

Me...

The felt hat she use to wear on Sundays is on her head--like a badly done-up package.

or

A felt hat, she use to wear on Sundays, is balanced on her head--like a badly done-up package.

Does she influence me?

Yes, but many things do.

Swallowed by my eyes. Bent, stretched, blended, transformed by my brain. Pouring out of my pen. 

Next post (Sunday, April 24th approximately 5 p.m.)
For a Warmer World:  What makes you tick? What is your narrative? When you share your truth it makes the world stronger. If you're scratching your head over all this don't worry just (please) read my next post.

"Bim:  my inside/outside reading and writing buddy"

Photo by L Dyck

Sharing my author journey...
This week I've been learning how to start chapters. I've learned that...

Book review: The Robber Bride by Margaret Atwood

Buy this book

Author's website

Back cover blurb:  Roz, Charis, and Tony all share a wound, and her name is Zenia. Beautiful, smart, and hungry by turns manipulative and vulnerable, needy and ruthless, Zenia is the turbulent center of her own perpetual saga. She entered their lives in the sixties, when they were in college. Over the three decades since, she has damaged each of them badly, ensnaring their sympathy, betraying their trust, and treating their men as loot. Then Zenia dies, or at any rate the three women -- with much relief -- attend her funeral. But as The Robber Bride begins, Roz, Charis, and Tony have come together at a trendy restaurant for their monthly lunch when in walks the seemingly resurrected Zenia...

Notes while reading...

About the book

For me, The Robber Bride is about personal and global wars. Why the anger? What do you gain? Is it worth the struggle? In the end, what are you left with? Is there a better way?

The Robber Bribe is told by three women. Their stories are linked together through one person -- Zenia. We follow each woman through this book -- through their own eyes, their own thoughts -- and the experience helps to define them.

Zenia 

In walks the "friend" that is supposed to be dead. It's like when pure evil enters the scene and the candle flame dances in the breeze. 

Why is she there? She should be dead? They all think. Then they think she's making us feel uncomfortable. It's not us that should be feeling that way -- it's her.

Tony (educated. professor. historian. wife. childless. )

Tony lets Zenia into the deepest part of herself. Tony reveals her greatest wound to Zenia. Tony tells Zenia about her estranged mother. Zenia lasps the story up like a kitten drinking milk. 

'This is the first time Tony has ever said very much to anyone about her mother... Zenia ... can see it's a painful subject for Tony, but this doesn't deter her; if anything it spurs her on. She pushes and prods and makes all the right noises, curious and amazed, horrified, indulgent, and relentless, and pulls Tony inside out like a sock.' (p. 152)
Zenia wiggles into Tony's life, uses her, wringles her out, stuffs her full of things that Zenia will be able to use later and then she's ready comes back into Tony's life and makes withdrawals. Tony is left to pick-up the pieces.

Chrisa (new age "hippie". single mother)

Zenia stole something from her. Ever since suffering this lose, Chrisa has been investing a lot more in herself -- building a happy life.

Chrisa is growing into her own happiness. She's learning healthy ways to release the unhappiness she feels. She's learning to take pleasure in what she has, instead of grieving what she's lost. But she feels her daughter, Augusta, judging her.

Roz (business woman. single mother.)

Roz's home life is like one of those English family comedy movies from the 1960s. 

Zenia is given the most life, the most power in Roz's life. Did Roz pay the most?

'[W]hen the women's movement hit town in the early seventies, Roz was sucked into it like a dust bunny into a vacuum cleaner.' (p. 394)

The men...

'Zenia says coolly "Mitch was a creep. Roz is better off without her." ' (p. 462)

West is weak; Billy is lazy; Mitch is unfaithful. I wonder if Zenia did Tony, Charis and Roz a favour by destroying their relationships with these men.

Atwood's writing

When Atwood wants to introduce back-story, she writes, 'For instance'. So simple; so effective.

I love this quotes... 'Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of women. A mother knows.' (p. 95)

Concepts to mull over... 'Perhaps the soul breaks up as the body does, and only parts of it are reborn, a fragment here, a fragment there.' (p. 508)

'The dead return in other forms ... because we will them to' (p. 525)

If you enjoy reading The Robber Bride you might also enjoy reading...

The Secret Life of Bees

Oh, yes, and Margaret Atwood has written a diverse collection of 55 books. No doubt you will find more books that interest...delight... inspire...entertain  you among them. Her latest book is Stone Mattress

Next Post:  Monday, January 26th:  Writers, how do you attract readers?

Sharing my author journey...