Eminent Canadian author Alice Munro breathed her last on May 13, 2024, in Port Hope, Ontario, Canada. She was 92. But authors like her never truly die, do they? They live on through their writings, which continue to celebrate their lives. Munro, too, will always be remembered for her contribution to the genre of short stories and her deep, insightful take on human lives. Recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2013, she was also awarded the Man Booker International Prize in 2009 and won the Governor General’s Award for Fiction in Canada thrice.
Remembering the life and works of Munro, here are five reading recommendations by My Kolkata for bibliophiles and Munro fans:
Dance of the Happy Shades
Published in 1968, this book continues to be a reader’s delight
Dance of the Happy Shades happens to be Alice Munro’s first collection of short stories. It was published in 1968 and continues to be a reader’s delight. Set in Ontario, the stories deal with themes like adolescence, the journey of self discovery and understanding gender roles. The sensitivity that reflects in the writing makes the book a special one. Some of the popular stories in the collection include Walker Brothers Cowboy, The Office, Day of the Butterfly, Boys and Girls and of course, Dance of the Happy Shades.
You can buy the book here.
Lives of Girls and Women
Lives of Girls and Women (1971) resembles an autobiographical work, and revolves around a young girl living in Ontario in the early 1940s
This one is not a short-story collection, but a novel. Lives of Girls and Women (1971) resembles an autobiographical work, which revolves around a young girl living in Ontario in the early 1940s. Growing up on a rural fox farm, Del Jordan, the protagonist, observes life and its many facets. Munro’s understanding of women shines through in this book. It is also the author’s only published novel so far.
You can keep an eye out for the book here.
Open Secrets
This book makes you restless and gives a newer understanding about relationships
In Open Secrets (1994), Munro recollects old love with short stories that are heartbreaking and beautiful at the same time. They make you restless and give a newer understanding about relationships. This book, perhaps, is the answer to many ‘what ifs’. The stories are about school girls who have vanished, war brides and introverts. One of the stories also has a woman whose tale of capture and escape, affects the story of another woman standing at a crossroad.
You can buy the book here.
Too Much Happiness
Each story in this book talks about life-defining moments of its protagonists, which makes it even more gripping
Published in 2009, Too Much Happiness, entices the readers with a special short story from the collection. The titular story, which goes by the same name, is a fictional account based on the life of Russian mathematician and writer Sofia Kovalevskaya. Kovalevskaya was a well-known name in the 19th century. Also, each story in this book talks about life-defining moments of its protagonists, which makes it even more gripping. Some of the popular stories from the collection are Dimensions, Face, Free Radicals and Wood.
You can buy the book here.
Dear Life
Oscillating between fictional and real-life experiences, the book offers a deep insight into the mind of a highly skilled author Amazon.in
Though the title immediately reminds you of Alia Bhatt and Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Dear Zindagi, the book has nothing to do with it. Published in 2012, the collection of short stories touches upon life — trying to understand and unravel it — one day at a time. Oscillating between fictional and real-life experiences, the book offers a deep insight into the mind of a highly skilled author and her understandings of life and death. .
A year after publishing Dear Life, Munro received the Nobel Prize in Literature in October 2013.
You can buy the book here.
