Quote:
Originally Posted by Hamlet53
fantasyfan I am a little unclear on this. Are you proposing reading some or all of Saki's short stories. Is there any specific book (collection of short stories) that you are nominating? Or are you more proposing that the discussion be about him? I am just trying to envision what the discussion will be about.
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I am nominating the short stories of Saki in general--not a specific book or collection. My idea is to explore his vision of life, society, people, and relationships as it is transmuted through the prism of his work.
However, he wrote six collections and they take up nearly 600 pages in the Penguin anthology of his works. I am not proposing that we read all of them. {Though, on a personal level, one could certainly find that an interesting journey--something good would always be turned up in the experience
} When dealing with a writer of short fiction, one often starts with a specific collection: Thus, if exploring the work of Frank O'Connor one would probably begin with
My Oedipus Complex and Other Stories and branch out into other stories from there. I would think that the three central collections of Saki would be
The Chronicles of Clovis, Beasts and Super-Beasts, and
The Toys of Peace. Most of what I have read of him and enjoyed have been from these three {and I have by no means read all of them}.
So my
suggestion is that it would be useful to look at the stories in
Beasts and Super-Beasts as a starter. But one could easily enough start anywhere and make notes about stories that were interesting. Some might like to use a "Best of . . ." collection.
So far as his personal life and character are concerned, I only mentioned the biographical bit to encourage an interest in what he wrote. Again, if anyone in the discussion wanted to link the stories with the life of the writer, there is no reason they shouldn't share their insights with us--but that is the case with any author.
I hope this clears things up.
