After Rain: 0stories

by William Trevor

Book Overview

Chosen by the editors of "The New York Times Book Review" as one of the eight best books of 1996, "After Rain" presents a collection of twelve dazzling, acutely rendered stories that plumb the depths of the human heart. "Short fiction at its finest".--"San Francisco Chronicle".

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0670870072
• ISBN13: 9780670870073
• Release Date: October 1996
• Publisher: Viking Books
• Length: 212 Pages
• Weight: 0.85 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.8" x 8.8"

Customer Reviews

Excellent

Highly Readable, Highly Enjoyable. Just what you would expect from Trevor. In a clear and simple style he writes about ordinary lives, and when you finish you realize there is nothing ordinary about them.

An Extraordinary Collection of Short Stories

There is little doubt that Trevor is a master of his craft and perhaps the greatest living short story writer in the world today. After Rain, a volume of twelve stories, explores such subjects as infidelity, homosexuality, religious conflicts, and violence. What makes these stories so powerful, however, is not the subjects they deal with, but the portrayal of the characters thoughts, emotions, and responses. Trevor is able to examine such human conditions as jealousy, rage, sadness, regret, and hope in a non-judgmental light that leaves the reader looking into oneself to gain further insight. His writing style is nothing short of remarkable. He is eloquent and simplistic, never revealing more than he should, making the unspoken a compelling component of his story. If you have not yet read Trevor, I urge you to wait no longer. His literary grace will surely leave a lasting impact on you as a reader and as a human being.

The most nearly perfectly true fiction

In 1995, I bought William Trevor's "The Collected Stories" based on strong reviews. He won me over (and over and over) with almost every story in the bountiful tome. Great stories tell me truths that having heard them seem always to have been at the tip of my soul's tongue but just not quite spoken to myself. Trevor speaks such truths with almost every story. "After Rain" has some of the best ever. Read it. If it delights you and stings you as it did me, then be sure to go on to "The Collected Stories." A word of personal warning: Trevor's novels are very, very different from his short stories. Do not make assumptions about his stories if you have only read his novels. The short story is clearly more suitable for sharing his sharp insights.