About book Some Rain Must Fall: And Other Stories (2001)
April 2012Miss Fatt and Miss Thinne are not, respectively--although they later become so, monstrously. The apocalypse is full of fish. God didn't create the world, he just found it in the trash heap and thought it was neat. You can fake a Virgin Mary, but you can't make her veil. Something about a hand. Africa. Also Poland. It's hard to find romance in a sex shop. A lonely nun keeps vigil on the edge of Suicide Point. And so on. And I've just removed this book from my culling shelf. It looked interesting when I bought it, then it seemed pretentious when I skimmed the first page (My relationship with this man is in crisis, Francine reminded herself, kissing him on the lips. There is no doubt about that.), then I realized how desperate the back cover was (Acclaimed author! Widely praised! Remarkably diverse! Radically inventive! Compelling collection! FINE I'LL READ IT GODDAMMIT), and then I read it and decided it was a keeper. Unexpectedly good. Sure, a few stories are weak and forgettable (something about a hand), and it may not be as REMARKABLY DIVERSE as the back cover claims (although "Fish" is an apocalypse worthy of Maureen F. McHugh, and the god of "Toy Story" is far more interesting than Mr g), but it's quite good nonetheless and some of the stories are rather lovely. You may enjoy them as well. I remember reading the first few pages of The Crimson Petal and the White back in high school but abandoning it because it looked huge and threatening, but I do remember how beautiful those pages were, so perhaps I'll try again.And now that this and my last book have survived a bookshelf cull, I'm afraid to read The Corrections...
A remarkably diverse, thought-provoking, often witty, and beautifully-written short stories. That was a relief, because I loved Faber's "The Crimson Petal and the White" (http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...), but was shocked by how much I disliked the related short stories, "The Apple" (http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...).Many of these stories have a wry humour and a dream-like sense of disorientation, at least initially, but there is no unifying theme (which is not a criticism). SOME RAIN MUST FALLThe title story seems mundane at first, but gradually reveals unexpected poignancy and depth. (view spoiler)[A specialist teacher is parachuted (not literally!) into a primary class after the previous teacher's sudden departure. (hide spoiler)]
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If someone told me that each story was written by a different author - I would believe them! I never make it through a whole book of short stories, but I really liked the range of stories and styles in this. In most of the stories, the characters are built up really well - to the point where a couple of the stories could be whole books on their own.I'm gonna rank the stories, in case I ever read this again and my opinions change:1) Toy Story2) The Crust of Hell3) Accountability4) The Tunnel of L
—Marissa
This book contained an uneven collection of short stories, but there is one jewel within. My favorite is "Fish," a story so surreal and haunting that it's now on my top lists of the genre, along with Asimov and China Mieville. I won't describe it here, because gradually realizing its altered reality is part of its appeal. Also liked "Toy Story," which imagined God as a child exploring the universe already constructed, and finding Earth, a little beautiful ball, which He carefully tucks into a safe place on display in His room. "Tunnel of Love" is set in a pornography shop. The inner life of the protagonist, and the conversations with other characters, are rich and thought provoking, reminiscent of Faber's "The Crimson Petal And The White," one of my favorite books. Looking forward to starting Faber's "Under The Skin." A personal note: The Standifer family thanks Susan for executing a brilliant book idea for Christmas this year: selecting six of Faber's books to give to Bill, Elizabeth, and me!
—Val
Even though I'm absolutely positive Michel Faber has a beautiful way of writing and makes outstanding word choices, I literally fell asleep while reading this. Yes, nice ideas, but where the hell is the climax???????????At least in the first two stories. I loved their background and beginning and description and creativity... But there was NO point at which I could feel my heart pounding.Maybe it's because I'm accustomed to read conflict after conflict (the god Rick Riordan, for example) but I had to push myself to read and I eventually finished putting the book down with disappointment... Definitely not finishing this unless I get to a sheer boredom state.
—Sofi Corso
