No title (1982)

This particular set of short stories by Alice Munro coheres to some extent thematically in their focus on women of all ages and their romantic entanglements with men. Many of the men appear to be jerks but love is blind and irrational so that hardly matters. Munro paints the usual vivid exterior landscapes of rural and urban Canada from coast to coast in times that vary from that of her childhood before and after World War Two straight up through the present (for this collection late 70s to early 80s). Here, she also excels at the more subtle and intricate interior psychological landscape of the heart, mind, and soul. And some stories had sexual explicitness that I had heretofore not been aware of. Munro is not a prude. In each of the stories you do feel like you get a good feel for the types of people in them, whether the central character (always a woman, sometimes young, sometimes middle-aged, often a parent, frequently divorced, in and out of relationships) or a love interest. Sometimes you can clearly say, "this story seems to be about X." Other times, like any great piece of art (Munro won the Noble Prize in literature in 2013), you may scratch your head unsure exactly what the piece is about but glad you went along for the ride. ( )

I just love Alice Munro's work. I've never really been a short story fan but wow, she gets me every time. So many thought provoking - and familiar moments - and such insight into love relationships. ( )

Aunque Las lunas de Júpiter no es el libro más reciente de Munro y refleja, según parece, una etapa de su obra que la autora canadiense ya superó, muestra un talento y una atención al detalle enormes. Todos los personajes de los cuentos están perfectamente bien construidos y resultan interesantes incluso en las narraciones más flojas. La construcción de sus cuentos parece calculada y bien trabajada. Excelente autora, bien merecedora a mi parecer de los galardones que se le han otorgado. Mis cuentos favoritos del volumen fueron: "Prue", "Accidente", "La señora Cross y la Señora Kidd" y "Las lunas de Júpiter". ( )

Many times, I will dip into a short story collection, read a few, and set it aside. I read straight through this one. Munro is brilliant at capturing the fleeting emotion; the thoughts percolating under everyday life; the growth, quirks, and fall of relationships...I am tempted to quote some brilliant lines from the stories, but they are so much better within the stories themselves as you are pulled into the world of whatever characters she is following. A Nobel Prize well-deserved. (Brett Easton Ellis WISHES he could bring this kind of wisdom to life in a story.) I am glad that I have many more collections of Munro's stories to read. This is what I wish I could write. ( )

Alice Munro - always brilliant ( )