Runaway

Stories

By: Alice Munro

Narrated by: Kymberly Dakin

The stories in this collection are about women of all ages and circumstances. The runaway of the title story is a young woman who is incapable of leaving her husband. In another, a country girl emerging into the larger world via a job in a resort hotel discovers in a single moment of insight the limits and lies of passion.

Three stories concern the same woman - in the first, she escapes from teaching at a girls' school into a wild love affair; in the second, she returns with her child to the home of her parents, whose marriage she finally begins to examine; and in the last, her vanished child turns up caught in the grip of a religious cult.

In these and other stories, Alice Munro's understanding of the people about whom she writes makes their lives as real as our own.

©2004 Alice Munro (P)2008 BBC Audiobooks America

Just Not an Alice Munro Fan

I know that I am part of a very small minority, but I am not an Alice Munro fan. Her stories aren't bad, but to me, they are just incredibly boring. I will give her credit for writing realistic contemporary dialogue, and I guess it's a talent to be able to write a long story about ordinary people in fairly ordinary situations. And there are brief moments of insight into human nature. But that's about all I have to say. I've now read several of her collections, and I've felt the same way about each. It's never a good sign when you are about halfway through a story and just want it to end . . . For the last 100 pages, I kept thinking about what I will read next. (Hint: It won't be by Alice Munro.) The reader is OK; she has that quiet monotone that is typical of readers of "important" literature that supposedly speaks for itself--the Poetry Reading Voice.

Unusual Stories, Good Writing, Bad Depressing

Unusual Stories, Good Writing, Bad Depressing
Narration was very good but theme was consistently bleak

Perfect. Munro is a genius.

This is a beautiful book. Munro is an incredible observer of people. Kind, honest and with a subtle sense of humor. The reader was excellent and allowed the stories themselves to take first place.

If you like Alice Munro, you'll love these stories

These are wonderful stories, and I did enjoy listening to them.

The only problem for me was that the narrator used the same 'voice' in all the stories, so that there were few vocal characterization differences among characters in each story. This made the protagonists seem like carbon copies of each other. Also there is no pause, not even a bit of one, from story to story, and because the 'voice' is the same you're not sure that the past story has ended and the next one has begun.


A really annoying problem with the audiobook is technical. The 'chapters' are not set up by story, but randomly, so when returning to your listening, it is very hard to find your place.

Absorbing, Compelling, Must Read

This collection of short stories, more like short novels, is fascinating and gripping. I really could not stop listening. The stories are simply told, elegantly plotted, and have surprising twists that hold your attention.