Alice Munro: a collection to bring her work to the world
Canadian short story writer Alice Munro officially receives the Nobel Prize in Literature today and her American publisher is using the occasion to introduce new readers to her work.
In conjunction with today鈥檚 ceremony, Everyman鈥檚 Library, an imprint of Alfred A. Knopf that specializes in classic writers, is releasing 鈥淐arried Away: A Personal Selection of Stories,鈥� which includes 17 stories chosen by Munro herself. The stories draw heavily on Munro鈥檚 home region of southwestern Ontario, which fellow Canadian author Margaret Atwood says has been as important to Munro鈥檚 fiction as William Faulkner鈥檚 fictional Yoknapatawpha County was to his. 聽
There鈥檚 no new material here; Munro announced a few months ago that she鈥檚 retired from writing. But the stories in 鈥淐arried Away鈥� offer a thumbnail survey of Munro鈥檚 long career in short fiction 鈥� a nice way for newcomers to find out why Munro was tapped as a Nobel laureate.
Atwood, who introduces the collection, doesn鈥檛 seem surprised by Munro鈥檚 relatively low profile in international letters, in spite of winning the Nobel Prize.
鈥淪he鈥檚 the kind of writer about whom it is often said 鈥� no matter how well-known she becomes 鈥� that she ought to be better known,鈥� Atwood tells readers.
Atwood says that part of the reason for Munro鈥檚 modest reputation is her chosen genre of the short story, a form that doesn鈥檛 get much respect.
鈥淭hough many American and British and Canadian writers of the first rank have practiced this form, there is still a widespread tendency to equate length with importance,鈥� Atwood writes. 鈥淭hus Alice Munro has been among those writers subject to periodic rediscovery 鈥� or at least outside of Canada. It鈥檚 as if she jumps out of a cake 鈥� Surprise! 鈥� and then has to jump out of it again, and then again. Readers don鈥檛 see her name in lights on every billboard.鈥� 聽
With today鈥檚 Nobel Prize award, Munro might no longer have to jump out of cakes to get noticed.
Danny Heitman, a columnist for The Advocate newspaper in Louisiana, is the author of 鈥淎 Summer of Birds: John James Audubon at Oakley House.鈥�
