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Graham Greene

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Complete Short Stories (Penguin Classics) Paperback – 1 Feb. 2005

by Graham Greene (Author), Pico Iyer (Contributor)

4.6 116 ratings

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The complete stories of a 20th century master of fiction

Affairs, obsessions, ardors, fantasy, myth, legends, dreams, fear, pity, and violence―this magnificent collection of stories illuminates all corners of the human experience. Including four previously uncollected stories, this new complete edition reveals Graham Greene in a range of contrasting moods, sometimes cynical and witty, sometimes searching and philosophical. Each of these forty-nine stories confirms V. S. Pritchett’s declaration that Greene is “a master of storytelling.” This Penguin Classics edition features an introduction by Pico Iyer.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

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ISBN-10

0143039105
ISBN-13

978-0143039105
Publisher

Penguin Publishing Group
Publication date

1 Feb. 2005
Language

English
Dimensions

12.83 x 2.84 x 19.63 cm
Print length

624 pages
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About the Author

Graham Greene (1904-1991), whose long life nearly spanned the length of the twentieth century, was one of its greatest novelists. Educated at Berkhamsted School and Balliol College, Oxford, he started his career as a sub-editor of The Times of London. He began to attract notice as a novelist with his fourth book, Orient Express, in 1932. In 1935, he trekked across northern Liberia, his first experience in Africa, recounted in A Journey Without Maps (1936). He converted to Catholicism in 1926, an edifying decision, and reported on religious persecution in Mexico in 1938 in The Lawless Roads, which served as a background for his famous The Power and the Glory, one of several “Catholic” novels (Brighton Rock, The Heart of the Matter, The End of the Affair). During the war he worked for the British secret service in Sierra Leone; afterward, he began wide-ranging travels as a journalist, which were reflected in novels such as The Quiet American, Our Man in Havana, The Comedians, Travels with My Aunt, The Honorary Consul, The Human Factor, Monsignor Quixote, and The Captain and the Enemy. In addition to his many novels, Graham Greene wrote several collections of short stories, four travel books, six plays, two books of autobiography―A Sort of Life and Ways of Escape―two biographies, and four books for children. He also contributed hundreds of essays and film and book reviews to The Spectator and other journals, many of which appear in the late collection Reflections. Most of his novels have been filmed, including The Third Man, which the author first wrote as a film treatment. Graham Greene was named Companion of Honour and received the Order of Merit among numerous other awards.

Pico Iyer, born in Oxford, England, and raised partly in California, is the author of several books about travel and culture, including The Lady and the Monk, and The Global Soul. His memoir, The Man Within My Head chronicles a life of fascination with Grahame Greene. He now lives in suburban Japan.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Penguin Publishing Group (1 Feb. 2005)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 624 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0143039105
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0143039105
Reading age ‏ : ‎ 17 years and up
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 12.83 x 2.84 x 19.63 cm

Best Sellers Rank: 172,209 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- 7,258 in Short Stories (Books)
- 7,760 in Fiction Classics (Books)
- 20,535 in Literary Fiction (Books)

Customer reviews:
4.6 116 ratings

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Graham Greene

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Henry Graham Greene OM CH (2 October 1904 – 3 April 1991) was an English novelist and author regarded by some as one of the great writers of the 20th century. Combining literary acclaim with widespread popularity, Greene acquired a reputation early in his lifetime as a major writer, both of serious Catholic novels, and of thrillers (or "entertainments" as he termed them). He was shortlisted, in 1967, for the Nobel Prize for Literature. Through 67 years of writings, which included over 25 novels, he explored the ambivalent moral and political issues of the modern world, often through a Catholic perspective.

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4.6 out of 5

116 global ratings

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Finnan O'Hare

Greene was possibly the greatest British storyteller ever.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 7 February 2024

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My god! Greene is a genius. I don't think I've read anybody since Shakespeare who understood the human heart so well. He is poisonous, bitter, erotic, loving, humorous, heart-breaking, questioning and one of the greatest existentialist writers since Camus. No word, no sentence, is wasted. I write, but this is aspirational and unattainable and makes me feel worthless. The greatest British writer. If you want to learn how to write, read this or any other of his works. If you want to become absorbed in another world...read this.

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momcat

Graham Greene Short Stories

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 19 September 2011

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A nice chunky paperback book containing a good selection of Graham Greene's short stories, aimed at the basic end of the market. Good for anyone who wants a comprehensive selection of the author's work without the expense of a pretty hardback gift volume. I bought it because I hadn't read any Greene and wanted to see whether I liked his work. As it turned out I didn't much - a bit nihilistic and gloomy in many of the stories. However, this is the book to buy if you want to assess him for yourself!

4 people found this helpful

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Woody the foodie

Excellent book for dipping into

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 21 February 2012

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Complete Short Stories (Greene, Graham) (Penguin Classics) I love Graham Greeene's stories. His wit and sardonic sense of humor shine through. This coupled with a certain romantic touch makes these stories unique. His sense of place and atmosphere are also notable. I am a complete fan.

4 people found this helpful

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Stephanie De Pue

Short Stories from a Long Life and Writing Career

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 1 June 2010

Graham Greene's long life and prolific writing career nearly spanned the twentieth century. Unusually enough, the British author's work was both greatly honored, and greatly popular. He wrote The Power and the Glory ; The End of the Affair ; and Our Man in Havana , among other noteworthy novels; he also published two short story collections. These stories are all here, dated, at least, from 1929 through 1963. They cover many genres: fantasy, mystery, spy, crime, romance, and are set in many places; England, the Continent of Europe, the Caribbean, Africa, Latin America. They also provide an unusually close view of the work of their prominent, polished writer.

The best known and once most notorious of them is probably "May We Borrow Your Husband," set on the off-season French Riviera. It's narrated in the first person by a man who sounds a lot like its author grown older, and concerns a pair of predatory English interior decorators who set out to seduce a confused, handsome young English bridegroom on his honeymoon. The narrator, who is fond of the young bride, watches the proceedings, feeling himself unable to intervene.

Another well-known story is "Cheaper in August," that chronicles the odd business of an August Caribbean affair between a middle-aged Englishwoman, married to an American academic, and a much older, not particularly attractive American remittance man. "Across the Bridge" is a strong story of an English financier fugitive, trapped in Mexico; it's also narrated by a figure much like its author. "Under the Garden," an outstanding, rare fantasy tale, written fairly early in Greene's career, gives us many hints of the work that's to come. "The News in English" is a powerful World War II spy tale. "The Destructors" is a tough early story about the crowning achievement of an English gang of teenagers.

If you would like an introduction to the work of Graham Greene, or you already love the longer works of this estimable writer, you'll find these stories worthwhile reading.

24 people found this helpful

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Bob Elvis

... product shows the master of the genre in the best possible light

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 7 November 2016

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This high quality product shows the master of the genre in the best possible light. It is an essential part of my library now and a real favourite.

One person found this helpful

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Vera Beltrao

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 25 June 2018

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Very nice book in great conditions!

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Curtis

If you're a fan then get it.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 8 April 2014

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Was bought as a gift and was well appreciated so I'm told. So would reccommend if you are on the lookout for similar.

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Christian Jongeneel

Easy reading of mixed quality

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 22 September 2009

Most of the stories in this collection have the familiar, light hearted Greene tone. The quality varies wildly, though. Some stories, typically the longer ones, are among the best of what Greene has written (the tragicomic 'May we borrow your husband?', about two gay men who prey on a newly wed but seemingly unhappy couple, being my favourite).

Others, often written on commission from magazines, breathe routine. Not bad, but forgotten once the page has been turned. In any case, don't read the whole book immediately, but take it in chuncks to avoid a Greene overdose.

12 people found this helpful

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GEORGE JOHN

Superb

Reviewed in India on 22 January 2024

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Superb collection - entertaining and insightful

Steven M. Fregeau

He is also fun, and this collection is one where a reader ...

Reviewed in the United States on 21 November 2016

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Greene deserves to be read. He is also fun, and this collection is one where a reader can pick up at any point, select a story of some twenty pages or only a few, and take away as much enjoyment as self-reflection at any time. Certainly the best place to begin with Greene. Whether you are looking for something meaningful and thought-provoking or simply want to be entertained, this collection will work.

I could never really get into any of Greene's novels, but I never had trouble with the short stories.

6 people found this helpful

Carmel DiLeone

Complete Short Stories (Penguin Classics)

Reviewed in the United States on 19 September 2011

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I am enjoying reading these short stories. Graham Green is an excllent writer. I like to know what other people think about a book befor I buy it. I have only read a few stories so far and already there are some I want to reread. What I like most about this book , since I am such a slow reader, is that it dose not take me long to read a complete story. Another book I purched from Amazon, "The End of the Affair" also by Graham Green is a sad but beautiful love story. You can count on Amazon for the best in reading.

Carmel, Milford, Connecticut

2 people found this helpful

J. Mars

good prompt service

Reviewed in the United States on 27 March 2022

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The book arrived quickly. It was as described and what I wanted.

Gabriel Valjan

He protests too much

Reviewed in the United States on 21 October 2013

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"It was the biggest protest he had ever allowed himself to make against the condition of life."

Graham Greene. "Two Gentle People." Complete Short Stories. p.427.

Ah, `the condition of life' is a phrase apt to sum up Graham Greene's literary output. "Two Gentle People" is not the best or most exciting story in the Penguin volume, but it demonstrates all of the hallmarks of Greene's narrative strength: what is said is not said, with the reader as implicated witness; the unintentional slip of speech that betrays one character to another or, the character to the reader; and the often indeterminate and inconclusive ending to a Greene `entertainment,' or novel.

Two middle-aged people, a French woman and a British man, meet and share a park bench. They each have their separate life and each is polite and civilized. They strike up a superficial conversation. A pigeon is injured; falls down, its injury fatal. The man, out of compassion, kills the bird and respectfully disposes of the body. The woman observes and admires him. There is brief moment of silence after the act of violence. They resume their conversation. They get on well. He invites her to lunch. They have lunch at a brasserie. Attraction, as mutual admiration but not lust, bubbles up through the text. He offers to walk her home. She declines. They talk some more after their meal. She uses the intimate tu pronoun form instead of the formal vous form in her French with him when her speech lapses momentarily. Is it a slip? She catches herself. He says nothing and they part.

The story seems almost genteel reportage - a story about nothing -- until both characters return home. She hears her husband with the `boys.' She is well off. As she takes off her jewelry, every object she removes and every object on her vanity reminds her of the sexless liaison that afternoon. Is she cheating because the reader knows she had contemplated it for a moment? The man returns home and his wife - named Patience - says, `I can smell a woman on you.' He is late coming home and she thinks that he has been out womanizing at the Rue de Douai. Has he had mistresses before? Does she know her husband better than we, the reader, have come to know him? Is he to be trusted?

Greene's writes horror on par with Stephen King in "A Discovery In The Woods." It is that creepy. "I Spy" and "The End of the Party" are stories from a child's point of view. "Doctor Crombie" is one of his humorous stories: all those who have died from cancer have also had had sex so therefore sex might be the cause of cancer. His short story "The Destructors" is his novel Brighton Rock (1947) in miniature.

Greene, like his friend Kim Philby, remains elusive and evasive. His prose style is lean by comparison to British authors in his day. Not quite Hammett but it is lean and nuance. Greene is a master of the subjunctive mood. The themes in his novel are what will make his writing durable. As to the man himself, I think the best answer or insight comes from E.M Forester's essay "What I Believe" which appeared in The Nation in 1938. He states:

"If I had to choose between betraying my country and betraying my friend I hope I should have the guts to betray my country."

13 people found this helpful

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