A man finds himself surrounded by women who are becoming paler, more silent and literally smaller; a woman's intimate life is strangely dominated by the fear of nuclear warfare; a melancholy teenage love is swept away by a hurricane, while a tired, middle-aged affection is rekindled by the spectacle of rare Jamaican birds...
In these exceptional short stories, by turns funny and searingly honest, Margaret Atwood captures brilliantly the complex forces that govern our relationships, and the powerful emotions that guide them.
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[WHEN MY MOTHER was very small, someone gave her a basket of baby chicks for Easter - SIGNIFICANT MOMENTS IN THE LIFE OF MY MOTHER]**
(Vintage Digital, 15 May 2012, first published 1 January 1983, 288 pages, ebook, borrowed from @GlasgowLib via @OverDriveLibs)
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I am a massive, MASSIVE fan of Atwood. I thought I'd read most of her short story collections so I was delighted when I stumbled across this and had never even heard of it. I enjoyed every story in this collection. I read too many collections where there are one or two duds but I enjoyed every story on offer. The best were Bluebeard's Egg, Loulou or The Domestic Life of the Language, The Sin Eater and Unearthing Suite. Many of the stories feature something that is a staple in Atwood's fiction, women in comfortable, safe lives who are sad, alone and miserable.
