This is Diski's only collection of short stories and, perhaps, it is because these were all she wanted to publish, so she put them all in one place. A theme, a recognizable purpose to a collection, can set one apart. They're all good and interesting- there truly was not a single story in the twelve that was bad or unwarranted- but ultimately it was a collection of stories for the sake of having a bunch of them in one place, or so it seemed. The stories are varied in subject matter and style and theme. Diski is well-known for her sheer talent and quality, and this book only underscores that. Though new to me, I found it was easy to wade into her stories, following her characters and choices, as though she were a writer I'd reach much more of, whose style and devices I recognized. I've never read any fiction from her before this, and as I began reading this short story collection I was happily surprised at how familiar her writing seemed. I don't think that anything I have to say in that regard will add to what you can already read in the many reviews of her writing in tons of publications. The Vanishing Princess is another vital stop on Jenny Diski’s journey for meaning and beauty in her prolific writing, one that feels as fresh and necessary as if it were brand-new.Jenny Diski is a terrific prose stylist. Longtime fans of Diski and those who have discovered her since her death will find much to treasure here, in her only short story collection, released in the US for the very first time. In “Short Curcuit,” the author mines her own bouts in and out of mental institutions outside London to question whether those we think are mad are really the sanest among us. “Bathtime” tells the story of a woman’s life through her attempts to build the perfect bathtub, chasing an elusive moment of peace. In a Rumpelstiltskin fairy tale turned on its head, a miller’s daughter rises to power and wealth to rule over her kingdom and outwit the title villain. The stories in The Vanishing Princess showcase a rarely seen side of this beloved writer, channeling both the piercing social examination of her nonfiction and the vivid, dreamlike landscapes of her novels. In a cool and unflinching tone that came to define her singular voice, she explored the subjects of sex, power, domesticity, femininity, hysteria, and loneliness with humor and honesty, When she died of cancer in April 2016, after chronicling her illness in strikingly honest essays in the London Review of Books, readers, admirers, and critics around the world mourned the loss.
Jenny Diski’s prose is as sharp and steely as her imagination is wild and wondrous.
“Mordant and talon-sharp.” -Dwight Garner, New York Times, on Jenny Diski The only story collection from the beloved Jenny Diski-darkly funny, subversive, sexy, and eccentric tales from one of the most original and intelligent voices of our time The Vanishing Princess E-Kitap Açıklaması
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