Grotesques and Fantasies


Read by LibriVox Volunteers

(4.5 stars; 7 reviews)

A set of often funny, sometimes tragic stories by Israel Zangwill. Most famous for his scathingly accurate portrayals of the Jewish ghetto, these stories have a wider stage, poking fun at social conventions and society itself, both high and low. The real and the fantastic collide to produce a world uniquely Zangwill's.

These are the tales of figures as diverse as a pantomime dragon, an excellent butler, a man living his life in the wrong order and a Jewish maiden who knows exactly what she is worth. Well observed and original, the satire is biting and the wit sparkling.

Many of the stories in this volume are accompanied by excellent illustrations, which are well worth a look. They are available in the Gutenberg e-text.

The novella, King of Schnorrers, which began this collection when it appeared in print, has already been recorded separately. As such it is omitted from this collection, and only the shorter stories are included. (Summary by Lucy Perry) (6 hr 39 min)

Chapters

Foreword 2:23 Read by Mike Pelton
The Semi-Sentimental Dragon 23:27 Read by Arie
An Honest Log-Roller 8:49 Read by Mike Pelton
A Tragi-Comedy of Creeds 11:40 Read by Mike Pelton
The Memory Clearing House 32:55 Read by John Van Stan
Mated by a Waiter. Chapter I, Black and White 16:38 Read by ToddHW
Mated by a Waiter. Chapter II, A Difficult Opening 21:34 Read by ToddHW
Mated by a Waiter. Chapter III, The Queen Comes Into Play 16:39 Read by ToddHW
Mated by a Waiter. Chapter IV, The Winning Move 10:02 Read by ToddHW
The Principal Boy 33:47 Read by Sandra Cullum
An Odd Life 27:06 Read by Lynne T
Cheating the Gallows 28:59 Read by Tim Quinn
Santa Claus 8:23 Read by Greg Giordano
A Rose of the Ghetto 29:01 Read by Lucy Perry
A Double-Barrelled Ghost 24:32 Read by John Van Stan
Vagaries of a Viscount 16:11 Read by Greg Giordano
The Queen's Triplets 25:33 Read by Lucy Perry
A Successful Operation 10:06 Read by Greg Giordano
Flutter-Duck. Chapter I, Flutter-Duck in Feather 13:09 Read by Matthew Nerger
Flutter-Duck. Chapter II, A Migratory Bird 8:01 Read by Matthew Nerger
Flutter-Duck. Chapter III, Flight 18:09 Read by Matthew Nerger
Flutter-Duck. Chapter IV, Poor Flutter-Duck 12:03 Read by Mike Pelton

Reviews

An Excellent Collection of Humorous Short Stories


(5 stars)

The title, Grotesques and Fantasies, could be misleading. But if you have read anything by Israel Zangwill, you know you are in for humorous stories. I thought this was a very good collection of his work. Well read by all.

I was not all that impressed


(3 stars)

I have read and listened to other works by this author, but this collection didn't really keep my interest. It was just okay, not remarkable. Reading was fine, no complaints.