Heart of the West

4.5 stars, Metaphorosis reviews

Summary
A collection of O. Henry's characteristic short stories, this time set in a broadly defined West.

Review
This is the third collection of O. Henry stories I've read in quick succession, and I remain just as delighted as when I first encountered him decades ago.

For a change of pace, O. Henry sets these stories in a broadly defined West, and he doesn't really pull it off. O. Henry's characters are often intentional caricatures, and that's especially true here – perhaps even when not intended. Especially in the earlier stories in the collection, they often come across more as stereotypes than archetypes, and feel more formed from lurid adventure novels than observation.

What does stay steady, though, is O. Henry's sense of humour, which gives a sparkle to many of the stories. The stories themselves tend a little more toward the light-hearted and happy ending than in the prior collections, though there's enough pathos here for leavening.

All in all, another O. Henry collection I can wholeheartedly recommend.

My favorite stories:

• “Telemachus, Friend”


• “The Handbook of Hymen”


• “The Sphinx Apple”


• “The Missing Chord”


• “A Call Loan”


• “A Chapparal Prince”

I LOVED this book! Each short is a window into the hearts and minds of the colorful characters that only O. Henry could bring to life so well with so few words. I'm not normally a short story reader, but that's definitely changing.

It's hard to choose, but my absolute favs in no particular order: The Pimienta Pancakes, The Indian Summer of Dry Valley Johnson, Cupid A La Carte, The Caballero's Way, The Missing Chord, and A Chaparral Prince.