The Orange Fish

By Carol Shields

Book Overview

In each of these twelve tales Carol Shields exhibits her extraordinary ability to find meaning and mystery in the chaos of ordinary life. In the title story, an unhappily married couple find their print of an orange fish brings them newfound harmony as they join other owner of the print who gather to extol the miraculous powers of "fishness." "Chemistry" describes a group of young musicians drawn briefly into an impenetrable circle of love. And in "Hazel," a middle-aged woman finally comes into her own as a sales rep for a line of kitchen products. The Orange Fish is a collection full of wit and compassion, a series of stories to be read and reread and savored.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0140152822
• ISBN13: 9780140152821
• Release Date: March 1992
• Publisher: Penguin Group
• Length: 64 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.2" x 7.9"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

A Great Collection

This collection was much better than I expected. Many of the stories in the dozen that make up the collection touched me, made me think, and changed how I look at a few important things in life. The first story, the Orange Fish, was very interesting and I loved the many messages and interpretations that the lithograph brought out in the different characters. The couple in this story undergoes a metamorphosis because of their purchase of a lithograph of an orange fish; the idea that a purchase can tranform a marriage seems preposterous, but Shields makes it believable. 'Hazel' was another one of my favourite stories, about a widow who acquires job skills and confidence and expects to take control of her destiny and realizes that much of what happens in her life and in the lives around her occurs by accident. Another story, 'Times of Sickness and Health' struck a chord with me, as it has a precise poetic quality to it and a magical element.

Each Story a Little World

Each book that I read by Carol Shields only strengthens my admiration. "The Orange Fish", a collection of short stories, is my recent discovery. Although one of her earliest collections, it still bears her signature mark of strong, daring prose/poetry that draws you into the individual worlds of each story. Most of the stories deal with simple, daily occurrences, with every truthful word Carol Shields invites the reader to enter. You feel as if you are interacting with the characters and talking with Kay about her troubled marriage over a cup of tea in "Times of Sickness and Health." You root for the success of Marta's glass-blowing movies in "Collision." You sympathize with Meershank's writer's block in "Block Out." In effect, as the reader, you inhabit the individual world of each story and want to stay longer. I would recommend this to anyone who wants to read about ordinary people reflected through the mirror of powerful prose.