Carol Shields’ stories deftly draw us into the lives of a broad range of sharply observed characters, from the brilliant young violinist smothered by an overprotective family, to the fat, elderly widow, mowing her lawn while, unknown to passersby, a long, passionate life buzzes around in her memory. As is her novels, Shields illuminates – with wit and compassion – the moments when ordinary people face extraordinary circumstances: wild coincidences, declarations of love and the end of love, revelations that transform their lives. Her vision of the world is essentially optimistic, and her stories are colorful, buoyant, and full of surprises. – back cover of the 1985 print version
“Carol Shields is a wonderful writer – wry, witty, wise, and fiercely intelligent. Many of the stories in this collection are deliciously funny; all are memorable.”
-- Janette Turner Hospital
“These are stories to learn from – about the amazing power of language to recreate life on the page, and about life itself. Carol Shields is a marvelous writer – perceptive, witty, ironic and tender – whose poetic and analytical gifts make Various Miracles a dazzling collection.” -- Isabel Huggan
“Carol Shields is a brilliant writer. The stories mirror our lives in all the closest and most intimate ways and at the same time are entertaining – quite wickedly entertaining.” -- Elizabeth Jolley
“These stories have given me happiness, not just pleasure. They delight me at first by the clear and simple elegance with which they’re made. Then, there’s something so bountiful and surprising about them, like the beautiful broken light of a prism.” -- Alice Munro
“Carol Shields has a rare and engaging way of following through an image till she’s made a story of it. In my favorite of her stories, ‘Dolls, Dolls, Dolls, Dolls,’ the fiction forms by layers into a final effect of remarkable poignancy and unsentimental insight.” -- Joan Silber
“With deft, luminous prose Carol Shields creates a tangential world of real charm and mystery. The satisfying economy of these stories, the tender precision, unveil a unique enchanting talent.” -- James Wilcox
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