I originally said that reading Eudora Welty's work makes me want to go back South to Mississippi and spend time with my family there.

I rescind that. Reading Eudora Welty makes me wish I was white and well-heeled in the 1930s-1950s South.

I started the second book and Welty’s short stories are just not my thing at this point in my life. Her early works at least. Planning to take some time off and visit her later works to see if it’s the style or me.

I just couldn’t find a way to engage with any of the characters. I felt it took a long time for the stories to get to the conflict. It was all just word soup to me; after reading 6 pages, I would stop and realize I didn’t recall anything that had happened.

From BBC Radio 4 Extra - A Short Story of Gothic:
Watery parallels to Greek mythology, as life gets too much for a woman in Mississippi. Barbara Barnes reads Eudora Welty's tale.

This is a collection of Welty's best stories.

The first few collections I enjoyed the most. They are witty, funny, move you, make you think. She can do a lot in a short story.

However, towards the end, I felt turned off. I was thinking the book would have been better if the final collection was left off.

I know that seems mean ... I did appreciate Welty's writing, but the book went on too long. And of course, I read it straight through with no breaks. Maybe if I had broken it up a bit more? I'm not sure.

One thing I am sure of though, is that Welty was a talented writer. And I'm glad I was able to explore her short stories through this book!