Typhoon and Other Stories: Introduction by Martin Seymour-Smith

This Penguin edition assembles 4 stories that were first published together in 1904, and written in nearly the same sequence. 3 were first published in magazines, 1 not. The reasons why 'Falk' was not able to find a magazine publisher are attributed either to its inconvenient length, or to the upsetting subject of canibalism.The stories share several themes: the sea is there, even when the action is on land, and so are ships and the people who spend parts of their lives on them. Alienation is in all, being a stranger, being expatriate, as is the reverse of the medal, xenophobia, condescension, racism.One common theme is 'imagination', twice for the alleged lack of it, twice for the obvious overabundance of it.Best of the crop is Typhoon, which I have reviewed separately and longer. A funny adventure story, as I see it.The other long story is Falk, which is actually 2 for the price of one. The main story, the frame, is a farce about expatriates in Bangkok; inside the main story, the title hero tells the narrator his adventure on a Danish steamer that went adrift in the Southern ocean, leading to the horrifying experience that some readers found disgusting.2 shorter stories are set in Kentish villages near the sea, and both deal with strangers. Amy Foster is the far better one of the two stories, dealing with a shipwrecked man from Eastern Europe who gets stranded and is treated like an animal until he slowly manages to establish a rudimentary foothold in a hostile environment. The title hero is a domestic helper who is the first to show pity for the 'madman' and even falls in love. Tragically, she is not fully able to discard the prejudices of her countrymen. (Is there an autobiographical component here? John Stape, the Conrad biographer who wrote the introduction, thinks not. I guess he is right.)The last story (To-Morrow) is maybe the least remarkable piece of writing from Conrad that I know, and quite forgettable.

A set of classics for sure.

Nice, quality book.

This book will be useful to students of Conrad as it contains an interesting and instructive introduction, a short chronology and a glossary of nautical terms. As to the stories themselves, Typhoon is excellently written with some really good character studies within it and it's a good read. The other stories I could take or leave, and in fact I did leave Falk half way through having felt it was rambling on for too long and not to my taste at all. I will return to it and complete it at some point after a break. Conrad is amongst my favourite novelists, but some of the short stories do leave me cold. I am glad that I have at last read Typhoon and that alone I'd give 4 stars too.

Great book, moves one into the adventure.