Hotel of the Saints
by Ursula Hegi
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Description
The bestselling and acclaimed author of Stones from the River and The Vision of Emma Blau renews her reputation as an extraordinary writer of short stories in this first collection in more than a decade. With her passion for storytelling and her elegant prose, Ursula Hegi balances us on that magical border where laughter and sorrow become one. She knows the language of pleasure, the language of grace, the language of grief. A writer of great insight and imagination, Hegi manifests her bold show more range of vision as she enters the perspectives of lovers and loners, eccentrics and artists, children and parents: a young man waits in a hospital room with his father, who has received the heart of a twenty-seven-year-old woman; a musician tries to protect her daughter from loving a blind man; a seminary student yearns for the certainty of faith that belonged to him as a boy; a woman transcends her embarrassment for her first love, who has tripled in size; a feud between two brothers contaminates and redeems their hometown. Ursula Hegi's bicultural background enriches these eleven vibrant and luminous stories that are set in Germany, Italy, Mexico, and the United States. From within this geographic diversity emerge common themes as Hegi's characters take risks in searching out the unique place where faith thrives for each of them-a run-down hotel, the currents of Cabo San Lucas, an animal shelter, the embrace of an ex-convict. For Hegi's characters, foreign territory can be a continent away or in the same neighborhood-even the same bed. They come startlingly alive in these poignant tales because her lyricism gives them a moving intensity. Time and again she delights the reader with a perfect image, the elegance of the language, and her art as a storyteller. The range of Hotel of the Saints is vast, and the stories that comprise it illuminate the truths of the heart. show lessTags
Recommendations
Member Reviews
Ursula Hegi leaves the reader wanting more! Several of these beautifully written stories end too abruptly. What happened to the young seminarian? How did Aunt Jocelyn do in her new hotel?
What happened to the new family in "End of All Sadness"? Two of the stories are connected: "Freitoid" and "For their Own Survival" take place in the same place and time, with different story lines. Do the stories eventually intersect?
Overall, Hegi provides a book of short escapes that make the reader think. And each could be a novel of their own.
What happened to the new family in "End of All Sadness"? Two of the stories are connected: "Freitoid" and "For their Own Survival" take place in the same place and time, with different story lines. Do the stories eventually intersect?
Overall, Hegi provides a book of short escapes that make the reader think. And each could be a novel of their own.
I have previously read 3 novels by Hegi but it has been over 20 years since I read anything by her. I found this small book of short stories in my pile of books to read so I picked it up. It was excellent and reminded me what a wonderful writer Hegi is. She was born in Germany after the war and she brings her background into many of the stories. She deals with a wide range of subjects. Like most good short story writers, she leaves the story endings with an element of "to be continued". If you have never read her, then this is a good introduction to one of our better writers.
Good collection of short stories. Solid writing and interesting characters: she balances narratives too. Sometimes it is from a female perspective and sometimes a male, older and younger which is wonderful.
This was a well written book of short stories. She's a great story-teller because with short stories, it's much harder to get your readers to live in the moment of the characters, and I thought she did that beautifully.
$1 at a $1 store! Brand New. Short stories from Ursula Hegi look refreshing and I like the titles of the stories.
From Moonwalkers -
"He smells of mouthwash and oddly, gladiolas, even though there are no gladiolas in his room. Just Roses. But those I can't smell. Funeral flowers. A scent from the future?
How to grieve when you don't know the language of grief?"
From Moonwalkers -
"He smells of mouthwash and oddly, gladiolas, even though there are no gladiolas in his room. Just Roses. But those I can't smell. Funeral flowers. A scent from the future?
How to grieve when you don't know the language of grief?"
Good collection of short stories. The last one, "Lower Crossing" was an emotional tale.
Judged a book by it's cover, and it worked out very well. Looking forward to reading more of her work.
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Author Information
17 Works 8,750 Members
Ursula Hegi (born May 23, 1946) spent the first 18 years of her life in post-World War II Germany. When she tried to ask questions about the war, she received only vague answers and heard little about the Holocaust. Hegi immigrated to the United States in 1964. Now an award-winning novelist, Hegi is best known for her book Stones from the River. show more Picked by Oprah Winfrey as a selection for Oprah's highly successful book club, the prequel to Hegi's highly-praised Floating In My Mother's Palm traces the path of average Germans during the turbulent wartime years from 1915 to 1952. Narrated by a dwarf who eventually learned that being different is a secret that all humans share, Stones from the River was nominated for a PEN Faulkner Award and received the Governor's Writer's Award. Also the author of the books Intrusions, Unearned Pleasures and Other Stories, and Salt Dancers, Hegi is the recipient of more than two dozen grants and awards, including an NEA Fellowship and five awards from PEN Syndicated Fiction Awards. She has also written over 100 reviews for the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, and the Washington Post. (Bowker Author Biography) Ursula Hegi is the author of eight critically acclaimed books. She lives in New York State. (Publisher Provided) show less
Common Knowledge
- Original publication date
- 2001
- Important places
- Germany; Italy; Mexico; USA
- Dedication
- For my son, Adam
- First words
- From the first story Hotel of the Saints:
Lenny's mother, the starch queen, is baking for her brother's funeral; cinnamon cookies and blackberry pies, garlic bread and her own recipe of poppyseed strudel. - Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)From the first story Hotel of the Saints:
Lenny knows this is the kind of tilting that may happen to you again, and all you have is your faith that each time your body will find some new balance.
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 299
- Popularity
- 106,131
- Reviews
- 7
- Rating
- (3.60)
- Languages
- English, German
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 5
- ASINs
- 3
