These 19 short stories were originally published in 1963 and form Lessing”s third collection. I do not know the provenance of all of the stories, but their variety, insight and evidence of a mature mind at work make them the best collection that I have read so far. Lessing had lived in London for 15 years since her exile from Southern Rhodesia in 1949 and so the number of African stories are significantly less than in her previous collections, but the five stories on offer here demonstrate a lyricism that speaks volumes for a writer who cannot return home. All of the other stories are set in England or Europe and it is in these stories that Lessing shows her unique insight into the minds of her female (and male) characters, taking advantage of the more relaxed attitudes to sexual freedom and what authors could write about. For example in the first story “One off the Short List” she describes in some detail the sexual encounter between Graham Spence an ageing lothario and theatre critic who uses all his knowledge and position to get into bed with Barbara Coles a director of a London theatre production. Graham does not get it all his own way and it is the subtle game of sexual politics that Lessing knows so well that makes this scene so believable.

It would be a mistake to think that all of these stories are built along the lines of the battle of the sexes, because Lessing has much more to say on issues that were pertinent to the 1960’s and mostly still relevant today. There is a variety and depth to most of these tales that leave a lasting impression and which are of a consistently high standard. One might think that “to Room Nineteen” the longest story (34 pages) and the final one in the collection is the most well rounded and moral story here, exploring issues that Lessing would rehearse again in her novels. In this story Susan marries Mathew, both in their late twenties, mature in outlook and ideally suited according to all their friends, their marriage appears to be successful in every way. Susan has four children, Mathew is a sympathetic husband and they work through any financial worries. Susan appears to have everything, but then she goes quietly insane. There are other stories, though shorter that are just as disturbing: “Each Other” explores the destructive incestuous relationship between a brother and sister which continues when the sister is newly married, and “Dialogue” where a woman full of life visits her ex husband who is ill and lives alone in a tower block; he sucks the life out of her, but she cannot leave him alone, always knowing that she will continue to visit him.

The variety in this collection is of course represented by five poignant little stories from Africa. “The Story of the Two dogs” has in it all the savagery of life in the veldt, but also an understanding of the natural world and human beings instincts for nurture. “A letter from Home” is about a shy, inward looking African poet, who is discovered by a feature journalist to have written some excellent work, but his fear of life leads him to disappear into the heart of Africa. The journalist tracks him down but the poet is now very paranoid, writing in his own secret language and under the influence of a domineering African woman. “Two Potters” describes a woman's dream about a potter in Africa who has a magical connection with his village and points ahead to Lessing’s fine science fiction books still some way in her future. Two African leaders settle their differences outside of the Foreign Ministry in London in “Outside the Ministry” and ‘A New Man” describes a new white farmer beating the odds on a poor farm in Zimbabwe. Back in England and there are some short, short stories that tell of a young girls introduction to the work of Issac Babel and in “A woman on the Roof” a shapely woman sunbathing has a disquieting effect on three male roofers. My favourite story is “Our Friend Judith” which tells about an independent English spinster who comes alive in a small seaside town in Italy.

It would be fair to say that none of these stories standout from the rest in such a way as to focus the reader onto any one of them, but they are all very good in their own way. The thread that seems to bind them together is that we can never really know another person. People have secret lives or at least secrets and they can change the way they seem to others for all sorts of reasons. Hidden depths might be a good summation. Very readable, very intelligent stories, extremely well written and a delight for anyone wanting to read a collection of stories that will entertain. And so four stars. ( )

I have previously found Lessing a bit hit and miss for me, often in the same novel – but I did like most of these stories. Especially the Lawrentian title story. ‘England vs England’, however, is more of a Lawrence pastiche, but I wasn’t convinced by Lessing’s attempt at portraying South Yorkshire characters. The stories set in South Africa, by comparison, were much more successful, particularly ‘The New Man’. Also good were ‘Between Men’, about a pair of mistresses, and ‘Notes for a Case History’, a potted biography of a young woman with aspirations to rise above her working-class origins. ( )