Ordinary Life

Stories

By: Elizabeth Berg

Narrated by: Elizabeth Berg

In this superb collection of short stories, Elizabeth Berg takes us into pivotal moments in the lives of women, when memories and events come together to create a sense of coherence, understanding, and change. In “Ordinary Life,” Mavis McPherson locks herself in the bathroom for a week, shutting out her husband and the realities of their life together — and, no, she isn’t contemplating a divorce. She just needs some time to think, to take stock of her life, and to arrive, finally, at a surprising conclusion.

In “White Dwarf” and “Martin’s Letter to Nan,” the secrets of a marriage are revealed with sensitivity and “brilliant insights about the human condition” (Detroit Free Press) that have become a trademark of Berg’s writing. The Charlotte Observer has said, “Berg captures the way women think as well as any writer.” Those qualities of wisdom and perception are everywhere present in Ordinary Life.

©2002 Elizabeth Berg (P)2013 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

“An extraordinary short story collection that deserves our closest attention.” ( Detroit Free Press)

“Elizabeth Berg’s gift as a storyteller lies most powerfully in her ability to find the extraordinary in the ordinary, the remarkable in the everyday.” ( The Boston Globe)

“Berg’s...deftly drawn pictures of ordinary life can help remind us of its oft-unheeded charms.” ( Los Angeles Times)

She always comes through

when I don't know just what I'm in the mood for or am feeling out of sorts I have a few writers and musicians I know I can turn to for solace or a moment of connection. Elizabeth Berg is one of those for me. This probably won't help anyone decide whether this book is what they're looking for at this moment but this is a well written and perfectly performed collection of short stories that speak to all manner of life's vagaries. Give it a whirl and exchange it if it fails to grab you 😉

Heartwarming, funny, and charming

I love the stories for their simplicity, loveliness, heartbreak, and beauty. Elizabeth Berg rights so eloquently about the trials and tribulations of being human.

lovely life stories

it is so great to listen to this author read life stories, with happy endings!

Depressing

I bought this well before the pandemic began. I might very well have enjoyed it then. Now, I just find it depressing, and I can't listen to it.