A wonderfully eclectic collection of stories & 'slices of life' in this amusing writer's style of imaginative settings & colourful characters from all walks of life.He entertains & amazes in his quest to enlighten his readers on how even the most mundane human encounters can produce surprising emotions & outcomes.

Labels and Other Stories is a great anthology. Most stories take place in South America and some in Turkey. While reading I was transported overseas (which is always nice from the comfort of your own armchair) and I thoroughly enjoyed the dreamlike quality of the storytelling. The stories were very inventive and included a woman who had ten children, all named after South American countries, a man who collects cat food labels, Mamacita who dreams of buried treasure, a school teacher who collects cans for extra income and Manolito who falls in love with a corpse. Included in this collection is an alternative ending to Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, one of de Bernieres’ more famous works.

Couldn’t get on with the audiobook narrator.

I have recently read the birds without wings and I was mesmerised the way the author captured so many subtle things of daily lives of the natives in the past and present.
These short stories made me wonder whether the author ever read any books by Sait Faik Abasıyanık or Yaşar Kemal. I felt they speak similar languages. Thank you for the pleasure of reading these stories.

Great short stories in that very traditional short story style - concise direct language, a few quirky characters and the frequent abrupt and surprising ending. I nice easy read.

A lovely collection of short stories, many very amusing

An eclectic and slightly inconsistent collection, but held together by de Bernieres' superb language. The prose is light and humorous, and employs a virtuosic range of vocabulary to express achieve this tone.

Some of the stories are a bit odd but overall the collection is quite fun.

Very readable collection of short stories that vary in subject and span the globe. Favourites for me are The Turks Are so Wonderful with Children, The Deposit and The Complete Continent but enjoyed them all.

Didn't quite finish - found it a tad misogynistic.

Some classics and some I didn’t warm to quite as much but all in de Berniere’s beautiful and unique style which makes them a joy to read.
See the reading updates for notes on each of the stories.

Hard to work out a rating as the stories individually ,rated on my enjoyment were from two right up to five....but maybe only my personal taste was involved.....
The writing is of the highest order,very vivid and you are immediately there with the characters...even in the stories disliked there were fine passages I admired.
Great variety of mood from very light hearted to the most appalling sadness ,misery and evil. You must be a excellent writer to be able to write in so many different areas.
Fourteen stories in this collection...
The leading one " Labels" is a story of obsession, which I was glad to find had a positive ending being rather obsessive myself...
" Grunter Weber's Confession" apparently revisits Captain Corelli's mandolin ....which I have not read but this is very powerful
" Two Dolphins" rather weird,a sort of folk tale,not keen.
" A night Out For Prudente de Morass" clever twist ending
" Our Lady of Beauty" and ," Romon on the Underground" unpleasant topics which stopped us finishing them.
" The Turks Are So Wonderful With Children" " Mamacitas Treasure" and " The Man Who Sent Two Fish to The President" very vivid but not quite sure how to describe them at all!
" Stupid Gringo" and " Andovil and Andovillette Begin Their Holiday" offer simple stories of amusing light relief..keep you smiling and a few laugh out louds...
My favourite was " A Day Out For Mehmet Erbil" this was amusing,sad, wistful, hopeful all in one.

What a wonderful collection of quirky short stories! Each of these stories has its own little twist; some are funny, some sad, some whimsical and all contain a lesson or two.
The settings for the stories varies as does the content but all are a delight and filled with a different but entirely recognisable side of humanity itself. Particular favourites for me were the story of the man who collects cat food labels, the story of the girl on the train, the addict and his violin, the couple in the caravan and their encounter with Hell's Angels, the couple who take their badly behaved child to Turkey and the 'Stupid Gringo' story. Perhaps the only story that really didn't appeal to me was the folk style story of the two dolphins.
Many of the stories have a somewhat wistful quality, enhanced by Bernieres' lyrical writing, and his masterful characterisation, allowing us to get to know, and relate to, each character even within the short space of each story.
I haven't read any Bernieres for a long time and these short stories have reminded me that I must resurrect him! I am also a big fan of short stories: when well done as these are, they are little pieces of perfection, an art unto themselves.
Easy, thought-provoking and very entertaining reading. ****+