I've previously stated my absolute love for Messud's The Emperor's Children and the two novellas in this book lead me to believe that she's one of the best writers out there right now. She doesn't rely on narrative trickery (though her narratives are intricately constructed), or linguistic flourishes (though her writing style is beautiful). She writes a good story, with characters that are interesting, and keeps you involved. This would be a good introductory text to Messud for anyone not able to delve into the longer novels.

Claire Messud is a fascinating author, and I'm so glad I found her. Nothing she writes is simple, and one never knows what's coming. That's something I love, having grown tired of all the formula stuff!!

I've read a few of Messud's books and I've always enjoyed her observations of how over-complicated we make our everyday lives, the inner thoughts and reasoning as we push ourselves away from other people. Having two completely separate stories threw me before I realized it's more or less two books in one. Overall, they were well-written and I look forward to reading another one of her books!

I enjoyed “ A Simple Tale”. 5 stars there.

Thought the titular story was too long and got a bit boring. 3 stars.

Overall pretty good prose. Easy to read. Very quick. Enjoyed this.