Naples, FL 2023 #1 - I spent way too much time on this book.....but i did enjoy it. Updike has a sparseness of language in these short stories, yet he speaks mountains. Overall, these were about relationships....imperfect relationships......stuck in the mud relationships, perhaps?. Not an overly upbeat book, but more often than not, glimmers of hope.....or at least peaceful acceptance of situations flickered at the ends. I really enjoyed 'Giving Blood,' 'The Stare,' 'The Rescue,' & 'The Hermit.' Of course the story after which the collection was named, 'The Music School,' which i looked forward to thinking it would be a highlight, sadly left me cold.....as did 'The Bulgarian Poetess,,' 'Four Sides of One Story,' & 'Avec la Bebe-sitter.' Some other worthy honorable mentions exist as well. Liked something in almost all.....did not really love any.....no regrets. ( )

Personal favourites from this collection are: 'The Bulgarian Poetess", a story that features Henry Bech, a star in Updike's fiction, who experiences a brief and impossible love on the opposite side of the world: "A Madman" is a good story about Oxford and its human curiosities: and "The Hermit". However, not all the stories have sustained the passage of time. One particular low point is "At A Bar in Charlotte Amalie"

Pain and guilt, as a result of adultery feature in several stories; so does the mysterious lives of our children. These both are regular themes in Updike's fiction.