And Thereby Hangs a Tale


And Thereby Hangs a Tale is British author Jeffrey Archer's sixth collection of short stories. It was published in 2010, and ten of the fifteen stories are based on tales Archer gathered on travels over the previous six years or so. The other five stories are claimed to derive from his own imagination.
The title comes from Shakespeare's The Taming Of The Shrew. The book had a special launch in Mumbai, India in May 2010. A Bollywood film adaptation of the story Caste-Off has been proposed.

Reception

The Independent said that "the majority of the stories told to him seem to concern cons and money, and the ones he made up flash their outcomes on huge neon signs from the outset", and DNA complained that "His train of thought is almost predictable, and not many of the stories linger in your head after you’re done reading them."
The Calcutta Telegraph, reviewing the book because one of the stories is set in India, concluded that "Highbrows will turn up their noses at this book. Not quite Maupassant or Chekhov they will grumble. The loss is theirs because the stories, like Archer’s previous ones, are a delight", and Daily Times was equally positive, calling it "an ingenious short book, which is both smart and sassy and thoroughly satisfying."

Contents

  1. "Stuck On You" *
  2. "The Queen's Birthday Telegram" *
  3. "High Heels" *
  4. "Blind Date"
  5. "Where There's a Will" *
  6. "Double-Cross" *
  7. "'I Will Survive'" *
  8. "A Good Eye"
  9. "Members Only" *
  10. "The Undiplomatic Diplomat" *
  11. "The Luck of the Irish" *
  12. "Politically Correct"
  13. "Better the Devil You Know"
  14. "No Room at the Inn"
  15. "Caste-Off" *