1. The Short stories of William Trevor
Henry mckeand

2. Early years Trevor was born in Mitchelstown, Cork, Ireland
Had an interest in writing from a young age, but went to St. Columbia’s College and Trinity College to study History
Worked as a sculptor, teacher, and copywriter before writing seriously
His first novel, A Standard of Behaviour, was published in 1958, but he is most famous for his short stories.

3. Writing Style and themes
Often writes about either his native Ireland or England
Focuses on flawed, eccentric characters, often middle-age
Has a simple, understated prose style
Stories are based in reality, but he doesn’t shy away from the absurd or the unconventional
“The novel imitates life, where the short story is bony, and cannot wander. It is essential art”

4. Access to the Children/perspective
Often writes from a (mostly) limited third-person perspective
Stories are small-scale, often taking place over the course of a day
These tropes are exemplified in one of his early short stories, “Access to the Children”
Follows a man, Malcolmson, as he attempts to make the most out of his day of custody over his two daughters
Reveals pieces of his backstory, mainly an affair he had which led to his divorce from his wife.

5. Use of perspective/other strategies
Trevor’s writing reflects the thinking of the protagonist
Exposition is delivered through internal reflection
Briefly opens up the limited perspective in order to view Malcolmson from a different angle

6. The day we got drunk on cake/First-person
One of Trevor’s most popular stories
Mike, an average businessman, goes out on the town with a coworker and two women
They banter as they go from location to location, but Mike is more interested in his girlfriend at home, Lucy
Calls her several times throughout the night. Their conversations are formal and pleasant, but the reader begins to get the feeling that they are drifting apart. He is bothered by her casually telling him that a man is with her
Eventually breaks off from his group and falls asleep in an empty bed upstairs during a party
When he wakes up, he mourns the time when he will look back at the day and view at as nothing more than a memory: “As for me, time would heal and time would cure. I knew it, and it was the worst thing of all. I didn’t want to be cured. I wanted the madness of my love for Lucy to go on lurching at me from dreams…In time [her] face would fade to a pin-point; in time I would see her on the street and greet her with casualness, and sit with her over coffee, quietly discussing the flow beneath the bridges since last we met… I hated the moment, yet I loved it because in it I still loved Lucy.”

7. Changes in perspective/introspection
A first-person narrative, which is somewhat rare for Trevor
Even more limited than his third-person work
We are not given much of an external look at Mike
He is relatively passive throughout the story, mainly reacting to others
More of a focus on dialogue
Despite it being first-person, less reflection and introspection than in some of his other work
However, it ends with the lengthy, existential paragraph at the end, which is probably most effective in the first- person

8. The ballroom of romance/overall themes
Focuses on Bridie, a woman in her late-thirties who takes care of her father, who is missing a leg
Frequently attends the titular dance-hall
She is familiar with a diverse cast of characters
In the past, she let her first love slip away. He ended up marrying another woman
She now thinks about Dano, a singer and drummer who performs at the dance-hall
He is a decent, kind man who she thinks would make a good partner
However, she begins to realize that he is planning on marrying a woman named Mrs. Griffin, whose affected son he has been caring for
She ends up walking part of the way home with Bowser Egan, one of the many regulars at the Ballroom
Internally decides that she will marry him to prevent loneliness

9. Overall themes
The Ballroom of Romance is representative of Trevor’s most common themes
He is drawn to older characters, often dealing with some form of regret
Regardless of social rank, many of them are unsatisfied in one way or another
They may find themselves at a crossroads