Vigilance (Storycuts)

Vigilance (Storycuts)

Summary

A classical music aficionado and concert-goer bemoans the degradation of civility and respect among his fellow audience members. He develops a series of measures to counteract the prevalence of inconsiderate noise-making in the stalls. Resisting his erstwhile partner's appeals for moderation and restraint, his tactics and approaches grow in extremity.

Part of the Storycuts series, this short story was previously published in the collection The Lemon Table.

About the author

Julian Barnes

Julian Barnes is the author of thirteen novels, including The Sense of an Ending, which won the 2011 Man Booker Prize for Fiction, and Sunday Times bestsellers The Noise of Time and The Only Story. He has also written three books of short stories, four collections of essays and three books of non-fiction, including the Sunday Times number one bestseller Levels of Life and Nothing To Be Frightened Of, which won the 2021 Yasnaya Polyana Prize in Russia. In 2017 he was awarded the Légion d'honneur.
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