The Proper Procedure and Other Stories by Theodore Dalrymple (.ePUB)
File Size: 0.2 MB
The Proper Procedure and Other Stories by Theodore Dalrymple
Requirements: .ePUB reader, 0.2MB
Overview: The Proper Procedure and Other Stories is a rare fictional foray from Theodore Dalrymple—a collection of short stories that satirize, dissect, and reflect the absurdities of modern life. Drawing from his years in medicine, psychiatry, and prisons, Dalrymple crafts tales that expose the banal cruelty and bureaucratic madness of contemporary Britain (and by extension, the modern West).
Themes and Tone
These stories are darkly humorous, intellectually rich, and quietly disturbing. They explore:
• The emptiness of official language and institutional conformity
• Everyday moral failures, often masked by civility or ideology
• The pathology of modern compassion—a compassion that often enables evil
• Encounters between ordinary people and systems that fail them
Dalrymple’s prose, as always, is precise, ironic, and delivered with classical restraint. He never preaches; he reveals—often with just a sentence or two that shifts the entire emotional weight of the story.
Sample Highlights
• A doctor discovers that protocol is more important than patients
• A bureaucrat believes he has solved poverty—by ignoring it
• A minor incident exposes a lifetime of cowardice and compromise
• A well-meaning liberal finds himself trapped by his own logic
Narration Notes
While specific narration details vary by edition, the tone calls for an audiobook voice that matches Dalrymple’s: cool, erudite, dryly amused, and capable of subtle emotional turns without melodrama.
Who Should Listen
• Fans of Kafka, Orwell, or Saki
• Readers of Dalrymple’s nonfiction who want to see his worldview translated into narrative
• Listeners interested in literary satire, institutional critique, or psychological depth
• Anyone who enjoys short stories with moral clarity and sting
In Summary
The Proper Procedure and Other Stories is a quiet masterpiece of literary minimalism and moral observation. With his scalpel-like wit and deep understanding of human frailty, Dalrymple offers stories that are brief, unsettling, and unforgettable. This audiobook reminds us that fiction can reveal truths that facts cannot reach—and sometimes, the most chilling horror is buried in the everyday.
Genre: Fiction > General
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