Incredibly sad and beautiful, just how I like them. Too tired to write a review, but I'll say this: I think the "Stories" in the title is misleading. I did start the book with the understanding and expectation to read short stories (even if the stories were interlinked), and was mesmerized from the beginning. After the Intermission, however, I felt it became more like a coral novel, especially when the stories become stories within the stories. I still loved it, but I thought this fact made the latter stories lose something as standalones. I.e. Whereas "The Leopard" is a magnificent story you could read anywhere by itself, you wouldn't be able to understand the weight, the tragedy of "A Temporary Exhibition" if you haven't read "The Leopard" first. So, as a whole novel is fantastic, as a short story collection, I think that not all of them are equally poignant.