"Cheer up! Death is round the corner."

"Nowadays, when friends desert me, I can no longer tell whether it is because of my succes or because of my failure. Such is old age"

"Why make the assumption that the heart shuts down alongside the genitals? Because we want - need - to see old age as a time of serenity?"

The Lemon table is a wonderful collection of 11 short stories written by Julian Barnes. The common theme? Ageing, and the emotions that come with it. Memories. Regrets. Eleven completely different stories in different settings, but all about characters that are in the later years of their life, trying to coming to terms with that.

Most stories I really really liked, a few were harder for me to relate to or to take to, especially those with a setting in the past. Nevertheless; this was a truly enjoyable read with lots of food for thought. My favourite stories :
1. Bark (the absolute best!)
2. Vigilance
3. The fruit cage
4. A short story of hairdressing
5. Hygiene