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caitpoytress's review
4.0
When I was shelving this book, I almost clicked the 'poetry' tag without thinking about it. That's how gorgeous NDiaye's prose is. What a beautiful, tragic little book.
This is also one of the most difficult short story collections I've ever read. Not in a bad way, just in that it required more effort and concentration on my part. There is no gradual introduction to any of the stories; instead the reader is dropped right into the middle of the story - sometimes in the middle of a conversation - with no idea who is speaking to who or the context of their situation. It's kind of like being blindfolded before being led into a room with a party already in full swing. For this reason I wouldn't recommend this as an introduction to the short story form - the ambiguity might be off-putting. For those who already love short stories though, read this book. Especially the stories "The Boys" and "Revelation".
This is also one of the most difficult short story collections I've ever read. Not in a bad way, just in that it required more effort and concentration on my part. There is no gradual introduction to any of the stories; instead the reader is dropped right into the middle of the story - sometimes in the middle of a conversation - with no idea who is speaking to who or the context of their situation. It's kind of like being blindfolded before being led into a room with a party already in full swing. For this reason I wouldn't recommend this as an introduction to the short story form - the ambiguity might be off-putting. For those who already love short stories though, read this book. Especially the stories "The Boys" and "Revelation".
elenajohansen's review
1.0
Much like the other NDiaye book I tried to read, I couldn't connect with this. Especially here, in short story format, so much is elliptical. I read the first story assuming a female narrator, both because the author is a woman and so am I, so with no other context...and then, on page 6, I finally found a pronoun! The narrator was masculine! And that actually made the story creepier and more off-putting, since it was all about him trying to interfere with his maid's (and former student's) marriage, on behalf of a friend who was also a former student. If I understood the plot correctly--and I'm honestly not sure I did--it was incredibly vile, making me uncomfortable. Why would I want to read a story from that perspective? What should I feel but contempt for a man who would blatantly (but ineffectively) set out to destroy someone's marriage, and not even for himself, but for someone else?
That set the tone for my entire experience. I was never quite sure who was meant when a character/narrator was referring to someone else. I'm glad this was short, because I had a truly difficult time matching pronouns to characters. And I never felt anything but discomfort, contempt, or disgust toward any of the characters. I'm not a fan of the "awful people doing awful things" school of literature.
That set the tone for my entire experience. I was never quite sure who was meant when a character/narrator was referring to someone else. I'm glad this was short, because I had a truly difficult time matching pronouns to characters. And I never felt anything but discomfort, contempt, or disgust toward any of the characters. I'm not a fan of the "awful people doing awful things" school of literature.
mimooo's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Ndiaye’s usual themes (claustrophobia, alienation, malevolence, dogs, humiliation, ressentiment) out in full force in these 5 disturbing stories
rdebner's review
3.0
An odd little book, whose stories end on uncertain notes, seemingly unfinished... perhaps reflecting the incomplete, damaged characters within.
ldv's review
2.0
When it comes to novels, I like getting dropped into the middle of a story and having to collect clues along the way to get the whole picture. However, with most of the short stories in this collection, I could not pick up enough to clues to really get the whole picture and felt I had to make assumptions or guesses. And sometimes I felt like the object at the centre of the picture was too obtuse for me to grasp. Perhaps that is my reading, perhaps the writing. There were times when I found the sentences so long and full of so many phrases that I lost the thread -- I felt like a high school student trying to make sense of Dickens. Other times I could not determine pronoun antecedents and thus was left with an ambiguous sense of the action. She may be a good writer, but she's not for me.
jooniperd's review
3.0
probably 3.5-stars, really.
well... what a peculiar and haunting collection of stories. NDiyae is an elegant, lovely writer. there's a lyrical or poetic quality to her writing. her ideas are really... dark and twisty, which makes for quite a juxtaposition to how beautiful her storytelling feels. the stories were troubling. 'the boys', in particular, was quite unnerving. while i read the english translation, i feel jordan stump, serving as translator, has done an excellent job as the moodiness and emotion of each story was definitely and strongly evoked. this isn't a book i would recommend for everyone, but if you love short stories, and dark oddities, definitely check this collection out. i really want to read [b:Three Strong Women|13155297|Three Strong Women|Marie NDiaye|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1344369394s/13155297.jpg|7011163] now. i think the novel form will work better for me, but i was very taken with NDiaye's writing.
well... what a peculiar and haunting collection of stories. NDiyae is an elegant, lovely writer. there's a lyrical or poetic quality to her writing. her ideas are really... dark and twisty, which makes for quite a juxtaposition to how beautiful her storytelling feels. the stories were troubling. 'the boys', in particular, was quite unnerving. while i read the english translation, i feel jordan stump, serving as translator, has done an excellent job as the moodiness and emotion of each story was definitely and strongly evoked. this isn't a book i would recommend for everyone, but if you love short stories, and dark oddities, definitely check this collection out. i really want to read [b:Three Strong Women|13155297|Three Strong Women|Marie NDiaye|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1344369394s/13155297.jpg|7011163] now. i think the novel form will work better for me, but i was very taken with NDiaye's writing.
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