Reviews

These stories are wonderfully and beautifully written. Rather haunting and strange overall, and quite sad at times. But I feel they will stick with me a long time: they’re the type of stories that pop back into your head at odd times, that leave you with such a particular feeling, and make you wonder at the connections between them.

thatothernigeriangirl's review against another edition

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Wrong time, will try again next year bi idhnillah

emmamacdonald's review against another edition

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4.0

“how could I know things weren’t as they should be, with walls covered in God and shelves filled with Him, making atonement behind the locked door or the broom cupboard, the galoshes abs the umbrellas…”

srilekha's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

odd_duck's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

These "stories" are sooo depressing. And I loved them! Or most of them. Existential angst (though at their age the characters, mostly old men, are more resigned than angsty) drips from the page. Though I agree with their assessment of the human condition, it bugged me that every narrator felt so smugly superior to whomever they were interacting with. If crotchety old men or jerky husbands is your thing, this one's for you. Being only 60, happily married and creative, I'm not there yet. The last 11 shorts in the book are a suite of sorts, written by the same lonely old man, Thomas F. They are a devastating look at the end of a life. At one point, on seeing an old friend across the street, he contemplates crossing it to talk but it's too busy and he quips "it would have been stupid to lose my life from Joy when I had managed to survive so long without it." That about sums up my reaction to this book: there's a lot of surviving and so little living. I will read these stories again, perhaps when I need reminding that my life ain't so bad. The characters in this collection would never agree of course. They'd exclaim, Yes it is! And worse! If I wasn't a well-adjusted human being, I could see this book throwing me right over the edge. If you're struggling, I'd avoid it like the plague. I've never read anything like this before and I devoured it like a bag of chips. You know you shouldn't and that it's not good for you, but you just can't help yourself. 3.75 stars.

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