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sesiljesili's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
2.5
majabwds's review against another edition
3.0
This is an interesting collection of short stories. My favourite part was the Songs of the Eastern Slavs, a collection of dark, surreal urban fantasy folk tales.
butzjenna's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
guava_girl's review against another edition
4.0
very cool and strange… loved some of the stories more than others, overall i was very impressed by the writing!
thisisn8's review against another edition
4.0
Petrushevskaya beautifully captures the desperation, loneliness, and sorrow that can be so essential to old-style fairy tales. While this book is seldom scary, there are some legitimately haunting gems among the collection. The not-so-haunting pieces tend to carry a more solemn darkness that forces the reader to question his or her grip on reality, and at times, what reality is... at all. This is a brilliant and emotional book that does a sublime job of showing humanities many quests for meaning in times of crisis, and how often there either is no meaning, or the meaning comes through something that's at least vaguely supernatural. Read it. You will not be disappointed.
myweereads's review against another edition
4.0
“It's no secret, of course, that souls sometimes die within a person and are replaced by others — especially with age.”
There Once Lived A Woman Who Tried To Kill Her Neighbour’s Baby - Scary Fairy Tales by Ludmilla Petrushevskaya is a collection of the most bizarre tales which will surprise you in many ways. The stories in this collection cover all kinds of themes like vanishings, nightmares, apparitions, mysterious ailments and supernatural haunts.
I came across this book whilst browsing in the library and what popped out for me was the tile of this collection. Its written by one of Russia’s beloved contemporary fiction writers. This being my first read by her, I could see why a lot of readers enjoy her twisted take on reality.
You get the sense of macabre and black comedy from these stories reminiscent of Poe’s dark tales on many occasions. There were lots of stand outs but the first few are quite harrowing and shocking and enough to capture your attention. From here they became quite visceral and unsettling in a way which challenges one’s perception on what they think they know is happening to the characters. The scary stories live up to their description as they are creepy and on many occasions I found myself taking a moment to process what I had just read.
Written in a beautiful way evoking all kinds of emotions from the reader and leaving them laughing and unsettled at the same time, I would definitely recommend this collection to those wishing to read something that would challenge them and in true fairy tale form these stories are bizarre and quite out there.
There Once Lived A Woman Who Tried To Kill Her Neighbour’s Baby - Scary Fairy Tales by Ludmilla Petrushevskaya is a collection of the most bizarre tales which will surprise you in many ways. The stories in this collection cover all kinds of themes like vanishings, nightmares, apparitions, mysterious ailments and supernatural haunts.
I came across this book whilst browsing in the library and what popped out for me was the tile of this collection. Its written by one of Russia’s beloved contemporary fiction writers. This being my first read by her, I could see why a lot of readers enjoy her twisted take on reality.
You get the sense of macabre and black comedy from these stories reminiscent of Poe’s dark tales on many occasions. There were lots of stand outs but the first few are quite harrowing and shocking and enough to capture your attention. From here they became quite visceral and unsettling in a way which challenges one’s perception on what they think they know is happening to the characters. The scary stories live up to their description as they are creepy and on many occasions I found myself taking a moment to process what I had just read.
Written in a beautiful way evoking all kinds of emotions from the reader and leaving them laughing and unsettled at the same time, I would definitely recommend this collection to those wishing to read something that would challenge them and in true fairy tale form these stories are bizarre and quite out there.
marcojim's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
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? Yes
3.5
myeverskye's review against another edition
So I wasn't that impressed with this book. And I was so excited to read it too, but I just couldn't get into it. It might be the cultural differences or something but it just seemed very dry to me & I gave up. Very disappointing..
lamusadelils's review against another edition
4.0
Como en casi todas las colecciones de cuentos, algunos son mejores que otros o me interesan mas ciertas tematicas. Sin embargo, en su mayoría son muy buenos.
El libro tiene varias secciones con historias de diferentes tipos. Mis secciones favoritas fueron alegorías y cuentos de hadas.
No dan miedo exactamente, sino que tienen un toque siniestro que es particularmente interesante porque incluye muchos elementos de estilo ruso.
El libro tiene varias secciones con historias de diferentes tipos. Mis secciones favoritas fueron alegorías y cuentos de hadas.
No dan miedo exactamente, sino que tienen un toque siniestro que es particularmente interesante porque incluye muchos elementos de estilo ruso.