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eunicek82's review
emotional
funny
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
Some stories were excellent, some were boring, and some I did not understand what was going on. My favorites were Maria Concepcion, The Martyr, Rope, He, Theft and The Wilting of Granny Weatherall.
maedo's review
4.0
If you happen to see a photo of Katherine Anne Porter looking all regal and made-up (and maybe a little sassy) before reading her work for the first time, you might expect to find a world like Fitzgerald’s: garden parties, outwardly delicate women and wayward men, rendered all precise and jewel-like. And a lot of her stories here do focus on relationships between husbands and wives, albeit of a different class and place than Fitzgerald’s men and women.
But while Flowering Judas definitely shares the hopeless wistfulness for the better past of, say, The Great Gatsby, her work also has a surprisingly sinister edge to it. Check out “Rope” or “That Tree,” and you’ll see what I mean. Not by coincidence, those were my two favorite stories of this collection. KAP is, to borrow a word from Tyra Banks, fierce. And not just because she sort of looks like a model. (I’m pretty sure that this duality of outward classically feminine beauty/inward fire in the blood is a great deal of why I’m obsessed with her. In addition to how fantastic her writing is, of course.)
Four stars for this book only because the last story, “Hacienda,” was a total slog of boring. It was also the longest story in the collection, clocking in at over 60 pages. So boo to that.
But while Flowering Judas definitely shares the hopeless wistfulness for the better past of, say, The Great Gatsby, her work also has a surprisingly sinister edge to it. Check out “Rope” or “That Tree,” and you’ll see what I mean. Not by coincidence, those were my two favorite stories of this collection. KAP is, to borrow a word from Tyra Banks, fierce. And not just because she sort of looks like a model. (I’m pretty sure that this duality of outward classically feminine beauty/inward fire in the blood is a great deal of why I’m obsessed with her. In addition to how fantastic her writing is, of course.)
Four stars for this book only because the last story, “Hacienda,” was a total slog of boring. It was also the longest story in the collection, clocking in at over 60 pages. So boo to that.
piburnjones's review
I picked this up at age 15 because her name was so close to mine - but the writing didn't click for me at all. I should try her again someday.
silverthane's review
3.0
Flowering Judas is a short story I read as part of a book group.
It is the tale of Laura; an American teacher living in Mexico during the Mexican Revolution (1910-1920) Laura plays an active part in the war assisting Socialist revolutionaries by visiting them in prison and passing on important messages to different factions. Laura seems to empathise with the poor of Mexico teaching peasant children how to speak English.
I liked Laura as a character, probably because she is brave and defies the conventions of the age for lots of different reasons. Firstly she is an independent woman during a period of time when women tended to stay at home and be shackled by marriage as soon as they were old enough (whether they wanted to or not) she has travelled to a country wracked by bloody civil war where she barely speaks the language all by herself just to help a cause she believes in. America as a nation sided with the government forces so Laura risked arrest and, at the very least, censure from her own people in the US.
Although the story is short I felt I got to know Laura well. A leader in the revolution is staying at her house temporarily and he is not shy about voicing his opinions of her. He cannot understand why she remains single. It is never explicitly stated why and I must admit any view I have on the matter would be guesswork. Any ideas Lesa?
As with most short stories I felt it had the potential to be more and would have loved to have read another 20 to 30 pages but alas such is the nature of short stories. I will definitely be looking to read more Katherine Anne Porter books in the future.
It is the tale of Laura; an American teacher living in Mexico during the Mexican Revolution (1910-1920) Laura plays an active part in the war assisting Socialist revolutionaries by visiting them in prison and passing on important messages to different factions. Laura seems to empathise with the poor of Mexico teaching peasant children how to speak English.
I liked Laura as a character, probably because she is brave and defies the conventions of the age for lots of different reasons. Firstly she is an independent woman during a period of time when women tended to stay at home and be shackled by marriage as soon as they were old enough (whether they wanted to or not) she has travelled to a country wracked by bloody civil war where she barely speaks the language all by herself just to help a cause she believes in. America as a nation sided with the government forces so Laura risked arrest and, at the very least, censure from her own people in the US.
Although the story is short I felt I got to know Laura well. A leader in the revolution is staying at her house temporarily and he is not shy about voicing his opinions of her. He cannot understand why she remains single. It is never explicitly stated why and I must admit any view I have on the matter would be guesswork. Any ideas Lesa?
As with most short stories I felt it had the potential to be more and would have loved to have read another 20 to 30 pages but alas such is the nature of short stories. I will definitely be looking to read more Katherine Anne Porter books in the future.
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