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brizmus's review
4.0
I've made no qualms about my lack of love for short stories. I always find them lacking in something. Susan Tepper's deer, however, is lacking in nothing. As far as collections of short stories go, Deer & Other Stories takes the cake.
Susan Tepper has an intriguing way of taking words and making them mean so much more than what they actually say. As her stories unwind, everyday situations and plain, everyday characters become exhilirating and wondrous. Each idea is a new lesson in eccentricity; each story is a world contained within itself, and through Susan Tepper's incredible knack for detail, we live through each as if we were there. She and her incredible imagination know absolutely no boundaries, going so far, at one point, as to even bring Elvis back to life. The way she manages to weave deer into each and every one is sometimes riveting, sometimes revolting, and always endearing.
As with most collections of short stories, the reader is bound to have their favorite. Mine was "Help," a story about love. This story really gets across is point that, when it comes to love, one can never be sure about anything. Quoted directly from the book, "About love, I can only say this: I do not know."
I actually picked a top three, and the other two on the list are "String," a story about life running its course and a screwed up relationship, and "Within You Without You," in which we voyage through India with the Beatles.
This book was a beautiful breath of fresh air that I would recommend to anyone.
Susan Tepper has an intriguing way of taking words and making them mean so much more than what they actually say. As her stories unwind, everyday situations and plain, everyday characters become exhilirating and wondrous. Each idea is a new lesson in eccentricity; each story is a world contained within itself, and through Susan Tepper's incredible knack for detail, we live through each as if we were there. She and her incredible imagination know absolutely no boundaries, going so far, at one point, as to even bring Elvis back to life. The way she manages to weave deer into each and every one is sometimes riveting, sometimes revolting, and always endearing.
As with most collections of short stories, the reader is bound to have their favorite. Mine was "Help," a story about love. This story really gets across is point that, when it comes to love, one can never be sure about anything. Quoted directly from the book, "About love, I can only say this: I do not know."
I actually picked a top three, and the other two on the list are "String," a story about life running its course and a screwed up relationship, and "Within You Without You," in which we voyage through India with the Beatles.
This book was a beautiful breath of fresh air that I would recommend to anyone.
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