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tara_m's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, Drug use, and Drug abuse
Minor: Rape, Sexual harassment, and Pedophilia
rockatanskette's review against another edition
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death
Minor: Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Alcoholism, and Drug use
ainsya's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
4.0
"In a small town you are forever defined by the worst thing that happened to you."
Everyone Dies Famous in a Small Town is a collection of short stories that follows a varied group of teen characters in small towns throughout the American West and Northwest. The book explores the concept of death in many different ways, beyond the literal sense of it like the death of innocence, childhood, memories, of love and of hope. It was unexpected but in a beautiful way.
Typically I don't tend to gravitate towards short stories as I always end up feeling like I'm missing a lot of the backstory and what happens next. However, this book did a great job at interweaving the stories and characters into each other that it feels relatively complete and enough to satisfy me as a reader. The connections between the characters are subtle and it just goes to show the complex connection of one human being to another. How you'll never know what a big or small impact you have on another person's lives. The stories are heavily character driven and there isn't much of a huge storyline really. It's more about the human experience and a slice of life kind of book, just stuff that could be happening on any other day (which are the types of books I love to read).
I thought the offerings were pretty consistent throughout the book despite a couple weak entries. There were a few instances where I wished the stories are longer though.
My top 3 favorites were:
1. There's Gas in the Tank, Louise! "She has missed them because sisters should never leave their sisters." This one honestly deserves a book on its own. Wished it was longer so I get to spend more time with the characters. It's so emotional, left me teary eyed. This was a good one to wrap up the collection.
2. The Right Kind of People.
3. The Stranger in the Woods.
4. [Honorary mention] Parking Lot Flowers.
Side note: can we talk about Hitchcock's unmatchable, top notch book/story titles? Some of the best titles I've come across.
Everyone Dies Famous in a Small Town is a collection of short stories that follows a varied group of teen characters in small towns throughout the American West and Northwest. The book explores the concept of death in many different ways, beyond the literal sense of it like the death of innocence, childhood, memories, of love and of hope. It was unexpected but in a beautiful way.
Typically I don't tend to gravitate towards short stories as I always end up feeling like I'm missing a lot of the backstory and what happens next. However, this book did a great job at interweaving the stories and characters into each other that it feels relatively complete and enough to satisfy me as a reader. The connections between the characters are subtle and it just goes to show the complex connection of one human being to another. How you'll never know what a big or small impact you have on another person's lives. The stories are heavily character driven and there isn't much of a huge storyline really. It's more about the human experience and a slice of life kind of book, just stuff that could be happening on any other day (which are the types of books I love to read).
I thought the offerings were pretty consistent throughout the book despite a couple weak entries. There were a few instances where I wished the stories are longer though.
My top 3 favorites were:
1. There's Gas in the Tank, Louise! "She has missed them because sisters should never leave their sisters." This one honestly deserves a book on its own. Wished it was longer so I get to spend more time with the characters. It's so emotional, left me teary eyed. This was a good one to wrap up the collection.
2. The Right Kind of People.
3. The Stranger in the Woods.
4. [Honorary mention] Parking Lot Flowers.
Side note: can we talk about Hitchcock's unmatchable, top notch book/story titles? Some of the best titles I've come across.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault
Moderate: Child death and Drug use
gabrielareads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Addiction, Alcoholism, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Grief, Kidnapping, and Pedophilia
papercraftalex's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
5.0
Overall review: Hitchcock has created a masterpiece short-story collection. She is so great at characterization that every single one of them feels unbelievably real. She’s also amazing at capturing small town environments and all the hidden things within them. All the stories weave together in ways I truly did not expect but were complete perfection. The writing style is raw and honest with hints of lyricism. I absolutely recommend it to everyone interested in slice-of-life stories. You can see my (rambly) reviews of individual stories below with content warnings. If one story has content that triggers you, you can still get a lot out of the collection, but you might miss the easter egg references.
Angry Starfish: 5 stars, great visualization, truly captures grief, I really enjoyed it. CW: grief, death of a parent
Pigeon Creek: 4 stars, I didn’t realize the stories were connected, her writing is so realistic, this was very dramatic like watching a car crash (lmao), plays with the senses. CW: car crash, sex, infidelity, alcohol
Sea Shaken Houses: 5 stars, this is absolutely my favorite so far, so much imagery, the characterization was beautiful, great plot *chef’s kiss* I want more, I love Jane. CW: body horror, death, sexual assault
Parking Lot Flowers: 4.5 stars, this one was a lot darker, easy to feel the characters emotions, tells an entire story in such a short story. CW: sexual assault, homophobia
The Right Kind of People: 5 stars, so good and dark and fiery. Amazing wordsmithing, gross and gritty like the subject at hand. CW: sexual assault, sexual content
Basketball Town: 4.75 stars, I love how the stories are weaved together, this was a great way to show familial pressure, I wish it was longer to make the story as fully fleshed as the others. CW: sexism, anti-native racism
Alaska Was Wasted on Us: 4 stars, this one felt a bit more juvenile than the rest but it did make my heart race with suspense. CW: mild child missing
The Stranger in the Woods: 4.5 stars still not as deep or fleshed out as the earlier ones, but still overall really good at analyzing relationships and the hidden things in small towns, specifically trust and gossip. Also, the connections are so good, the one didn’t hit me until after I finished and I literally gasped. CW: child murder, possible adult/minor relationship
There’s Gas in the Tank, Louise!: 5 stars, this literally made me cry, it is so emotional. I love the unreliable narrator and I think the way it was done was amazing. This was a good story to wrap up the collection. CW: drugs, child death
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Car accident, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Grief, Homophobia, Infidelity, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Murder, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Sexual content
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Blood, Bullying, Chronic illness, Cursing, Racism, and Racial slurs
erins_library's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.5
(Gifted from the publisher via Netgalley)
A few years back, I narrated the audiobook for Bonnie-Sue Hitchcock’s The Smell of Other People’s Houses. So when I saw that she had a new book coming out I was so excited and ready to get my hands on it!! I didn’t read too deeply into the synopsis before diving in. All I knew was that it was a short story collection and the title... which gave me some idea. I was pleasantly surprised that all the stories ended up being connected to each other in some way and built off of each one. It reminded me of Bonnie-Sue’s first book with the multiple perspectives and seeing how they all connected. It’s something I really enjoy about her storytelling style!
The stories themselves felt like an ode to small towns and the communities they hold. Small towns get a reputation for being places where nothing happens, life stands still. But these stories are bursting with life, love, heartbreak, tragedy, and more. The characters were great and I especially loved seeing them through new perspectives when they popped up in different stories. I most related to 2 characters in one of the stories who are not outdoorsy camping types, but because they’re Alaskan people expect them to be experts. Very relatable. I flew through the book and think many of you would enjoy it as well. Releases in April!
CW: trauma, sexual abuse, pedophilia, child death, murder, grief, drug use, car crash, wildfire, cheating
A few years back, I narrated the audiobook for Bonnie-Sue Hitchcock’s The Smell of Other People’s Houses. So when I saw that she had a new book coming out I was so excited and ready to get my hands on it!! I didn’t read too deeply into the synopsis before diving in. All I knew was that it was a short story collection and the title... which gave me some idea. I was pleasantly surprised that all the stories ended up being connected to each other in some way and built off of each one. It reminded me of Bonnie-Sue’s first book with the multiple perspectives and seeing how they all connected. It’s something I really enjoy about her storytelling style!
The stories themselves felt like an ode to small towns and the communities they hold. Small towns get a reputation for being places where nothing happens, life stands still. But these stories are bursting with life, love, heartbreak, tragedy, and more. The characters were great and I especially loved seeing them through new perspectives when they popped up in different stories. I most related to 2 characters in one of the stories who are not outdoorsy camping types, but because they’re Alaskan people expect them to be experts. Very relatable. I flew through the book and think many of you would enjoy it as well. Releases in April!
CW: trauma, sexual abuse, pedophilia, child death, murder, grief, drug use, car crash, wildfire, cheating
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Sexual assault, Pedophilia, Drug use, and Car accident
Minor: Murder and Child death
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