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gadicohen93's review against another edition
4.0
Whew, these stories were fast. They flew by like flecks along your windshield, but you're not sure what they were, maybe a speck of earth or even a bug ramming against the car not knowing what hit it. If that makes sense. I loved the narrator, and his voice seemed so fucking real. I felt for him, for his abjectness, for everyone around him. But I don't think I'll remember these stories too well. For one thing, they shot by me so fast they barely grazed my skin. And they weren't especially deep, or perhaps weren't conspicuously deep--just stories from the life of a troubled man. I most clearly can bring to mind the emergency room slash jackrabbit story, just because it was so vivid. The story where they're breaking apart walls in a house looking for wires.
I would've given it three stars if I didn't feel like the guy's voice felt so genuine, but it did.
I would've given it three stars if I didn't feel like the guy's voice felt so genuine, but it did.
davirodcz's review against another edition
3.0
"Toda aquela gente bizarra, e eu ali no meio, ficando a cada dia melhor. Eu nunca tinha pensado, nunca tinha sequer imaginado, que houvesse lugar pra gente como nós."
Um retrato sensível e simples de uma realidade marginalizada, que muita das vezes é maquiada e vendida para o mundo de outra forma.
Um retrato sensível e simples de uma realidade marginalizada, que muita das vezes é maquiada e vendida para o mundo de outra forma.
relyen's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
lee_loryn_'s review against another edition
2.0
When I hovered over the 2 stars I couldn't bring myself back down to just 1 star. The stories were so short that I was delighted mostly by that aspect. Otherwise, I get why Denis Johnson's writing is interesting and why I think I've met a few people who've drooled over it. I was not taken by it at all and only really fell for a few sentences, quips, and phrases. Glad I read it after all these years, but it was followed by more hype than I thought it was worth.
robin_booklabpartner's review against another edition
dark
funny
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
tinkerer's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-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
4.0
laurianeisreading's review against another edition
dark
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
I think we're ALL big black men
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Stalking, Sexual violence, Blood, Car accident, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Racism, Rape, and Abortion
Minor: Chronic illness
blake_lavanchy's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Genuinely a brilliant collection of stories which are like flashes of lightning in the night—urgent, revelatory, violent, and beautiful. Reading the collection is like sitting at a bar (like the Foxhead for those who know) and being told the strangest most pitiful stories in the world by the stranger next to you and you buy each other drinks.