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marjoleinvanderspoel's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Brandon Taylor continues to prove his immense skill with this collection of short stories unlike any other such collection I've read. With this collection Taylor proves his breadth as a story teller by branching into many different kinds of lives, whilst maintaining an atmosphere that keeps the collection coherent. The incorporation of an overarching or recurring story about Lionel, Charles and Sophie was cleverly done, and the story itself was wonderfully complex and compelling, reminiscent of Real Life in it's dealing with mental health and academia, something that I appreciated enormously in his debut. In addition I greatly enjoyed "as if that were love" and perhaps my favourite story, "anne of cleves". I only wish we would have gotten a story from Sophie's perspective as I found her to be a much more interesting character than Charles.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Suicide attempt, Misogyny, and Cancer
Moderate: Homophobia, Vomit, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Lesbophobia, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Animal death, Addiction, and Domestic abuse
amye's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, and Vomit
Moderate: Abandonment, Eating disorder, Racism, and Homophobia
Minor: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Confinement, Drug use, and Pedophilia
annuich's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Vomit, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Sexual content, Self harm, Pedophilia, Panic attacks/disorders, Murder, Mental illness, Homophobia, Drug use, Death, and Cancer
deedireads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-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? It's complicated
5.0
All my reviews live at https://deedispeaking.com/reads/.
TL;DR REVIEW:
Filthy Animals is, as we expect from Brandon Taylor, a masterful collection of stories; I especially loved the linked ones. This book more than lives up to the hype.
For you if: You like queer short stories and excellent character-driven writing.
FULL REVIEW:
First, thank you to Riverhead for granting me a review copy of this collection on NetGalley! Filthy Animals is one of the most anticipated books of the year, and it absolutely lives up to the hype.
The collection opens with a story about a man named Lionel, who has hit a particularly difficult point in his life, and who meets two dancers in an open relationship at a friend’s potluck dinner. Every alternating story in the collection returns to these three characters, which, strung together, could have even become a novella. I really liked this format, the promise that we will come back and learn more about them, return to the near-tangible tension between them, see what happens next. But all the other stories in the collection are incredible, too, as one would expect from Brandon Taylor.
I feel, now, that I could recognize Taylor’s writing anywhere, just by the level of detail he includes on every page. His writing zooms in on practically everything, which draws meaning and poignancy out of the otherwise mundane. Reading his stories, I feel like I could be an ant inside them, viewing every surface, every facial expression, every moment from close up. And then he zooms out when it comes to dialogue, letting every word ring and echo in hollow space. The result is both quiet and loud.
This is one of those books where I think the back-cover blurb is especially on the nose: “Psychologically taut and quietly devastating,” and “a tender portrait of the fierce longing for intimacy, the lingering presence of pain, and the desire for love in a world that seems, more often than not, to withhold it.” I really can’t sum it up any better than that.
TL;DR REVIEW:
Filthy Animals is, as we expect from Brandon Taylor, a masterful collection of stories; I especially loved the linked ones. This book more than lives up to the hype.
For you if: You like queer short stories and excellent character-driven writing.
FULL REVIEW:
First, thank you to Riverhead for granting me a review copy of this collection on NetGalley! Filthy Animals is one of the most anticipated books of the year, and it absolutely lives up to the hype.
The collection opens with a story about a man named Lionel, who has hit a particularly difficult point in his life, and who meets two dancers in an open relationship at a friend’s potluck dinner. Every alternating story in the collection returns to these three characters, which, strung together, could have even become a novella. I really liked this format, the promise that we will come back and learn more about them, return to the near-tangible tension between them, see what happens next. But all the other stories in the collection are incredible, too, as one would expect from Brandon Taylor.
I feel, now, that I could recognize Taylor’s writing anywhere, just by the level of detail he includes on every page. His writing zooms in on practically everything, which draws meaning and poignancy out of the otherwise mundane. Reading his stories, I feel like I could be an ant inside them, viewing every surface, every facial expression, every moment from close up. And then he zooms out when it comes to dialogue, letting every word ring and echo in hollow space. The result is both quiet and loud.
This is one of those books where I think the back-cover blurb is especially on the nose: “Psychologically taut and quietly devastating,” and “a tender portrait of the fierce longing for intimacy, the lingering presence of pain, and the desire for love in a world that seems, more often than not, to withhold it.” I really can’t sum it up any better than that.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Rape, Eating disorder, and Homophobia
Minor: Pedophilia, Terminal illness, and Racism
rachel_from_avid_bookshop's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-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
Brandon Taylor's book of short stories, Filthy Animals, is a bright shining explosion of beautiful writing. Six of the eleven stories are linked and dipping back and forth into Lionel's relationship with two dancers, Sophie and Charles, is hypnotic. These stories about human relationships range from those between lovers, friends, and family. How is it that Taylor can write so that we can see the interior crevices of these character's souls? Brilliantly done.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide attempt
Minor: Pedophilia
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