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watercolorstain's review against another edition
4.0
Thematically, the four stories collected here all deal with different types of predatory men, and the ways in which they corrupt or control women. I've discovered Oates, an exceptionally prolific writer, this year, but after two massive novels, these were my first exposure to her short(er) form writing, and I'm glad to see that she apparently excels here, too. I just love the crisp yet hauntingly raw and often uncomfortably intense way she writes about feminist issues. These novellas didn't only go well together thematically, but they also had a very uncanny atmosphere in common, without it ever feeling recycled—each story managed to evoke its own special kind of oppressive, quiet dread. A rounded up 3.5 stars!
Cardiff, By The Sea · ★★★
An art historian who'd been adopted when she was barely three years old receives a call saying that her biological grandmother has left her a bequest. She travels to Cardiff, Maine, to sort things out, but the past and layers of hidden trauma she dredges up in the process make her wish she'd never answered the phone. This titular story makes up almost half of the collection, and while I loved the beginning, it sort of lost me the further we went along. It is reasonably suspenseful and gave me some strong Shirley Jackson vibes in that there is a vague but strong sense of distress permeating the narrative, but the bickering great-aunts irritated the hell out of me and drained the story of all enjoyment whenever they were in a scene. Despite being someone who enjoys open endings, the utter lack of resolution left me dissatisfied; maybe it went over my head.
Miao Dao · ★★★★½
Mia, a lonely pubescent girl dealing with her parents' divorce, her mother's new marriage, and school boys bullying her for her changing body, finds some comfort in visiting and putting out food for a colony of feral cats in her neighborhood. When the colony gets eradicated by the department of public health, she rescues a kitten, which becomes her protector from the increasing predatory male aggression she faces. I read this story in one sitting with my own two kittens purring on me, and I just wanted to kiss them all over, and felt the silly need to tell them that I'd protect them from all harm; I love the way Oates writes about kitties, she's a cat lady after my own heart! There were parts in this story—which is essentially about the power and control men enact upon women and other living beings—that were hard to read, but the ending was chillingly satisfying while also remaining utterly ambiguous in a way that I loved.
Phantomwise: 1972 · ★★★★
A smart but shy college student has an affair with a professor, and gets pregnant. Distraught at her lack of options, she decides to confront the state she finds herself in with denial, and welcomes it when a distinguished older professor takes her under her wing as his archivist, even though he clearly has more in mind. Yet another tale about the type of control men in powerful positions can exert over women that still resonates today, even though life on a college campus in the early 70's was quite different, as was the state of women's reproductive rights. Considering this, I felt more sympathy for the somewhat helpless protagonist than I would've felt if this tale had been set in contemporary times. The line between reality and nightmare is thin here, and the ending was eerie and heartbreaking.
The Surviving Child · ★★★½
A famous feminist poet killed herself and her daughter, leaving no suicide note, and evidently decided to spare her eldest son from the same fate. A couple years later, the surviving child's father remarries and moves the young wife into the house where the tragedy happened. She desperately wants to connect with the shy, elusive child, but finds herself haunted by his dead mother's poetry. This story had something almost archetypal about it—Bluebeard comes to mind. I found it predictable (or maybe inevitable is the better word), which however doesn't mean that I didn't enjoy the story's unfolding. Out of the four included, it's the one with the most obvious supernatural influence.
—————
Note: I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Cardiff, By The Sea · ★★★
An art historian who'd been adopted when she was barely three years old receives a call saying that her biological grandmother has left her a bequest. She travels to Cardiff, Maine, to sort things out, but the past and layers of hidden trauma she dredges up in the process make her wish she'd never answered the phone. This titular story makes up almost half of the collection, and while I loved the beginning, it sort of lost me the further we went along. It is reasonably suspenseful and gave me some strong Shirley Jackson vibes in that there is a vague but strong sense of distress permeating the narrative, but the bickering great-aunts irritated the hell out of me and drained the story of all enjoyment whenever they were in a scene. Despite being someone who enjoys open endings, the utter lack of resolution left me dissatisfied; maybe it went over my head.
Miao Dao · ★★★★½
Mia, a lonely pubescent girl dealing with her parents' divorce, her mother's new marriage, and school boys bullying her for her changing body, finds some comfort in visiting and putting out food for a colony of feral cats in her neighborhood. When the colony gets eradicated by the department of public health, she rescues a kitten, which becomes her protector from the increasing predatory male aggression she faces. I read this story in one sitting with my own two kittens purring on me, and I just wanted to kiss them all over, and felt the silly need to tell them that I'd protect them from all harm; I love the way Oates writes about kitties, she's a cat lady after my own heart! There were parts in this story—which is essentially about the power and control men enact upon women and other living beings—that were hard to read, but the ending was chillingly satisfying while also remaining utterly ambiguous in a way that I loved.
Phantomwise: 1972 · ★★★★
A smart but shy college student has an affair with a professor, and gets pregnant. Distraught at her lack of options, she decides to confront the state she finds herself in with denial, and welcomes it when a distinguished older professor takes her under her wing as his archivist, even though he clearly has more in mind. Yet another tale about the type of control men in powerful positions can exert over women that still resonates today, even though life on a college campus in the early 70's was quite different, as was the state of women's reproductive rights. Considering this, I felt more sympathy for the somewhat helpless protagonist than I would've felt if this tale had been set in contemporary times. The line between reality and nightmare is thin here, and the ending was eerie and heartbreaking.
The Surviving Child · ★★★½
A famous feminist poet killed herself and her daughter, leaving no suicide note, and evidently decided to spare her eldest son from the same fate. A couple years later, the surviving child's father remarries and moves the young wife into the house where the tragedy happened. She desperately wants to connect with the shy, elusive child, but finds herself haunted by his dead mother's poetry. This story had something almost archetypal about it—Bluebeard comes to mind. I found it predictable (or maybe inevitable is the better word), which however doesn't mean that I didn't enjoy the story's unfolding. Out of the four included, it's the one with the most obvious supernatural influence.
—————
Note: I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
georgiaonyrmnd's review against another edition
4.0
Spooky and sinister, this was the perfect October/fall read and a great introduction to Joyce Carol Oates. Each novella was just the right length, and each story had a great mix of mystery and menace — sometimes at the hands of physical people (namely toxic men) and sometimes, maybe, perhaps something supernatural. These books have great atmospheres and settings — creaky New England houses, windswept landscapes, abandoned woody lots, musty college buildings. The collection is not so much scary as deeply unsettling and because of that the chill of these stories lingers.
I received an advanced copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review
I received an advanced copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review
booksandflowers's review against another edition
3.0
This is a short story collection and also the first book I read by Joyce Carol Oates. I cannot say I disliked it, but I am not moved by this either. The writing style is impressive, the literary quality of Oates’ world is obvious and outstanding. However, I will have second thoughts on whether to read any of her books in the future and here is why: The first story in this collection is “Cardiff By the Sea” is about a young woman who finds out that she inherited the fortune of her biological grandmother and that her biological parents died in an unusual way. The suspense is very strong and keeps you reading and reading. The portrayal of the two aunts are fantastic and the atmosphere creeped me out. However, the story ended in such a rushed, vague way that it left me so dissatisfied. 2-stars!
The second story Mia Dao is about Mia who adopts a wild cat and tries to adapt into her new life as her father leaves and there is a new stepfather in the house. Again, there are vagueness in the story and I did not feel particularly connected with Mia. 3-stars!
The third story Phantomwise is the strongest one in this collection, following Alyce who gets involved with her lecturer and another old professor, only to be abused by one. The violence against women is portrayed strongly here, underlining both psychological and physical abuse. 4-stars!
The last one is The Surviving Child. The story follows a woman marrying a man whose famous poet wife committed suicide whilst killing her own daughter, too. So the guy has a surviving son and the new wife lives in the same house where the first wife killed herself. The surviving child is disturbing in a way that you feel the quality and presence of Oates. 4-stars!
All in all, Oates is a great author for sure and plays an important role in the literature world. However, I just need more from a story, more satisfaction in terms of endings.
Thanks to NetGalley and the Mysterious Press for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.
The second story Mia Dao is about Mia who adopts a wild cat and tries to adapt into her new life as her father leaves and there is a new stepfather in the house. Again, there are vagueness in the story and I did not feel particularly connected with Mia. 3-stars!
The third story Phantomwise is the strongest one in this collection, following Alyce who gets involved with her lecturer and another old professor, only to be abused by one. The violence against women is portrayed strongly here, underlining both psychological and physical abuse. 4-stars!
The last one is The Surviving Child. The story follows a woman marrying a man whose famous poet wife committed suicide whilst killing her own daughter, too. So the guy has a surviving son and the new wife lives in the same house where the first wife killed herself. The surviving child is disturbing in a way that you feel the quality and presence of Oates. 4-stars!
All in all, Oates is a great author for sure and plays an important role in the literature world. However, I just need more from a story, more satisfaction in terms of endings.
Thanks to NetGalley and the Mysterious Press for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.
booksrbrainfood's review against another edition
4.0
I’ve been holding onto this one to read in October for the spooky atmosphere and horror vibes. It doesn’t disappoint. There are four short stories that are different lengths. The first one is the Cardiff story and centers around an adult woman who had been adopted as a child at the slightly older age than usual adoptions, close to 3 years. She doesn’t have much memory of her family and doesn’t know the circumstances of her adoption but has been curious. One day she receives a phone call from an attorney who is acting as the executor in her birth-grandmother’s will and estate. At first she is not sure if she is interested in following her curiosity and seeing what the family is like but she decides to go to Cardiff and check it out. When she arrives, she is immediately thrust into the care of her aunts, who are a bit eccentric. She also has an uncle who comes into the house periodically. The mystery begins to unravel as to why she was adopted and what and why she is receiving an inheritance.
The overall themes throughout all the stories are some of the different yet similar ways that women can suffer at the whims of the men in their life. This theme unfolds differently in each story. In the second story about young Mia and her broken family life, present her with an opportunity to care for and develop a love for feral cats living near her home. Over the years, we follow her family and the changes that occur as well as the constants.
Story three centers around a bright young woman who is studying to become a poet. She meets a slightly older teaching assistant/tenure track teacher who challenges her academically but who she develops a relationship with leading to a difficult situation. She can’t seem to resolve the relationship or other issues and finds herself under the spotlight of attention from a highly respected visiting poet whom she can learn a great deal. She becomes attached to him as well.
The final story was my least favorite, although still good. It focuses on the surviving son of a murder/suicide and how his life unfolds following such harrowing experiences.
Each story has different strengths and I enjoyed them all with the first three grabbing me the most easily.
I adore Joyce Carol Oates and her writing style. She has great and difficult/dark central themes for each story that have an overall theme for the collection that is based on various ways women suffer at the hands of men. I think she does a terrific job of bringing in dark themes with family dramas and moving stories and a clear unifying theme.
Highly recommend.
#CardiffByTheSea #Netgalley #GroveAtlantic #MysteriousPress
The overall themes throughout all the stories are some of the different yet similar ways that women can suffer at the whims of the men in their life. This theme unfolds differently in each story. In the second story about young Mia and her broken family life, present her with an opportunity to care for and develop a love for feral cats living near her home. Over the years, we follow her family and the changes that occur as well as the constants.
Story three centers around a bright young woman who is studying to become a poet. She meets a slightly older teaching assistant/tenure track teacher who challenges her academically but who she develops a relationship with leading to a difficult situation. She can’t seem to resolve the relationship or other issues and finds herself under the spotlight of attention from a highly respected visiting poet whom she can learn a great deal. She becomes attached to him as well.
The final story was my least favorite, although still good. It focuses on the surviving son of a murder/suicide and how his life unfolds following such harrowing experiences.
Each story has different strengths and I enjoyed them all with the first three grabbing me the most easily.
I adore Joyce Carol Oates and her writing style. She has great and difficult/dark central themes for each story that have an overall theme for the collection that is based on various ways women suffer at the hands of men. I think she does a terrific job of bringing in dark themes with family dramas and moving stories and a clear unifying theme.
Highly recommend.
#CardiffByTheSea #Netgalley #GroveAtlantic #MysteriousPress
laurenleyendolibros's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
booknooknoggin's review against another edition
3.0
This is my 3rd time reading this author. I honestly do not see what all the hype is about her. I rated most of these novellas in this collection as 3 stars each. Some I liked slightly more than others. But one of the things I noticed that kinda repeats from other books by her for instance the student/professor affair...what are you trying to tell us, Joyce? I also have to add the sheer juvenile feel of the teen/cat lady story...the repetition of boobs over and over again. The prose was great but I felt the stories lacked any oomph to keep me entertained. The end of all this was an average read for me.
bookwormadventuregirl's review against another edition
5.0
For my full review, please follow the link below:
https://www.bookwormadventuregirl.com/post/cardiff-by-the-sea-four-novellas-of-suspense-by-joyce-carol-oates
https://www.bookwormadventuregirl.com/post/cardiff-by-the-sea-four-novellas-of-suspense-by-joyce-carol-oates
devilstatedan's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
A collection of four tense and suspenseful novellas about identity, place, and purpose. She's a great writer with a gift for the sinister turn of phrase. If you're into character-driven stories with an edge of creepiness and strong female characters then you can't go wrong!
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