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caitlinxreads's review against another edition
2.0
I found most of these stories a bit boring. The ones I liked were: Malaria, Horned Men, Encounters with Unexpected Animals, Magic Man, and Philanthropy. That’s only 5 of the 20 stories.
standclearoftheclosingdoors's review against another edition
3.0
What a collection of bummers. These were well written and some were intriguing but common themes include murdering kittens (not kidding), failed relationships, lots of death, sickness and general sadness.
karenleagermain's review against another edition
5.0
Short Stories are magic. Like movies, you can experience them in their entirety in a single sitting. As much as I love reading novels, there is something special about giving the attention to one story, without interruption. I'm a fast reader, but it's rare that I read a novel in one go. The brevity of a short story allows me to see the authors entire intent and ingest the scope of the story, while never dropping the pacing. It's magic.
Every year a volume of The Best American Short Stories is released. The stories are culled from literary magazines and they represent a wide variety of themes and styles. I was assigned the 2013 edition for two of my spring writing classes and I used the summer to finish the stories that had not been assigned.
One thing that I did, which was not required or even recommended by my professors, is I read every story aloud. Why? First, it slowed me down. I'm guilty of skimming and as I'm trying to focus on the craft of writing, I really needed to slow down and digest these stories. The other reason, is it gave me a better sense of both the pacing and the tone of the stories. I picked up on the lyrical quality and lilts that some of the authors have in their writing. I challenge you to read a few stories aloud. It really gave me a better perspective, plus my cats like hearing the stories!
My favorite story and the one that generated the most classroom discussion was George Saunder's The Simplica-Girl Diaries. This not-too-distant future story about "keeping up with the Jones" is highly unsettling and goes to very unexpected places.
I admired the intensity and power-play in Bret Anthony Johnson's Encounters with Unexpected Animals. This also has a wonderful twist.
Horned Men by Karl Taro Greenfield had so many layers, that it also made for a polarizing classroom discussion. Every time someone brought up a new point, I felt my opinion of the story shift. I hope that my writing is as complex as Greenfields.
The story that got me in my gut was Joan Wickersham's The Tunnel or The News from Spain. This deeply affecting story of a daughter acting as a caretaker for her aging mother, hit me on a personal level. It's so raw and beautifully rendered.
This is a fine collection of Short Stories. Although I had my favorites, I felt like every story was a worthy addition.
Like my review? Check out my blog!
Every year a volume of The Best American Short Stories is released. The stories are culled from literary magazines and they represent a wide variety of themes and styles. I was assigned the 2013 edition for two of my spring writing classes and I used the summer to finish the stories that had not been assigned.
One thing that I did, which was not required or even recommended by my professors, is I read every story aloud. Why? First, it slowed me down. I'm guilty of skimming and as I'm trying to focus on the craft of writing, I really needed to slow down and digest these stories. The other reason, is it gave me a better sense of both the pacing and the tone of the stories. I picked up on the lyrical quality and lilts that some of the authors have in their writing. I challenge you to read a few stories aloud. It really gave me a better perspective, plus my cats like hearing the stories!
My favorite story and the one that generated the most classroom discussion was George Saunder's The Simplica-Girl Diaries. This not-too-distant future story about "keeping up with the Jones" is highly unsettling and goes to very unexpected places.
I admired the intensity and power-play in Bret Anthony Johnson's Encounters with Unexpected Animals. This also has a wonderful twist.
Horned Men by Karl Taro Greenfield had so many layers, that it also made for a polarizing classroom discussion. Every time someone brought up a new point, I felt my opinion of the story shift. I hope that my writing is as complex as Greenfields.
The story that got me in my gut was Joan Wickersham's The Tunnel or The News from Spain. This deeply affecting story of a daughter acting as a caretaker for her aging mother, hit me on a personal level. It's so raw and beautifully rendered.
This is a fine collection of Short Stories. Although I had my favorites, I felt like every story was a worthy addition.
Like my review? Check out my blog!
allsmile's review
4.0
Like any collection there were highs and lows, but I enjoyed most of the stories and liked getting to try so many authors. Some of my faves: "Miss Lora" "The Chair" "Train" "Philanthropy" "The Semplica-Girl Diaries" "The World to Come" "The Tunnel, or The News from Spain"
beckydham's review against another edition
2.0
Just so-so. My favorites were "The Semplica-Girl Diaries" and "The Provincials."
cosmiccloudbird's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
wickedwitchofthewords's review against another edition
1.0
Did not like it even though I did not finish it
jmcphers's review against another edition
3.0
I can pinpoint with a high degree of accuracy the moment in time when I became interested in short fiction. I was in my early twenties and was driving from California to Washington State, and I was lost in Portland during rush hour, which is the worst time to be lost in Portland. Due to my poor navigational skill, I wound up driving in elliptical loops that kept dumping me into industrial-looking areas instead of on I-5 North, which is where I wanted to be. While driving in heavy traffic on these fruitless loops I habitually scanned the radio and wound up on a public radio station in which someone appeared to be telling a story.
It wasn't a particularly exciting story, but the details and characters were so well-painted that I was quickly sucked in. There was a party. The narrator was going there, and someone with whom she had been involved was going to be there, and it was a little bittersweet. That's all I remember. But man, it made me forget all about being lost in Portland. I've loved short stories ever since.
Anyhow, this is a collection of short stories, and most of them are good, and it's very easy to skip the ones that aren't and not feel like you're missing anything (this is one of the best things about collections of short fiction). My very favorite story in the book was the Semplica Girl Diaries, which can also be found online if you search for it.
It wasn't a particularly exciting story, but the details and characters were so well-painted that I was quickly sucked in. There was a party. The narrator was going there, and someone with whom she had been involved was going to be there, and it was a little bittersweet. That's all I remember. But man, it made me forget all about being lost in Portland. I've loved short stories ever since.
Anyhow, this is a collection of short stories, and most of them are good, and it's very easy to skip the ones that aren't and not feel like you're missing anything (this is one of the best things about collections of short fiction). My very favorite story in the book was the Semplica Girl Diaries, which can also be found online if you search for it.
tashaw's review against another edition
2.0
The best story is the Saunders, but it can also be found in his collection Tenth of December, so I recommend reading that, instead.
kweekwegg's review against another edition
4.0
It's pretty difficult to sum up my feelings towards such a collection of short stories. I loved all of them save 2 or 3 -- which is to say, I really loved reading the whole book. Notable stories that I would recommend include "The Horned Men," "The World to Come," "A Voice in the Night," "The Semplica Girl Diaries," "The Wilderness," among others.