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3.52 AVERAGE
3.52 AVERAGE
I loved this book. I was drawn in by its concept: a collection of short stories about exceptional though somewhat obscure historical women. The stories explore a wide range of subjects from different periods, classes, and communities. It's so important to bring literary attention to women's lives. Our experiences are so often overlooked or erased—especially experiences beyond the narrow roles that patriarchy prescribes for us. So I was delighted by this attempt to explore and collect these women's stories.
I guess you could say that I came for the premise but I stayed for the flawless execution. Bergman's writing has the haunting gothic undertones of Flannery O'Connor—but without the proselytizing, which makes the stories seem more honest. Through her prose, these women's personalities come to life as much as their fascinating experiences, and their stories fit perfectly together as a collection. This a very rich and literary book that also offers the immersion of historical fiction. I highly recommend it.
I guess you could say that I came for the premise but I stayed for the flawless execution. Bergman's writing has the haunting gothic undertones of Flannery O'Connor—but without the proselytizing, which makes the stories seem more honest. Through her prose, these women's personalities come to life as much as their fascinating experiences, and their stories fit perfectly together as a collection. This a very rich and literary book that also offers the immersion of historical fiction. I highly recommend it.
Closer to a 3.5, I enjoyed the majority of the stories, but a few of them fell flat for me.
"Power is a funny thing. Sometimes you can just take it." - Romaine Remains
Though maybe the overall concept was more intriguing, I didn't find this collection as strong as Bergman's debut, Birds of a Lesser Paradise. A lot of the time I just felt disconnected. The Autobiography of Allegra Byron stood out the most, but the rest of these didn't really stack up my expectations. That being said, this is a beautiful concept for storytelling and Bergman is an incredibly female-minded author which I appreciate and which will always keep me coming back to read her.
Though maybe the overall concept was more intriguing, I didn't find this collection as strong as Bergman's debut, Birds of a Lesser Paradise. A lot of the time I just felt disconnected. The Autobiography of Allegra Byron stood out the most, but the rest of these didn't really stack up my expectations. That being said, this is a beautiful concept for storytelling and Bergman is an incredibly female-minded author which I appreciate and which will always keep me coming back to read her.
Beautifully written fictionalized accounts of small moments in the lives of women who were nearly famous. It’s a great examination particularly of our power as women and how it changes as we age.
Brilliant concept and exquisitely written. This short story collection focuses on intriguing, bold and remarkable women from history. It’s edgy historical fiction. These women lived life as they chose to live it which likely made them misfits and outliers during their lifetimes.
read full review here: http://entertainmentrealm.com/2015/01/24/almost-famous-women-book-review/
read full review here: http://entertainmentrealm.com/2015/01/24/almost-famous-women-book-review/
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Fictional short stories about real women who were "almost famous". I found it easiest to google each woman first to get an idea of who she was before reading the story.
I'm not sure what made me pick up this collection of short stories to read. The author has taken obscure women who where almost famous, based on heritage, events, talents, actions, etc. and written fictional stories about them. I have to say I did google several of the women, and the author did her research for this book.
One thing I noticed about most of the stories, is these women are not still not in the fore front. The stories are about a person, or people, involved in this "almost famous" person's life.
All in all, well-written book. I gave it three stars because I liked it, but didn't love it.
One thing I noticed about most of the stories, is these women are not still not in the fore front. The stories are about a person, or people, involved in this "almost famous" person's life.
All in all, well-written book. I gave it three stars because I liked it, but didn't love it.
I love Megan Mayhew Bergman's first short story collection, [b:Birds of a Lesser Paradise: Stories|12188594|Birds of a Lesser Paradise Stories|Megan Mayhew Bergman|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1379313573s/12188594.jpg|17160781], and was impatiently awaiting this follow-up. It started off strong, but was a bit of a mixed bag as far as format and length were concerned (though the quality of writing was excellent the whole way through), with some stories just way too short: I wanted more! I loved "learning" a little bit about some "almost famous" women in history who I had not known existed before these stories and even if you just get it to satisfy that curiosity, I don't think you'll be disappointed.
Very good idea for a book. Perhaps I would have had a better experience had I not read it on audio. Having nothing to break up the individual stories made it very hard to follow. I enjoyed the stories about the nun and the conjoined twins, otherwise it was hard to tell specifically why the women were almost famous. I would like someone to take another go at this. Lots of potential.