Reviews

If You See Me, Don't Say Hi by Neel Patel

johnchan's review

5.0

enjoyed it so much i bought a copy on ebay while in asia and had it shipped back home so i could reread it when i got home

excellent short story collection about modern day dating

ajb24's review

4.0

3.5 stars.
I liked the stories, but I don't have too deep feelings about any them. Rating rounded up to 4 stars because I liked the variety and nuance of all the characters.

abbylawr's review against another edition

emotional reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

Great prose but some of the stories felt repetitive.

dl307's review

3.0

The last two stories, which are connected, were the best.
The rest felt repetitive.

cbh2584's review

3.0

3.5 - I used to think I didn’t like short stories, but these were all so entertaining that maybe I’ll need to reconsider.

maggies's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad 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? Yes

4.0

A really fantastic collection of short stories. Each, for different reasons, clenched my stomach with anxiety and pressed me to confront the shame and truth behind the stories. They are incisive and keen, and they deserve close readings.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual content, Grief, Death, and Toxic relationship

tmiantsoko's review

emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

jessicaps's review

4.0

I went back and forth on my rating, but overall I really enjoyed this book of short stories about the lives of different Indian-Americans. Some of the stories aren't as great as the others -- either because of a lack of depth or just general feeling of incompleteness. However, the great stories are really great. A wide variety of experiences are represented. I really enjoyed the last story. I could tell that the author, Neel Patel, is budding writer and I would definitely check out his next book.

kinnimomo's review

4.0

4.25⭐️

briannareadsbooks's review

4.0

This book pleasantly surprised me. Usually, I'm not a fan of short stories, but each one was so unique and different, I never knew what I was going to expect going into each one. Some of them I enjoyed a lot more than others and some of them didn't interest me. But even the stories that were not as exciting to me were packed with beautiful writing, realistic characters, and such brutal honesty. The way the characters went about navigating sex, dating, sexuality, families, and even stalking exes on Facebook was so brutally honest. Sometimes the characters would think something crazy or not so nice or overtly sexual and I would think "Holy shit, other people think this besides me?"

I was surprised that this book was Neel Patel's debut!! The writing is fantastic, and I would definitely read more of his stuff in the future.

Also, I just looked it up and apparently the book has been optioned for television?? I would be so happy with a short closed-ended season where all of these characters were brought to life.
My only complaint was that I wish some of the characters intertwined. Yes, the last two stories were actually intertwined, but it would have been to leave little easter eggs throughout the stories.