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3.65 AVERAGE
3.65 AVERAGE
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
Started this book back in April 2013 and finished it in Aug 2014. This is what happened to my half-read books
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The worlds Russell conjures in the eight stories featured here are similar to our own, but each is off-kilter in a specific way that recalls the best works of Stephen King. Of these, my favourites were “Reeling for the Empire”, “Proving Up”, and “The Barn at the End of Our Term”. “Reeling for the Empire” is a creepy, David Cronenberg meets Mike Mignola-inflected story of a group of young women who metamorphose into silk-bearing worm-people for the good of the Empire of Japan in the early Nineteenth Century. Coming after the titular “Vampires in the Lemon Grove”, “Reeling” proves that Russell is capable of working with the inborn ideas readers have about “monsters”, in basically any place or time you can give her.
Check out the rest of my review at This Nerding Life: http://thisnerdinglife.com/2014/02/25/review-vampires-in-the-lemon-grove-and-other-stories-by-karen-russell/
Check out the rest of my review at This Nerding Life: http://thisnerdinglife.com/2014/02/25/review-vampires-in-the-lemon-grove-and-other-stories-by-karen-russell/
apparently my review didn't save. this was a pretty good collection of short stories overall.
Hard for me to enjoy this - either I spent time trying to figure out whatwas going on, how it was supposed to end, or trying to figure out why it ended like that. Maybe I read it at the wrong point in my life.
Creative, guttural, vibrant, bold, vivid. I really enjoy all of her work so far.
Four stars for most of the quality of the writing, but 1.5 or 2 stars for most of the stories themselves. "Proving Up" was the only one I could give an enthusiastic two thumbs up for.
Russell has written a collection of short stories in the magical realism realm that often leave you feeling uneasy and wanting for more. She creates worlds impressively quickly, and I liked the majority of the stories
My favourite stories were: Reeling for the Empire, Proving Up, and The New Veterans. These stories had the higher stakes, which made them a more thrilling read in contrast to some of the others like Vampires in the Lemon Grove and The Graveless Doll of Eric Mutis, which were just interesting concepts that didn't grasp me as well.
My favourite stories were: Reeling for the Empire, Proving Up, and The New Veterans. These stories had the higher stakes, which made them a more thrilling read in contrast to some of the others like Vampires in the Lemon Grove and The Graveless Doll of Eric Mutis, which were just interesting concepts that didn't grasp me as well.