Scan barcode
crabbygirl's review against another edition
2.0
[guessing at the star rating / mining my old FB notes now that they are almost impossible to find]
a dark assembly of short stories, these characters are sad and often empty of direction. their inertia mostly bothered me (although where are you coming from, sweetheart? really tugged at my heart). i fear this author has had too much exposure to loss and mental illness in her short life
a dark assembly of short stories, these characters are sad and often empty of direction. their inertia mostly bothered me (although where are you coming from, sweetheart? really tugged at my heart). i fear this author has had too much exposure to loss and mental illness in her short life
auntbreesqreads's review against another edition
3.0
I read this book as part of my summer book club. It’s not a book I would normally have read, which in my opinion is never a bad thing. There were some stories I liked and some that I didn’t. I did see once discussing it with some pretty smart ladies that each story could lead to a lot of different conclusions, depending on your perspective. I think maybe I would have enjoyed it more if I hadn’t felt rushed to finish for a deadline and had spent more time reflecting as I read.
It’s nice when the characters in a novel aren’t perfect but these characters were so full of flaws, it was hard not to hate them. My friends and I couldn’t actually decide if this book was meant as a glimpse into different people’s lives or as a critique of the flaws presented. The answer to that question sort of changes my understanding and opinion of the book.
It’s nice when the characters in a novel aren’t perfect but these characters were so full of flaws, it was hard not to hate them. My friends and I couldn’t actually decide if this book was meant as a glimpse into different people’s lives or as a critique of the flaws presented. The answer to that question sort of changes my understanding and opinion of the book.
violetu's review against another edition
4.0
A friend reviewed this one, piqued my interest, and now I've read it too. And I loved it. I need to stop saying that I "don't like short stories" because I keep finding short stories that are exactly the right length. This book was filled with them - and they are very, very good.
ellstar's review against another edition
5.0
I'm a sucker for a good short story compilation and Sarah Selecky knocks it out of the park with these little slice of love narratives from people who seem all too real. These are stories about our friends, our lovers, ourselves. I was really impressed with the way she was able to latch on to all these different stories but only leading us to one central conflict or story in each of them. That takes a strong writer with a lot of trust in her characters.
exurbanis's review against another edition
4.0
This collection of short stories from Toronto author Selecky marks her publishing debut and introduces her as a young writer to watch.
Set in various locations across Canada, but especially in Ontario, the stories have varied themes and feature characters that include a young man struggling with whether or not to report a good friend of his wife as an unfit mother, a naïve young woman trying to launch a network marketing business, and a woman at her deceased neighbour’s yard sale. Her characters and themes are universal and guaranteed to make you squirm in recognition.
Selecky’s writing is clean and unpretentious, and I predict a bright future for her. Recommended.
Read this if: you’re looking for a fresh, new voice in Canadian fiction; or if you enjoy short stories in modern settings. 4 stars
Note: Visit Sarah’s website and sign up for her free daily writing prompts. They’re brilliant.
Set in various locations across Canada, but especially in Ontario, the stories have varied themes and feature characters that include a young man struggling with whether or not to report a good friend of his wife as an unfit mother, a naïve young woman trying to launch a network marketing business, and a woman at her deceased neighbour’s yard sale. Her characters and themes are universal and guaranteed to make you squirm in recognition.
Selecky’s writing is clean and unpretentious, and I predict a bright future for her. Recommended.
Read this if: you’re looking for a fresh, new voice in Canadian fiction; or if you enjoy short stories in modern settings. 4 stars
Note: Visit Sarah’s website and sign up for her free daily writing prompts. They’re brilliant.
mrobison576's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
Why do people pretend that literary fiction about dissatisfied wealthy academics cheating on their spouses isn’t fun as hell? This was fucking amazing
cicispencer's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
sgibsonneve's review against another edition
3.0
I would have liked to give this book 5 stars and 1star at the same time. I find her writing style gripping and engaging and that is what kept me reading. So often, I found myself asking what the story was about - each story meandered and I felt that I was often either confused or depressed by these characters. If she were writing about different subject matter, I 'd love to read Sarah Selecky but to be honest, this kind of writing isn't my cup of tea. I can easily see the comparison to Alice Munro (to whom I have the same reaction).
mskennedyreads's review against another edition
2.0
I was disappointed. The author's voice is incredibly confident. I was immediately drawn in to every single story. I just felt like they ended too soon....every time. It felt like a cop-out - like the author was trying too hard to be post-postmodern. Maybe I feel that way because I got so caught up in the few pages of each story that I felt betrayed when they ended so abruptly just when things would have gotten really interesting!