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4.0 AVERAGE
4.0 AVERAGE
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
I maintain that unless your name is Raymond Carver, at least half your short stories are going to be unremarkable.
I did like Sparrow and My House, which are by far the most straightforward in style, so it may be simply a matter of taste. Sometimes Saunders gets so unconventional in syntax that I don’t feel the motivation to keep up.
I did like Sparrow and My House, which are by far the most straightforward in style, so it may be simply a matter of taste. Sometimes Saunders gets so unconventional in syntax that I don’t feel the motivation to keep up.
George Saunders is mad as hell and he’s not going to take it anymore. The bruising chaos and division of the Trump presidency hangs heavy over this new collection of short stories, jostling for space with Saunders’ trademark hyperactive inventiveness and notions of an afterlife that powered Lincoln in the Bardo. Love Letter is the most political and straightforward story here, a letter from grandparent to grandson offering advice on whether to turn in friends or relatives to the authorities to protect themselves. The same theme is developed even further in Ghoul. In a nightmarish theme park a finely-calibrated system of control by gaslighting terrorises employees to turn each other in for the merest slight before others turn them in. The longest story sees a dystopian American company surgically reprogramme the vulnerable and destitute kept in the houses of the wealthy as private re-enactors. This story collides virtually everything that’s great about Saunders: exploration of American cultural sacred cows (in this case Little Big Horn and Custer); wit and humour; and a dizzying manipulation of language. This collection maintains Saunders’ reputation as one of the leading short story crafter of modern times.
When I first pick up a George Saunders book I find myself a little disoriented… but I invest a little trust, a little patience, and the payoff is well worth it. In his Booker Award winning novel “Lincoln in the Bardo” I stopped short and started up again, not sure I was following things. Once I got the hang of it I was amazed– it is one of my favorite books. In “Tenth of December,” an earlier collection of his, it was jarring to finish one story and then transition into a completely different world, with dissimilar voices and alternate versions of reality. This can be true of any anthology, of course, but Saunders’ selections are so diverse and independent of one another.
“Liberation Day: Stories” is his latest collection. He once again shows why many consider him to be the finest short story writer practicing today. The imagination, creativity and dark humor are driving while questions are posed about our behavior. Personal freedoms are looked at in stories such as “Liberation Day,” where three characters are attached to a wall and obligated to perform for a wealthy man and his friends. In “Elliot Spencer” we see a man being brainwashed and cleansed of his memory so that he may serve in the employ of a political group. “Ghoul” examines Hellish underground amusement park workers who may or may not have been told the truth about their fate. In Saunders’ most overtly political story, “Love Letter,” a elderly man explains to his son how democracy lost so many freedoms when it did not take “clownish leaders” seriously.
Not every story here is political or sci-fi / fantasy. In “Mom of Bold Action” we are in the mind of a mother out to seek vengeance for a relatively minor attack on her young son. She goads her husband into exacting retribution on a possible suspect. She feels bad about the consequences for the man in question… but her guilt has its limits. In “Mother’s Day” there is a showdown in a hailstorm between two women, long time rivals, who have only ever seen the other as undeserving of the man they both loved.
Every story here is a gem, every tale thought-provoking and entertaining. Highly recommended reading.
Thank you to Random House Publishing and NetGalley for providing the advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review. #LiberationDay #NetGalley
“Liberation Day: Stories” is his latest collection. He once again shows why many consider him to be the finest short story writer practicing today. The imagination, creativity and dark humor are driving while questions are posed about our behavior. Personal freedoms are looked at in stories such as “Liberation Day,” where three characters are attached to a wall and obligated to perform for a wealthy man and his friends. In “Elliot Spencer” we see a man being brainwashed and cleansed of his memory so that he may serve in the employ of a political group. “Ghoul” examines Hellish underground amusement park workers who may or may not have been told the truth about their fate. In Saunders’ most overtly political story, “Love Letter,” a elderly man explains to his son how democracy lost so many freedoms when it did not take “clownish leaders” seriously.
Not every story here is political or sci-fi / fantasy. In “Mom of Bold Action” we are in the mind of a mother out to seek vengeance for a relatively minor attack on her young son. She goads her husband into exacting retribution on a possible suspect. She feels bad about the consequences for the man in question… but her guilt has its limits. In “Mother’s Day” there is a showdown in a hailstorm between two women, long time rivals, who have only ever seen the other as undeserving of the man they both loved.
Every story here is a gem, every tale thought-provoking and entertaining. Highly recommended reading.
Thank you to Random House Publishing and NetGalley for providing the advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review. #LiberationDay #NetGalley
Start to finish I think his best collection so far. Just absolutely stunning, I feel privileged to be alive while Saunders is writing such important and beautiful stories.
One of Saunders' absolute best. Some strange, some absolutely perfectly normal, some heart-wrenching. Each throwing you directly into the middle of things in that way he has of being disorienting and familiar. Phenomenal.
challenging
dark
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
challenging
dark
funny
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Liberation day is a set of 9 short shorties telling tales of morals, human nature and dystopian societies. What really stands out with George Saunders short stories compared to other short stories, is that you emerge into a world that makes you feel like you are reading a 300 page story and not a 30 page one. Hence why this took quite long for me to finish, because I felt that I could not just push through to the next story but that I needed a break in between them.
The stories themselves are complex and are often up to your own interpretation. George Saunders is really skillful in writing open stories where you get to think and decide what you believe happened or what they meant. Not only are they up to your own interpretation, but the stories usually handle tough ethical questions such as freedom of speech and the value of humans.
This is probably the best short stories collection that I have read and I truly recommend it to any who wants complex moral stories. And I end with my favorite quote from the book.
"When will I death? Might I death alone? Probably yes Little scared about that. I must say
But am not death yet
Not dead yet.
Not yet.
And not yet.
World lays out before me new with each click of step and swish of aspen leaves above for that I say thanks For as long as world is shiny new there is no death and what lovely may I not yet do?"
The stories themselves are complex and are often up to your own interpretation. George Saunders is really skillful in writing open stories where you get to think and decide what you believe happened or what they meant. Not only are they up to your own interpretation, but the stories usually handle tough ethical questions such as freedom of speech and the value of humans.
This is probably the best short stories collection that I have read and I truly recommend it to any who wants complex moral stories. And I end with my favorite quote from the book.
"When will I death? Might I death alone? Probably yes Little scared about that. I must say
But am not death yet
Not dead yet.
Not yet.
And not yet.
World lays out before me new with each click of step and swish of aspen leaves above for that I say thanks For as long as world is shiny new there is no death and what lovely may I not yet do?"