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jsilber42's review against another edition
3.0
The Corn Maiden and Other Nightmares is a collection of dark short stories (and one novella, "The Corn Maiden") which straddle the boundary between suspense and horror, though (with one possible exception), the horror is all of the human variety, and the usual human motivations for bad behavior (jealousy, greed, loneliness, desire, desperation) are behind it.
The titular novella, which features the kidnapping of a girl by a teenage sociopath interested in recreating a native American sacrificial ritual, is the longest and most ambitious story in the volume. Oates jumps between perspectives including the victim, the perpetrator, the perpetrator's disciples, the victim's mother, and an innocent teacher who becomes the primary suspect. She writes urgently, sometimes in staccato sentence fragments to convey panic, or in a group first person (we) to show the group-think of the perpetrator's followers. In one unusual section, she writes in alternating sentences or paragraphs contrasting the teacher and the victim.
The remaining six stories are much shorter, and generally from a single perspective. "Beersheba" is a simple revenge tale, and "Nobody Knows My Name" was an ambiguous tale of childhood jealousy. The paired stories "Fossil-Figures" and "Death-Cup" continue the sibling rivalry theme, both featuring twin brothers, one of whom is ambitious and strong and cruel, and one of whom is more sickly and passive, and shows how their paths diverge and then converge. "Fossil-Figures" is more experimental, though, with a distant, fable-like storytelling, while "Death-Cup" is much more straightforward and features well-executed slow-burn suspense. "Helping Hands" was the most delicately written story, featuring a recently widowed wife struggling to rejoin the world. Her awkwardness and desperation for human connection were almost too vividly rendered, making the story an emotionally tough read (though well-done) and making the eventual dark turn and ambiguous ending even more unpleasant and startling. The final story, "A Hole in the Head" is an effective bit of medical horror, which made me cringe more than once.
Overall, I respected Oates' writing more than I loved it, and I'm not entirely sure why. Some of the stories had an experimental feel that didn't always work for me (for example, her overuse of sentence fragments was sometimes effective but often distracting), and I felt a certain distance from her characters. Nonetheless, she is clearly a skilled writer and kept me turning the pages.
The titular novella, which features the kidnapping of a girl by a teenage sociopath interested in recreating a native American sacrificial ritual, is the longest and most ambitious story in the volume. Oates jumps between perspectives including the victim, the perpetrator, the perpetrator's disciples, the victim's mother, and an innocent teacher who becomes the primary suspect. She writes urgently, sometimes in staccato sentence fragments to convey panic, or in a group first person (we) to show the group-think of the perpetrator's followers. In one unusual section, she writes in alternating sentences or paragraphs contrasting the teacher and the victim.
The remaining six stories are much shorter, and generally from a single perspective. "Beersheba" is a simple revenge tale, and "Nobody Knows My Name" was an ambiguous tale of childhood jealousy. The paired stories "Fossil-Figures" and "Death-Cup" continue the sibling rivalry theme, both featuring twin brothers, one of whom is ambitious and strong and cruel, and one of whom is more sickly and passive, and shows how their paths diverge and then converge. "Fossil-Figures" is more experimental, though, with a distant, fable-like storytelling, while "Death-Cup" is much more straightforward and features well-executed slow-burn suspense. "Helping Hands" was the most delicately written story, featuring a recently widowed wife struggling to rejoin the world. Her awkwardness and desperation for human connection were almost too vividly rendered, making the story an emotionally tough read (though well-done) and making the eventual dark turn and ambiguous ending even more unpleasant and startling. The final story, "A Hole in the Head" is an effective bit of medical horror, which made me cringe more than once.
Overall, I respected Oates' writing more than I loved it, and I'm not entirely sure why. Some of the stories had an experimental feel that didn't always work for me (for example, her overuse of sentence fragments was sometimes effective but often distracting), and I felt a certain distance from her characters. Nonetheless, she is clearly a skilled writer and kept me turning the pages.
mdsnyderjr's review against another edition
This is a horrible, horrible, horrible book. I wish somebody had told me that. DO NOT PICK UP THIS BOOK. It is like every nightmare you ever on paper. Believe the title. This isn't a creepy but enjoyable book like Stephen King's. This is an all around disturbing book with short stories about things you never want to think about.
aoutramafalda's review against another edition
4.0
The Corn Maiden - 4*
Beersheba - 4*
Nobody Knows My Name - 4.5*
Fossil-Figures - 4*
Death-Cup - 4*
Helping Hands - 3.5*
A Hole in the Head - 3.5*
Beersheba - 4*
Nobody Knows My Name - 4.5*
Fossil-Figures - 4*
Death-Cup - 4*
Helping Hands - 3.5*
A Hole in the Head - 3.5*
flxwiner's review against another edition
3.0
Well written stories, as you would expect from JCO, but I found the endings unsatisfying.
miss_jakobs32's review against another edition
4.0
I thought this was fantastic! I always enjoy Joyce Carol Oates so much. She writes such weird shit. It makes me FEEL, ya know? One complaint: the title of this book cheapens Oates. "Nightmares". It makes it sound like some cheap Stephen King fare (no offense to King). There are no supernatural tales here, just weird stuff.
bunny_watson's review against another edition
3.0
Joyce Carol Oates writes amazing "literary" horror, tightly constructed stories with a unique voice that live inside your head for a few days after, causing you to shudder over the mundane that echoes something you just experienced in a very different context. The title story refers to the Native American folk belief that involved sacrificing a young girl to ensure good crops. A very sick young mind latches onto the idea and lures a young girl into a danger that not only threatens her life but also her sanity. All the stories in this collection leave a disturbing impression.
taxidermies's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
thebrownbookloft's review against another edition
2.0
I read the title novella and found it interesting enough, but just wasn't driven to read the rest of the short stories in the collection. I'm not a huge "book of short stories" fan...although I like reading them in magazines. Go figure.
anahammack's review against another edition
2.0
These all fell really flat for me, most disappointing of which was the title novella. Each story felt like a first draft of an idea for a larger project. The inklings were there, but as far as being compelling or creepy short stories they missed the mark for me. Sad because I love Joyce Carol Oates and wanted to love this too.