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1.07k reviews for:
Krótka historia Stowarzyszenia Nieurodziwych Dziewuch i inne opowiadania
Helen Oyeyemi
3.76 AVERAGE
1.07k reviews for:
Krótka historia Stowarzyszenia Nieurodziwych Dziewuch i inne opowiadania
Helen Oyeyemi
3.76 AVERAGE
I didn't realize until I'd checked it out and started it that this book is by an author I read last year. I probably would not have read it if I'd known, since I was frustrated by the other book (Boy, Snow, Bird). That said, I decided to give it a go anyway since it was fairly short. Just as with her previous book, there were moments of brilliance-- times when I was completed sucked in and couldn't wait to turn the page. But then my enjoyment would come to a crashing halt. (Perhaps it is the short story format. I've never been a fan, but I keep trying.) Again, I felt that if I wanted to spend the time and energy, there is a LOT more under the surface that could be probed for meaning. But I don't find myself compelled to do so. Basically... I don't know *what* to think of this book, so it's getting three stars.
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
My first Oyeyemi -- she is a remarkable storyteller; these stories are like Superfiction, in that they read as highly fictive, hyperstorified. Many of the stories have startling turns into the weird, with an ambiguous attitude towards weirdness/magic -- these layers are unnerving yet accepted, exploiting the uncanny though not venturing quite into horror. My favorites: "Is Your Blood as Red as This?" (live puppets -- i.e., alive puppets; and a lot about art/artifice/performance); "Presence" (about an experiment (gone awry) in recreating a loved one's presence after death); and "A Brief History of the Homely Wench Society" which is maybe the most realist (about rivaling fraternity/sorroty-like societies at Cambridge). Quite a few queer characters; majority POC characters. Charming and droll and stylized, these are impressively designed stories; yet for whatever reason I found myself at times emotionally detached and skimming.
What is Not Yours is Not Yours is a delightful collection of short stories that don't always fit together. Sometimes it feels like one story is the natural progression of another, other times they just feel like really cool stories. Some of the stories I didn't love, but only because they were alongside stories that I wanted entire novels made out of. My favorite part of Helen Oyeyemi's writing is her magical realism and I hope her other books have more of that because I'm certainly going to read them.
I'm just going to paste my notes from my book club and call the rest of this review good.
Books and Roses ~ Easily my favorite story. Lesbian love maze centering on strange secrets about libraries and gardens. The thing that’s so fun about this is its ability to create the sense of reading this story collection before embarking through the other stories. I loved the setting and characters, everything flowed and there was no issue with dragging
Sorry Doesn’t Sweeten Her Tea ~ Good follow up story. Appreciated the way different characters come in and out of the story and queer identity was still maintained while telling a story about toxic masculinity in a grossly heteronormative setting
Is Your Blood as Red as This? ~ Fucking puppets. I wish this story was split in two and we got to see it early in the collection and later. Aspects came back later, but I wanted the human and puppet stories wholly separate. It went off the rails for me to track what was happening until everything just sort of happened. In the way that her other stories have really good pacing, this one did not
Drownings ~ The only thing I didn’t like was how this came after the puppets. Once I got that taste out of my mouth the story itself was really exciting and fun in a simple way. Lots of images.
Presence ~ A close runner up for favorite. Reminds me of a similarly creepy pharma psychosis book called My Year of Rest and Relaxation. I loved how this story just kind of sank in around you, it feels the way laughing gas does when it kicks in, like an expected surprise.
A Brief History of the Homely Wench Society ~ Whatever, felt out of place in a collection that’s so magical, this book felt like a lame episode of How I Met Your Mother. Sorry, I’m maybe just a boy with bad opinions but I think I would have liked this in a different story collection
Dornicka and The St. Martin’s Day Goose ~ Loved it! She does a fairy tale so very well, it’s absolutely delightful to see her take a story you know the twists and turns of and turn it into something strange and funny that you have to squint at to wholly recognize
Freddy Barrandov Checks…In ~ Blah, Dylan did not like this one. Just felt like she was connecting stories in a lazy way.
“If a Book is Locked There’s Probably a Good Reason for That Don’t You Think ~ Not the most interesting, but was really well written and felt like a good note to end the story collection on. Wish it had been a different story because I liked others SO MUCH but this one was good too. Alternate title is the title of the book.
I'm just going to paste my notes from my book club and call the rest of this review good.
Books and Roses ~ Easily my favorite story. Lesbian love maze centering on strange secrets about libraries and gardens. The thing that’s so fun about this is its ability to create the sense of reading this story collection before embarking through the other stories. I loved the setting and characters, everything flowed and there was no issue with dragging
Sorry Doesn’t Sweeten Her Tea ~ Good follow up story. Appreciated the way different characters come in and out of the story and queer identity was still maintained while telling a story about toxic masculinity in a grossly heteronormative setting
Is Your Blood as Red as This? ~ Fucking puppets. I wish this story was split in two and we got to see it early in the collection and later. Aspects came back later, but I wanted the human and puppet stories wholly separate. It went off the rails for me to track what was happening until everything just sort of happened. In the way that her other stories have really good pacing, this one did not
Drownings ~ The only thing I didn’t like was how this came after the puppets. Once I got that taste out of my mouth the story itself was really exciting and fun in a simple way. Lots of images.
Presence ~ A close runner up for favorite. Reminds me of a similarly creepy pharma psychosis book called My Year of Rest and Relaxation. I loved how this story just kind of sank in around you, it feels the way laughing gas does when it kicks in, like an expected surprise.
A Brief History of the Homely Wench Society ~ Whatever, felt out of place in a collection that’s so magical, this book felt like a lame episode of How I Met Your Mother. Sorry, I’m maybe just a boy with bad opinions but I think I would have liked this in a different story collection
Dornicka and The St. Martin’s Day Goose ~ Loved it! She does a fairy tale so very well, it’s absolutely delightful to see her take a story you know the twists and turns of and turn it into something strange and funny that you have to squint at to wholly recognize
Freddy Barrandov Checks…In ~ Blah, Dylan did not like this one. Just felt like she was connecting stories in a lazy way.
“If a Book is Locked There’s Probably a Good Reason for That Don’t You Think ~ Not the most interesting, but was really well written and felt like a good note to end the story collection on. Wish it had been a different story because I liked others SO MUCH but this one was good too. Alternate title is the title of the book.
I absolutely LOVED the first story (Books and roses). The rest were a mix of ok-stories and wtf-stories. I totally disliked the puppeteers part. So, all in all, I would not recomment the book.
However, I'm going to keep it for now, because I want to read Books and roses again ♡
However, I'm going to keep it for now, because I want to read Books and roses again ♡
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
A thoroughly enjoyable read that is unlike so much I have read before and strangely feels familiar, too. I feel like each story is like finding yourself thrown into the midst of a dreamlike world and your goal is to figure out which way is up. Many of the stories don't end with any sort of resolve but feel more like a jazz song ending on a minor chord. You're left thinking of these characters and stories and worlds long after you've left them. And what is so wonderful is that many of the characters show up again in later stories, allowing you a different, albeit more distanced, peek into their lives and how these characters all intertwine.
If you love mystery and modern fairy tales wrapped up with hints of sci fi, read this collection.
If you love mystery and modern fairy tales wrapped up with hints of sci fi, read this collection.
I love spending time in Oyeyemi’s worlds, and I really loved the way these stories playfully intertwined. There are three big stand-out stories for me (“books and roses”, “a brief history of the homely wench society“, and “”sorry” doesn’t sweeten her tea”) and a few that were interesting and a few that didn’t really work for me but I still appreciated as part of the collection. I haven’t read a book of short stories in a while, but Oyeyemi pushed these stories in unexpected ways that make them fun to slip into for a little while, even if they don’t end up being entirely successful.
Magical and flawless. Oyeyemi's stories are inspired and otherworldly. I loved this collection.
I adored this collection. Imaginative and beautiful, these stories conjure the spirits of old world folk tales and combine them with a touch of modern day speculative fiction and a healthy dose of realism. Oyeyemi is a supreme talent.
Stories were too long and meandered a lot. I gave up halfway through. I chuckled at the random Hallyu references but that's it