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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
When these stories don't work, they are too meandering. Confusing. When they work, they REALLY work for me. The Russian nesting doll of narratives, and the wandering story lines, make for surreal, layered works. I like a lot of the character work, though sometimes there are too many to keep track of. And wow, the tone! I've never read a tone like you find in these stories. Odd, unsettling, even dreadful, yet lighthearted and optimistic. Sort of folklorish Black Mirror episodes that end in a major key. Anyway, I haven't given Helen Oyeyemi's books a 5 star yet, but she's one of the authors I'm most excited about. And the star rating only means so much--to me, anyway.
Favorite stories:
Books and Roses
Drownings
Presence
Dornicka and the St. Martin's Goose
Favorite stories:
Books and Roses
Drownings
Presence
Dornicka and the St. Martin's Goose
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
When finishing Helen Oyeyemi novels, my first and only thoughts are usually "what" and "I must reread this immediately." For some reason, I did not anticipate that reaction to a collection of her short stories, but that's what I got, only... more of it.
The stories are all tangentially related in the barest of ways, and around halfway through the book, I felt myself becoming Charlie Day with his conspiracy board in the Pepe Silva scene (that is to say, mildly unhinged). That phenomenon – leaving the precise amount unsaid – did more to immerse me in the world of the book than any measure of realistic dialogue or evocative imagery. I felt just as confused and unsettled as her characters, and the real kicker is that I loved it. I will continue to greedily gobble all of Oyeyemi's works that I can find.
The stories are all tangentially related in the barest of ways, and around halfway through the book, I felt myself becoming Charlie Day with his conspiracy board in the Pepe Silva scene (that is to say, mildly unhinged). That phenomenon – leaving the precise amount unsaid – did more to immerse me in the world of the book than any measure of realistic dialogue or evocative imagery. I felt just as confused and unsettled as her characters, and the real kicker is that I loved it. I will continue to greedily gobble all of Oyeyemi's works that I can find.
- books and roses: ⭑⭑⭑⭑ spooky fun
- "sorry" doesn't sweeten her tea: ⭑⭑⭑⭑⭑ absolutely slaps WHERE is the novel
- is your blood as red as this: ⭑⭑⭑⭑⭑ ???????? hello????
- drownings: ⭑⭑⭑⭑⭑ grimm brothers WHO
- presence: ⭑⭑⭑⭑⭑ love me a story that reads like a poem; also, i'm sad
- a brief history of the homely wench society: ⭑⭑⭑⭑ such a cute story and a gentle way to weigh in on a cultural conversation with relevant nuance (also trying to figure out who professor Chaudry is drove me up a wall; i feel like i'm in the book now lmao)
- dornicka and the st. martin's day goose: ⭑⭑⭑ let me off, i'm scared
- freddy barrandov checks... in?: ⭑⭑⭑⭑⭑ i........... what???
- if a book is locked there's probably a good reason for that don't you think: ⭑⭑⭑⭑⭑ i'm scared again
A couple of good stories in here but it was a flop for me. Couldn’t engage with most of them. So many confusing tangents that you forget what the story is even about.
Oyeyemi's writing is full of so many interesting and unexpected elements-- truly a delight to read. The twists and turns she takes in each story never seem forced or contrived; I was always ready to fully believe in the characters and the worlds they live in. The breadth of ground she covers across stories is impressive-- all so different but there is a cohesiveness to the book as a whole. Really lovely book of stories.
This is possibly the first short story collection that I've enjoyed. I've picked up a few, but I don't think I've ever finished one. I have read a few anthologies, but I haven't enjoyed any of those as well.
I didn't love every single story in this collection, but for the most part, they were all enjoyable. My personal favorite was is your blood as red as this?.
The writing was phenomenal, which isn't surprising because Helen Oyeyemi is an amazing author. The only issue I had with it is an issue I have with most things I read by this author. I don't always understand the point of her writing, or what she was trying to say through it. Some of the stories in this collection felt like a few pretty sentences that vaguely made a plot. It seemed like there was some sort of theme or message that I was missing. Maybe I'm not smart enough to understand the message, maybe it's hidden far too deep, or maybe there is no message at all. But certain stories just left me feeling lost and confused, so I gave this collection 4 stars instead of 5 stars even though I enjoyed all the stories.
Even though I didn't understand all the stories, the messages in the stories that I did understand were so interesting! There was so much social commentary hidden (or not-so-hidden in certain situations) within the pages of this collection. Honestly, I'd say that you should read this just because it contains so many interesting ideas.
I'd recommend this book, but be prepared for weirdness! This is a very odd book, but if magical realism is your thing, I'm sure you'll enjoy this.
I didn't love every single story in this collection, but for the most part, they were all enjoyable. My personal favorite was is your blood as red as this?.
The writing was phenomenal, which isn't surprising because Helen Oyeyemi is an amazing author. The only issue I had with it is an issue I have with most things I read by this author. I don't always understand the point of her writing, or what she was trying to say through it. Some of the stories in this collection felt like a few pretty sentences that vaguely made a plot. It seemed like there was some sort of theme or message that I was missing. Maybe I'm not smart enough to understand the message, maybe it's hidden far too deep, or maybe there is no message at all. But certain stories just left me feeling lost and confused, so I gave this collection 4 stars instead of 5 stars even though I enjoyed all the stories.
Even though I didn't understand all the stories, the messages in the stories that I did understand were so interesting! There was so much social commentary hidden (or not-so-hidden in certain situations) within the pages of this collection. Honestly, I'd say that you should read this just because it contains so many interesting ideas.
I'd recommend this book, but be prepared for weirdness! This is a very odd book, but if magical realism is your thing, I'm sure you'll enjoy this.
3.5.
I think I am not smart enough for this book. I found some of these stories to be wonderful or fun or beautiful, but I also found some stories (particularly in the latter half of the collection, I think) that were a little esoteric, or otherwise didn't have the magic of some other stories. A couple of consistent positives, however, were the inclusion of characters of many different sexualities, the gorgeous writing, and the kind of stream-of-conscious narrative style where a tangents are frequent and beautiful. As a whole, this collection had some hits and some misses for me, but generally I quite liked it.
This is a collection of short stories centered around keys, both metaphorical and literal.
SPOILERS DISCUSSION!
books and roses. 4.5/5
What a wonderful start. This story is the most storybook of the collection, I'd say, but it reads like a wonderful, magical fairytale. It's about art and old mansions and roses and books upon books and women loving women and the brilliance (literally, in terms of brightness) of first love. In terms of its place in the collection, it definitely fit best as first or last (I would've put it last because I think it's a really wonderful, positive note to end the collection on, but I understand its place as first.) It is maybe the most easily digestible of the collection, but also introduces some key patterns in the rest of the work (most notably, the meandering story line where any new character or event is reason for the narrative to depart from the main storyline for a moment.) It was just really beautiful and I loved Lucy, thought Montse was fine, and ultimately liked how everything came together towards an ending. There's a lot of uncertainty in Oyeyemi's work, and though I definitely love a certain amount of uncertainty, it's also comforting to have a sense of what's going on.
"sorry" doesn't sweeten her tea. 5/5
Everything, except the ending, of this story was basically perfection. It felt like a step up from the last story, in terms of complexity and in terms of what it asked of the reader. (This was the story where I felt I could maybe keep up with what was being asked of me, which was fun and cool.) I liked the exploration of fame and of the relationships between celebrities and their fans, and how those relationships can often feel intensely personal, even when there has been no substantial interaction. Aisha is a really well-drawn character while also fulfilling her need in this story: she is the woman scorned in this really weird and fascinating way because she is so clearly not the victim of this story. Also, everything about the Internet and the victim-blaming in this story was spot-on reality. I didn't think that the ending totally felt cohesive with the rest of the story. When magical realism is, in my opinion, done right, it enhances and expands upon what is already in the story. The Hecate stuff didn't feel like it did that, to me. It felt like an addition at the end. I'm sure I'm missing a connection there, but that's where I'm at.
is your blood as red as this? 2.5/5
This story didn't click with me. I just couldn't totally get on board with the puppets. I wanted to, don't get me wrong, but this was one leap I just couldn't take with Oyeyemi. I just… Once I subconsciously decided that the puppets weren't doing it for me, I think I kind of wrote off the rest of the story. It is also one where I know there's some meaning lurking beneath the surface that I just am not fully on top of, but I just didn't like this one. There was some cool stuff, to be fair, especially with Rowan. (I like this idea of the puppet becoming something specific to the viewer, and I think examining Rowan's perceived genders is a really intriguing way of tapping into that.) Some redeeming moments, but I generally just wasn't on board.
drownings. 3/5
Fairy-tale fun, essentially. I liked the drownings, I liked the background of Eirini, I liked the importance of this key, because even separated from the door it unlocks, it has promise and hope intrinsically. This didn't feel particularly substantial to me (in comparison to some of the other stories), but I definitely enjoyed it.
presence. 3/5
This was like a trippy Black Mirror episode. I wish that we'd been given a little more explanation regarding how this particular experiment works into Jacob's work as a bereavement counselor. The beginning of the story, however, when Jill is trying to figure out what's going on and is characterizing her marriage, is really fascinating and well done and a pleasure to read. The rest… I don't totally understand (wow, a theme!) I did, however, like the ending a lot.
a brief history of the homely wench society 3.5/5
Tonally, this did not feel on the same level as the rest of the collection. Don't get me wrong, I quite liked it, but it is difficult for me to find how it fits in with the rest (hence the slight knock-down in stars.) It ends really positively, which I like but doesn't feel like it fits with the rest of the stories. It feels… too easy. Also, in terms of feminism and secret societies, it reminds me a lot of The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks.)
dornicka and the st. martin's day goose. 2/5
I just didn't quite get this one. It's red riding hood but also there's this buried lump of flesh and all this other stuff that I just didn't get. As with "is your blood as red as this," I take full responsibility for my lack of understanding and I don't think that it's the fault of the story, but. Unlike "is your blood as red as this," I didn't see any real redeeming moments in this story. It was just… weird blah-ness.
freddy barrandov checks… in? 3.5/5
This story has a series of really exceptional lines. I really liked Freddy's mom's line about he is both without virtue and vice. It is also the story with the return of Aisha, who quite endeared herself to me earlier on in the collection. Unfortunately, I feel like it maybe relies a little too much on past characters to make the story run (so many of them reappear in some way in this story) and not on Freddy and his life. I want to know more about this hotel, and about his family, and that wasn't the focus of the story at all.
if a book is locked there's probably a good reason for that don't you think. 2.5/5
Despite this being the last story, it is the one that maybe stuck with me the least. I wanted it to pack significantly more of a punch. As is, it's definitely inoffensive; Eva is intriguing, as is an office as a kind of microcosm of the world as a whole, but it didn't deliver the difficulty and power I wanted from the last story of this collection.
A couple of comments on the collection as a whole:
I kind of wish that we didn't have characters who appeared in multiple stories. For me, none of those appearances particularly enhanced the quality of the stories. Also, every time I saw a name I recognized I kind of had to go back and think to where I'd seen that name and what the character was about etc. (I mean, I didn't always have to do this, but sometimes.) For me, it pulled me out of the story and into this weird space of feeling like a bad reader for not keeping up, which is obviously my fault and not the fault of the work. But, given that the connections didn't add quality for me, I just think they could've been omitted.
I had multiple moments in the stories where I assumed a gender and had to go back later and reassess and realize that I was being heteronormative or relying on gender roles or whatever, because I had been wrong. Who knows if that was on purpose, but it definitely made me aware of my own flaws as a reader/ human and I'll give credit for that.
I'll definitely check out some of Ms. Oyeyemi's other work, probably her full length work, because her writing is incredible and I think I just need to beef up on my reading skills to fully engage.
FIN!
This is beautiful and I want to reread it when I'm smarter: 85%
I think I am not smart enough for this book. I found some of these stories to be wonderful or fun or beautiful, but I also found some stories (particularly in the latter half of the collection, I think) that were a little esoteric, or otherwise didn't have the magic of some other stories. A couple of consistent positives, however, were the inclusion of characters of many different sexualities, the gorgeous writing, and the kind of stream-of-conscious narrative style where a tangents are frequent and beautiful. As a whole, this collection had some hits and some misses for me, but generally I quite liked it.
This is a collection of short stories centered around keys, both metaphorical and literal.
SPOILERS DISCUSSION!
books and roses. 4.5/5
What a wonderful start. This story is the most storybook of the collection, I'd say, but it reads like a wonderful, magical fairytale. It's about art and old mansions and roses and books upon books and women loving women and the brilliance (literally, in terms of brightness) of first love. In terms of its place in the collection, it definitely fit best as first or last (I would've put it last because I think it's a really wonderful, positive note to end the collection on, but I understand its place as first.) It is maybe the most easily digestible of the collection, but also introduces some key patterns in the rest of the work (most notably, the meandering story line where any new character or event is reason for the narrative to depart from the main storyline for a moment.) It was just really beautiful and I loved Lucy, thought Montse was fine, and ultimately liked how everything came together towards an ending. There's a lot of uncertainty in Oyeyemi's work, and though I definitely love a certain amount of uncertainty, it's also comforting to have a sense of what's going on.
"sorry" doesn't sweeten her tea. 5/5
Everything, except the ending, of this story was basically perfection. It felt like a step up from the last story, in terms of complexity and in terms of what it asked of the reader. (This was the story where I felt I could maybe keep up with what was being asked of me, which was fun and cool.) I liked the exploration of fame and of the relationships between celebrities and their fans, and how those relationships can often feel intensely personal, even when there has been no substantial interaction. Aisha is a really well-drawn character while also fulfilling her need in this story: she is the woman scorned in this really weird and fascinating way because she is so clearly not the victim of this story. Also, everything about the Internet and the victim-blaming in this story was spot-on reality. I didn't think that the ending totally felt cohesive with the rest of the story. When magical realism is, in my opinion, done right, it enhances and expands upon what is already in the story. The Hecate stuff didn't feel like it did that, to me. It felt like an addition at the end. I'm sure I'm missing a connection there, but that's where I'm at.
is your blood as red as this? 2.5/5
This story didn't click with me. I just couldn't totally get on board with the puppets. I wanted to, don't get me wrong, but this was one leap I just couldn't take with Oyeyemi. I just… Once I subconsciously decided that the puppets weren't doing it for me, I think I kind of wrote off the rest of the story. It is also one where I know there's some meaning lurking beneath the surface that I just am not fully on top of, but I just didn't like this one. There was some cool stuff, to be fair, especially with Rowan. (I like this idea of the puppet becoming something specific to the viewer, and I think examining Rowan's perceived genders is a really intriguing way of tapping into that.) Some redeeming moments, but I generally just wasn't on board.
drownings. 3/5
Fairy-tale fun, essentially. I liked the drownings, I liked the background of Eirini, I liked the importance of this key, because even separated from the door it unlocks, it has promise and hope intrinsically. This didn't feel particularly substantial to me (in comparison to some of the other stories), but I definitely enjoyed it.
presence. 3/5
This was like a trippy Black Mirror episode. I wish that we'd been given a little more explanation regarding how this particular experiment works into Jacob's work as a bereavement counselor. The beginning of the story, however, when Jill is trying to figure out what's going on and is characterizing her marriage, is really fascinating and well done and a pleasure to read. The rest… I don't totally understand (wow, a theme!) I did, however, like the ending a lot.
a brief history of the homely wench society 3.5/5
Tonally, this did not feel on the same level as the rest of the collection. Don't get me wrong, I quite liked it, but it is difficult for me to find how it fits in with the rest (hence the slight knock-down in stars.) It ends really positively, which I like but doesn't feel like it fits with the rest of the stories. It feels… too easy. Also, in terms of feminism and secret societies, it reminds me a lot of The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks.)
dornicka and the st. martin's day goose. 2/5
I just didn't quite get this one. It's red riding hood but also there's this buried lump of flesh and all this other stuff that I just didn't get. As with "is your blood as red as this," I take full responsibility for my lack of understanding and I don't think that it's the fault of the story, but. Unlike "is your blood as red as this," I didn't see any real redeeming moments in this story. It was just… weird blah-ness.
freddy barrandov checks… in? 3.5/5
This story has a series of really exceptional lines. I really liked Freddy's mom's line about he is both without virtue and vice. It is also the story with the return of Aisha, who quite endeared herself to me earlier on in the collection. Unfortunately, I feel like it maybe relies a little too much on past characters to make the story run (so many of them reappear in some way in this story) and not on Freddy and his life. I want to know more about this hotel, and about his family, and that wasn't the focus of the story at all.
if a book is locked there's probably a good reason for that don't you think. 2.5/5
Despite this being the last story, it is the one that maybe stuck with me the least. I wanted it to pack significantly more of a punch. As is, it's definitely inoffensive; Eva is intriguing, as is an office as a kind of microcosm of the world as a whole, but it didn't deliver the difficulty and power I wanted from the last story of this collection.
A couple of comments on the collection as a whole:
I kind of wish that we didn't have characters who appeared in multiple stories. For me, none of those appearances particularly enhanced the quality of the stories. Also, every time I saw a name I recognized I kind of had to go back and think to where I'd seen that name and what the character was about etc. (I mean, I didn't always have to do this, but sometimes.) For me, it pulled me out of the story and into this weird space of feeling like a bad reader for not keeping up, which is obviously my fault and not the fault of the work. But, given that the connections didn't add quality for me, I just think they could've been omitted.
I had multiple moments in the stories where I assumed a gender and had to go back later and reassess and realize that I was being heteronormative or relying on gender roles or whatever, because I had been wrong. Who knows if that was on purpose, but it definitely made me aware of my own flaws as a reader/ human and I'll give credit for that.
I'll definitely check out some of Ms. Oyeyemi's other work, probably her full length work, because her writing is incredible and I think I just need to beef up on my reading skills to fully engage.
FIN!
This is beautiful and I want to reread it when I'm smarter: 85%
Helen Oyeyemi is a stunning writer. Her characters are fully fleshed, her prose inventive, shimmery, beautiful, and the plots are unexpected - it's the real world, but with a good dose of magical realism and fairy tales thrown in and it is such a pleasure to read. Or to quote The New York Times Book Review: "the greatest joy of reading Oyeyemi will always be style: jagged and capricious at moments, lush and rippled at others, always singular, like the voice-over of a fever dream."
This book contains 9 short stories, all independent of each other, and yet some characters from one story will appear in others as minor characters. Sometimes, questions left unanswered in one story will be (partly) answered in another. Some stories are more fairy-taleish than others (dornicka and the st. martin's day goose especially) and several of them contain a reference to the joys of books and reading. For instance, from the first short story, "books and roses"
"A library at night is full of sounds: The unread books can't stand it any longer and announce their contents, some boasting, some shy, some devious."
or from "is your blood as red as this?":
"You'd recently been on a flight from Prague, you told me, and the plane had gone through a terrifyingly long tunnel of turbulence up there in the clouds. 'Everyone on the plane was freaking out, except the girl beside me' you said. 'She was just reading her book - maybe a little faster than usual, but otherwise untroubled. I said to her: 'Have you noticed that we might be about to crash?' And she said: 'Yes I did notice that actually, which makes it even more important for me to know how this ends.'"
If you want stories with diverse characters, this is not a bad place to go to either. The characters are black, white, Asian, Middle-Eastern, gay, straight... all just living their sometimes quite eventful lives.
The stories:
books and roses
"sorry" doesn't sweeten her tea
is your blood as red as this?
drownings
presence
a brief history of the homely wench society
dornicka and the st. martin's day goose
freddy barandov checks...in?
if a book is locked there's probably a good reason for that don't you think
All are really strong, but my favourites were "books and roses", "'sorry' doesn't sweeten her tea", and especially "a brief history of the homely wench society".
I will definitely look out for more by Oyeyemi in the future!
This book contains 9 short stories, all independent of each other, and yet some characters from one story will appear in others as minor characters. Sometimes, questions left unanswered in one story will be (partly) answered in another. Some stories are more fairy-taleish than others (dornicka and the st. martin's day goose especially) and several of them contain a reference to the joys of books and reading. For instance, from the first short story, "books and roses"
"A library at night is full of sounds: The unread books can't stand it any longer and announce their contents, some boasting, some shy, some devious."
or from "is your blood as red as this?":
"You'd recently been on a flight from Prague, you told me, and the plane had gone through a terrifyingly long tunnel of turbulence up there in the clouds. 'Everyone on the plane was freaking out, except the girl beside me' you said. 'She was just reading her book - maybe a little faster than usual, but otherwise untroubled. I said to her: 'Have you noticed that we might be about to crash?' And she said: 'Yes I did notice that actually, which makes it even more important for me to know how this ends.'"
If you want stories with diverse characters, this is not a bad place to go to either. The characters are black, white, Asian, Middle-Eastern, gay, straight... all just living their sometimes quite eventful lives.
The stories:
books and roses
"sorry" doesn't sweeten her tea
is your blood as red as this?
drownings
presence
a brief history of the homely wench society
dornicka and the st. martin's day goose
freddy barandov checks...in?
if a book is locked there's probably a good reason for that don't you think
All are really strong, but my favourites were "books and roses", "'sorry' doesn't sweeten her tea", and especially "a brief history of the homely wench society".
I will definitely look out for more by Oyeyemi in the future!
adventurous
challenging
funny
medium-paced
It's so rare in a short story collection to enjoy all of the stories inside. Some are bound to be less well crafted or more mundane than others. Usually if I like half, I consider it a great collection. This time, I found something to love or be fascinated by in every single one. Oyeyemi's writing gets better with every book of hers I read. I wish I'd read this slower, taking time to savour the twists and unique ways she linked each tale together. But at the same time, I couldn't stop reading, needing to dig deeper, go further. Amazing.