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aliberry's review
3.0
Some stories were better than others. I loved "Floor Plan."
This collection of short stories was too long. Most of the stories towards the end of the collection felt like filler to me (even though I'm sure that wasn't the intention) - I think it would have been more powerful if it were more pared down.
By the end of the collection, I just felt like I read a lot of white girl feelings.
This collection of short stories was too long. Most of the stories towards the end of the collection felt like filler to me (even though I'm sure that wasn't the intention) - I think it would have been more powerful if it were more pared down.
By the end of the collection, I just felt like I read a lot of white girl feelings.
cancermoononhigh's review
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
sabrielsbell's review
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I enjoyed the stories but I wanted more from quite a few of them and none of them stuck with me.
allisonplus's review
3.0
"I weave through the swell of the devout the way I learned to as a child of New York, trusting that there is an open space just beyond the bodies moving against the direction I want to go in."
"The children aren't mine so I feed them cookies."
"The children aren't mine so I feed them cookies."
suzyreadsbooks's review
4.0
I really enjoyed this collection of stories about women in NYC. Each story is a slice-of-life snapshot of a different young woman’s experiences, each one dealing with changes in their lives, some more subtly than others: the quiet disintegration of a friendships, the fallout of relationships, the push and pull of family tensions, the expectations of growing up.
These are brief, quiet character studies. I happen to love those, but I know some people want a little bit more shock & intrigue in their stories. My main gripe is that all of the women are white, straight, and privileged. Because of this, the universality of its themes of loneliness, heartbreak, and desire may only reach so far.
These are brief, quiet character studies. I happen to love those, but I know some people want a little bit more shock & intrigue in their stories. My main gripe is that all of the women are white, straight, and privileged. Because of this, the universality of its themes of loneliness, heartbreak, and desire may only reach so far.
timshel's review
4.0
Even the best of short story collections are uneven. I used to find this odd—how could a writer who wrote such a fabulous story follow it with such a crap story? I realize now that it makes sense. I mean, after all, if you look at any author's complete body of works, you'll find great works and ho-hum works. No writer is one-hundred percent consistent. The difference is in presentation. We think of a collection of short stories as a complete work. A novelist's whole career is not held under the same scrutiny.
Danielle Lazarin's Back Talk is no different. There are stories I really enjoyed. And stories I could've done without. The difference was the grouping of these stories. Normally, a collection starts with one or two good stories and follows it with a dud, then another good story and several duds. Depending on the total number of stories in the collection and the ratio of good stories, all this may vary, of course, but often the middle contains several lackluster stories that lead into a final one or two good stories.
So when I started reading Back Talk and found that the first several stories barely held my attention, I assumed the whole collection was not for me. Midway, the stories really started to improve however. In fact, story after story was quite wonderful. At this point, I questioned whether it was me: perhaps some preconceived notion I had about the collection, or some blockage in my personal life. I decided that, when finished, I'd go back and read one of the first few stories that I found to be far from special.
On a second reading, the story I selected was slightly more enjoyable, but I still didn't love it. So maybe this collection is oddly uneven, but it does contain several wonderful stories. The best of these stories really get into the minds of their protagonists. They're quiet stories about everyday events, but they're full of heart. In these character-driven stories, I think it ultimately comes down to connection. I was pulled into the mind of some of these characters, not into the minds of others. Readers of character-centric short fiction should give Back Talk a try.
Danielle Lazarin's Back Talk is no different. There are stories I really enjoyed. And stories I could've done without. The difference was the grouping of these stories. Normally, a collection starts with one or two good stories and follows it with a dud, then another good story and several duds. Depending on the total number of stories in the collection and the ratio of good stories, all this may vary, of course, but often the middle contains several lackluster stories that lead into a final one or two good stories.
So when I started reading Back Talk and found that the first several stories barely held my attention, I assumed the whole collection was not for me. Midway, the stories really started to improve however. In fact, story after story was quite wonderful. At this point, I questioned whether it was me: perhaps some preconceived notion I had about the collection, or some blockage in my personal life. I decided that, when finished, I'd go back and read one of the first few stories that I found to be far from special.
On a second reading, the story I selected was slightly more enjoyable, but I still didn't love it. So maybe this collection is oddly uneven, but it does contain several wonderful stories. The best of these stories really get into the minds of their protagonists. They're quiet stories about everyday events, but they're full of heart. In these character-driven stories, I think it ultimately comes down to connection. I was pulled into the mind of some of these characters, not into the minds of others. Readers of character-centric short fiction should give Back Talk a try.
vinithepooh's review
3.0
At its best, this book spotlights the hidden moments that many women have experienced but that we rarely talk about: the characters in this book are not very much like me at all, but there were certainly times where I felt a deep sympathy with some of them. At its worst, this book is weird and feels both pointless and incomplete. All in all, inconsistent but worth a read.
nordstina's review
3.0
I enjoyed most of these short stories but I didn’t really find a common thread throughout them outside of being told through the view of a female protagonist. Quick read.
jessicaesquire's review
4.0
The women in this collection of stories are not the same, but they do share a set of characteristics: white women, middle-class women, women who live in New York or thereabouts. When something is set in New York it often goes with the highs and the lows: the rich, the poor, the billionaire, the addict, the socialite, the prostitute. But Lazarin is more focused on the heightened emotions in the everyday lives of everyday women.
Falling in love, raising children, breaking up, fighting with parents, most women will be able to find each page filled with a familiar emotion. And while this all sounds like typical stuff, I found myself surprised at how rarely I actually see women like this depicted in "quote" literary fiction. These women are in commercial fiction, their love affairs and parenting dilemmas are regular fodder there, but we have this tendency to say that these women and their lives belong only in that kind of space. They can star in a Lifetime movie but not a dramatic indie film. Their stories can be melodrama but not literature. Lazarin's stories work because she treats her characters with a seriousness that is usually reserved for men, a respect for their emotions and their experiences that is sadly still unfamiliar to many readers.
After a few stories you develop a trust with this book the way you'd trust a friend. You know each story is going to give you something real, something solid, something you can feel deep within you. You know it will not pull punches. You know the prose will be clear. You know you will see something familiar and true.
(Note: I'm twitter friends with Danielle, which has more to do with me reading this book in the first place because I was excited to see what she's written, than with my review but is still worth noting.)
Falling in love, raising children, breaking up, fighting with parents, most women will be able to find each page filled with a familiar emotion. And while this all sounds like typical stuff, I found myself surprised at how rarely I actually see women like this depicted in "quote" literary fiction. These women are in commercial fiction, their love affairs and parenting dilemmas are regular fodder there, but we have this tendency to say that these women and their lives belong only in that kind of space. They can star in a Lifetime movie but not a dramatic indie film. Their stories can be melodrama but not literature. Lazarin's stories work because she treats her characters with a seriousness that is usually reserved for men, a respect for their emotions and their experiences that is sadly still unfamiliar to many readers.
After a few stories you develop a trust with this book the way you'd trust a friend. You know each story is going to give you something real, something solid, something you can feel deep within you. You know it will not pull punches. You know the prose will be clear. You know you will see something familiar and true.
(Note: I'm twitter friends with Danielle, which has more to do with me reading this book in the first place because I was excited to see what she's written, than with my review but is still worth noting.)
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