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jamiestrachan's review against another edition
2.0
This book seemed interesting but I ultimately found the first two stories impenetrable so didn't finish.
ellenmegan123's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
canadianbookworm's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
https://cdnbookworm.blogspot.com/2023/01/zolitude.html
verbamatic's review against another edition
challenging
dark
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This one, for me, was kind of like reading Virginia Woolf’s Mrs Dalloway for the first time: I did not understand everything, but I could not stop reading for the beauty of the language. There is also the raw, striking style that really woke me up. Often, the book seemed to slap me in the face as I finished a story. I had to take breaks. This brought me out of a long reader’s block slog. Actually, the novel Hurricane Season by Fernanda Melchor had the same effect on me when I read it last year (and loved it!). This is an example of art that is unsettling, scary, uncomfortable and extremely powerful. It is not feel-good, heartwarming, or simple. It is bizarre, odd and beautiful. I am actually glad some of these stories went over my head; this means that I will discover more and more meaning with each reread. You definitely have to be in a particular mood for this to hit just right: for me it was a perfect match.
hotpterodactylprincess's review against another edition
4.0
The stories in this collection are bizarre in the best way possible. Paige Cooper is phenomenal at inviting readers into unique, obscure worlds that are complex and fully fleshed just within a handful of pages. I loved how complicated all the characters were.
This is a collection I took my time with, as I often felt like I had to sit and reflect on the stories after I finished reading them. There were a couple stories, like "Spiderhole" in particular, that didn't hook me in as well as the others, so I found them quite slow. However, all the rest made up for that. Some of my favourites included the namesake "Zolitude", "Moriah", "La Folie", and "Vazova on Love". Through all the beautiful strangeness, I was happy to be along for the ride as a reader.
This is a collection I took my time with, as I often felt like I had to sit and reflect on the stories after I finished reading them. There were a couple stories, like "Spiderhole" in particular, that didn't hook me in as well as the others, so I found them quite slow. However, all the rest made up for that. Some of my favourites included the namesake "Zolitude", "Moriah", "La Folie", and "Vazova on Love". Through all the beautiful strangeness, I was happy to be along for the ride as a reader.
besha's review
3.0
Like Raymond Carver with lusher prose: everyone seems unpleasant and vaguely unhappy. I did like the Elizabeth Holmes parody, though.
This ebook also suffered from random paragraphs in bold that made it even harder to read.
This ebook also suffered from random paragraphs in bold that made it even harder to read.
stephrobin's review against another edition
2.0
First, let me say that I respect how Paige Cooper weaves many genres together in this collection, from literary fiction, to sci-fi, to thriller; I enjoy the versatility. There were some stories that I absolutely loved, including "Ryan & Irene, Irene & Ryan" and "Moriah", which brought up compelling commentaries about violence against women. I quite liked the unique "Retirement", which focused on former Olympian, Evan, who is desperately clinging on to his glory days, while pining for his pregnant step-sister. I found other stories like "La Folie", "Spiderhole" and "Zolitude" to be enjoyable as well, with a wide array of perspectives and settings.
There were a few things I enjoyed less. Cooper's writing style randomly introduces new characters and situations throughout the stories without giving context, making the reader have to figure out what is happening. I get that it may create suspense/ mystery, but I find all the guesswork really took away from the storytelling, of being invested in the plot. Although the short story format offers readers less time with the characters, I found some of the characters to be dully written and flat, making me not really care about what happens ultimately. I may be biased because I am not really a sci-fi fan, but some of the sci-fi stories went on too long about technical terms that I found hard to follow, and I understand that perhaps that is common in the genre, but I found it rather uninteresting.
Finally, while some important social issues were brought up, such as gendered violence and class inequalities, I find many of these stories were not timely, and even tone-deaf. The first eponymous story "Zolitude" has a queer main character, but that is the only instance of queer representation. The only non-white characters were those that lived in small Asian villages, and they were represented largely through the white American gaze. For example, "La Folie" takes place in Vietnam, but there is no mention of Vietnamese people. The main character, Audrey, frequently mentions people speaking French, and refers to some locals as "Not speaking English or French", rather than saying "Vietnamese". This story literally takes place in an Asian country, but erases Asian people. I just find this comes off as ignorant. While "Zolitude" had some interesting and entertaining moments, I did not care for this book.
There were a few things I enjoyed less. Cooper's writing style randomly introduces new characters and situations throughout the stories without giving context, making the reader have to figure out what is happening. I get that it may create suspense/ mystery, but I find all the guesswork really took away from the storytelling, of being invested in the plot. Although the short story format offers readers less time with the characters, I found some of the characters to be dully written and flat, making me not really care about what happens ultimately. I may be biased because I am not really a sci-fi fan, but some of the sci-fi stories went on too long about technical terms that I found hard to follow, and I understand that perhaps that is common in the genre, but I found it rather uninteresting.
Finally, while some important social issues were brought up, such as gendered violence and class inequalities, I find many of these stories were not timely, and even tone-deaf. The first eponymous story "Zolitude" has a queer main character, but that is the only instance of queer representation. The only non-white characters were those that lived in small Asian villages, and they were represented largely through the white American gaze. For example, "La Folie" takes place in Vietnam, but there is no mention of Vietnamese people. The main character, Audrey, frequently mentions people speaking French, and refers to some locals as "Not speaking English or French", rather than saying "Vietnamese". This story literally takes place in an Asian country, but erases Asian people. I just find this comes off as ignorant. While "Zolitude" had some interesting and entertaining moments, I did not care for this book.
robynlets's review
4.0
A dense and demanding set of stories about social and environmental landscapes similar to but not the same as ours. At its best, this book captures the power of erotic human connection in a senseless world; Cooper is a skilled absurdist in this way. Don't expected to be guided by hand into any of these tales - I was often disoriented and sometimes just plain checked out. I respected this collection more than I enjoyed it.
penny_literaryhoarders's review
I don't know how to rate these. When I originally saw this collection publicized I determined it wouldn't be anything I would enjoy. On Monday, Zolitude was longlisted for the Giller Prize. The library had the collection available, so I thought I would give them a try.
As I previously determined, this collection wasn't anything I enjoyed. I felt like I was muddling around in them, confused and found them difficult to get through. When stories started out with sentences like this: I thought the key prerequisite would be our psychological capacity to drink each other's filtered urine.
no, I'm sorry, they simply weren't something I could settle into and enjoy.
This would be the second book I've read from the 2018 Longlisted titles. I've already read [b:Vi|35792823|Vi|Kim Thúy|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1512076147s/35792823.jpg|50203666] I'm now going to start reading the second short story collection longlisted - [b:Something for Everyone|39094016|Something for Everyone|Lisa Moore|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1529680225s/39094016.jpg|60672587]. I have a feeling these stories may be more along the lines of something I will connect more with.
As I previously determined, this collection wasn't anything I enjoyed. I felt like I was muddling around in them, confused and found them difficult to get through. When stories started out with sentences like this: I thought the key prerequisite would be our psychological capacity to drink each other's filtered urine.
no, I'm sorry, they simply weren't something I could settle into and enjoy.
This would be the second book I've read from the 2018 Longlisted titles. I've already read [b:Vi|35792823|Vi|Kim Thúy|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1512076147s/35792823.jpg|50203666] I'm now going to start reading the second short story collection longlisted - [b:Something for Everyone|39094016|Something for Everyone|Lisa Moore|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1529680225s/39094016.jpg|60672587]. I have a feeling these stories may be more along the lines of something I will connect more with.
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