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bookedbymadeline's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.0
I don’t always like short stories but this was one of the best I’ve read! Groff is able to give us insight into each character whether we follow them for 10 or 50 pages. Some stories and characters I connected with more than others of course, some I wanted to stay with and others did have confusing endings where I didn’t fully understand what the point was. I think I’ve found that I enjoy short stories more when I’ve read the author’s novels first, and can therefore better understand their writing style and appreciate the stories and characters more!
I marked quite a few pages/passages-I love Lauren Groff’s lyrical writing and exploration on humanity! I enjoyed the first half of the collection much more than the second half.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Rape, and Blood
Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Racism, Death of parent, and Abandonment
Minor: Infidelity, Suicide, and Vomit
wenona66's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Stories were hit or miss for me, with more hits than misses. Favourite were "At the Round Earth's Imagined Corners", "Dogs Go Wolf", "Above and Below", and "Snake Stories".
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death and Sexual assault
Moderate: Domestic abuse
rachaelbunny's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I found the stories really varied in how much I enjoyed them. Some were really good and others seemed to only be character vignettes.
A lot of themes and character details kept repeating, which I found distracting and frustrating. About half of the stories have basically the same main character: a white, financially privileged mother of two little boys (around ages 4 and 7?). She isn’t a “regular” mom, though. She doesn’t do normal mom things, she isn’t domestic or particularly social, she just wants to be alone and drink wine and think about an obscure man from history she’s obsessed with. If she works, it’s something vague and freelance. She’s unhappy in her marriage, but in a way that doesn’t make her actually want to bother with a divorce. She’s worried about the climate crisis but in a vague self-pitying way.
A lot of themes and character details kept repeating, which I found distracting and frustrating. About half of the stories have basically the same main character: a white, financially privileged mother of two little boys (around ages 4 and 7?). She isn’t a “regular” mom, though. She doesn’t do normal mom things, she isn’t domestic or particularly social, she just wants to be alone and drink wine and think about an obscure man from history she’s obsessed with. If she works, it’s something vague and freelance. She’s unhappy in her marriage, but in a way that doesn’t make her actually want to bother with a divorce. She’s worried about the climate crisis but in a vague self-pitying way.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Grief
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