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davygibbs's review against another edition
4.0
By the time of his first story collection, Almond's trademark wit was already fully formed. The writing here is polished and clever, the stories often both hilarious and moving -- and the thing reads like lightning. It's fun! But the relentless horny machismo grates after a hundred pages and starts, embarrassingly, to feel like wish fulfillment. I love Steve Almond's writing practically without exception -- I always read what he has to say. But the all-consuming lust, the emotional brashness, and the casual misogyny of youth is on full display here, and ultimately -- for me -- it comes close to sinking the book.
swaggysydney's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
booksaremysuperpower's review against another edition
3.0
This is a good collection. I'm more familiar with Almond's essays and nonfiction work, and this was my first foray into his fiction. Overall, I'm a big fan of his - I had the pleasure of taking a workshop with him a few years ago and he is nothing short of compassionate, a great teacher, and advocate for writers at all levels.
There were only a handful of stories that I just couldn't get into (good thing about short stories is that you can skip with abandon!) but most were terrific and highly readable. Man, he is a master at beginning sentences that hook you right in and his use of vivid language just slays me.
The real standout story for me, and one that perhaps doesn't fit the main theme of the book, was "Among the Ik". I found this particular story to be very moving and emotionally gripping. "Valentino", "My Life in Heavy Metal", "Run Away, my Pale Love", and "How to Love a Republican" were also unique and interesting stories.
Given its thru-line theme of "man struggles to find love, validation, and sexual fulfillment through various means," I can understand how individually (as one would have initially read them in magazines or journals when first published) these stories might have made a stronger impact, but as a whole, I found the same theme to get tiring after a while. There's a lot of fetishizing women and sex in the book that the female characters start to resemble merely tools and objects for the main male characters to find enlightenment and gratification, rather than explore real relationships - so much so, that at one point I wanted to yell out, "Hey, women were not put on this earth solely for you to find your worthiness!"
He has one story that features a female protagonist ("Geek Player, Love Slayer"), and I actually didn't know it was a woman until I reread the book jacket, figuring the main character a man for most of the story before I gave it up, finding it rather confusing and messy.
Still, I'm very happy to have finally read his debut short story work!
There were only a handful of stories that I just couldn't get into (good thing about short stories is that you can skip with abandon!) but most were terrific and highly readable. Man, he is a master at beginning sentences that hook you right in and his use of vivid language just slays me.
The real standout story for me, and one that perhaps doesn't fit the main theme of the book, was "Among the Ik". I found this particular story to be very moving and emotionally gripping. "Valentino", "My Life in Heavy Metal", "Run Away, my Pale Love", and "How to Love a Republican" were also unique and interesting stories.
Given its thru-line theme of "man struggles to find love, validation, and sexual fulfillment through various means," I can understand how individually (as one would have initially read them in magazines or journals when first published) these stories might have made a stronger impact, but as a whole, I found the same theme to get tiring after a while. There's a lot of fetishizing women and sex in the book that the female characters start to resemble merely tools and objects for the main male characters to find enlightenment and gratification, rather than explore real relationships - so much so, that at one point I wanted to yell out, "Hey, women were not put on this earth solely for you to find your worthiness!"
He has one story that features a female protagonist ("Geek Player, Love Slayer"), and I actually didn't know it was a woman until I reread the book jacket, figuring the main character a man for most of the story before I gave it up, finding it rather confusing and messy.
Still, I'm very happy to have finally read his debut short story work!
octospark's review against another edition
4.0
My one major critique with this collection is that it is too heterocentric. There was one story that had a slight homosexual leaning, but it was, as per usual, wrapped up in a victimy, clandestine, shameful energy, as gays are often depicted in popular fiction. Ultimately, I found Almond’s penchant for drawing not only his character’s personality traits in broad, three-dimensional strokes, but their loneliness, desire, obsession, and trysts as well. The people were depicted so realistically they were like the crossroads of a Gregory Crewdson photograph and an Edward Hopper painting: mysterious because it’s so real; alluring because you know it’s not.
scarlet_begonia21's review against another edition
5.0
One of my most favorite short story authors. I love this collection and am so grateful for my creative writing professor in college who first introduced me to Steve Almond :)
lucasmiller's review against another edition
2.0
I don't feel that I'm very accomplished at writing Goodreads reviews mostly because I tend to like everything. When I first started my profile, I was reading a lot Tao Lin (something I probably would not do now) and his goodreads profile gave every book listed five stars and no review. I liked it. It seemed pure and intentional. Opaque in a way that that was pleasing. But alas, my discipline faltered, and a few four star reviews crept in and a few timid attempts at comments on books I've read (I once compared the way Updike writes sex scenes to food writing). But I'm still disheartened and amazed when I see people who give out one and two stars reviews for half or more of the books they've read. Why? Why would you not put that book down, or better yet, throw it across the room? I will never read all the books I want to, so why spend the time to read books I don't like and then expend the time and energy to write about them for the five people who might see it on my goodreads page and not get past the weird personal rant at the beginning that has nothing to do with the book being reviewed?
I wasn't crazy about this book. I added to my wishlist after reading an interview with Almond about his new nonfiction book Against Football. He seemed to have a compelling voice in the interview, and this collection of stories was advertised on amazon as being funny and having frank depictions of sex, so I was game. I found a paperback copy while I was in Maine and read the whole book starting in Bangor International and finishing up in Laguardia. Airports and airplanes compel one to keep turning pages and force the time to pass.
There are three or four strong stories and one or two really great stories here. Most of the stories seem incredibly dated to me, somehow more dated than should be possible for a book published in 2002. The hot IT guy story made me cringe without ceasing.
The main characters in these stories tend to be average, noncommittal, slouchy guys in there late 20s or early 30s. None are very ambitious or particularly happy, but they are CONSTANTLY having sex with attractive women. I'm with it for a couple of stories, but it gets tiresome after awhile. Still when this trope is employed in just the right way it clicks and there are lots of funny and quite tender moments that result.
I wasn't crazy about this book. I added to my wishlist after reading an interview with Almond about his new nonfiction book Against Football. He seemed to have a compelling voice in the interview, and this collection of stories was advertised on amazon as being funny and having frank depictions of sex, so I was game. I found a paperback copy while I was in Maine and read the whole book starting in Bangor International and finishing up in Laguardia. Airports and airplanes compel one to keep turning pages and force the time to pass.
There are three or four strong stories and one or two really great stories here. Most of the stories seem incredibly dated to me, somehow more dated than should be possible for a book published in 2002. The hot IT guy story made me cringe without ceasing.
The main characters in these stories tend to be average, noncommittal, slouchy guys in there late 20s or early 30s. None are very ambitious or particularly happy, but they are CONSTANTLY having sex with attractive women. I'm with it for a couple of stories, but it gets tiresome after awhile. Still when this trope is employed in just the right way it clicks and there are lots of funny and quite tender moments that result.
ctort's review against another edition
4.0
Very carnal, modern look into the relationships. Dating, cheating, friendships, and the dearly departed. At times, a bit much -- but redeemed by author's acknowledgements of how these various short stories capture his perspective over the years.
gef's review against another edition
5.0
Nobody writes funnier about sex than Steve Almond. In some of his stories -- the earlier ones, I suspect -- that's the whole point, frequently featuring a feckless male unable to rein in his phallus and thus following it into ridiculously bad relationships. But that's not always all: Almond has become such a master of the comedy of sexual desperation that he can use it as a device to tell other, less predictable stories. You'll want to read this collection, not so much for the title story or even the one after that (about another kind of feckless male, a widower who depended on his wife just to function) -- they're OK, and funny in a kind of sick way, but don't get put off by them from reading the others. Especially good: "How to Love a Republican" is full of wet, sloppy sex, but it is really about the utterly shameless lust for power and perversion of the political process in our 2000 presidential election (the narrator is a guy working for Bradley, the girl is an ambitious operative for McCain, scornful of Bush, but easily seduced into the Bush camp once it's clear that that's where the opportunities will be). And be sure to read "The Pass," a semiotic essay worthy of Roland Barthes (who was also a good story-teller). All but one of the stories are told from a guy's point-of-view, usually in first person. The exception is, I think, a successful representation of the same lustful desperation in a woman (maybe some woman who reads it can tell me if it sounds true; it did to me): "Geek Player, Love Slayer." Almond is really good.
survivalisinsufficient's review against another edition
2.0
Ehh. None of these stories really grabbed me.
library_brandy's review against another edition
3.0
Not much to say on this, really. I like Steve Almond's short stories, but I think I liked Evil BB Chow better.
Took me forever to read this, as I kept wandering off from it.
Took me forever to read this, as I kept wandering off from it.