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3.76 AVERAGE
3.76 AVERAGE
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A new master of the genre. I wish I were still teaching First year Comp just so I could share Oyeyemi's work.
Whenever I pick up a book of Helen Oyeyemi’s I know I’m in for a difficult, twisty read and I LOVE IT. This was the second ebook library loan I couldn’t fulfill on my nook and I was pissed enough to drive to my local library to borrow a hard copy. This is a collection of short stories with the theme of locks and keys. Like her other books, the characters here are wonderfully diverse and mostly human. Characters drift in and out of each other’s stories. My favorites of the stories were “A Brief History of the Homely Wench Society” and “Books and Roses.” Five stars and I’m going to start diving into her backlist.
bigarurre: "a medley of sundry colors running together" and/or "a discourse running oddly and fantastically, from one matter to another"
I was mesmerized by Oyeyemi's dizzying imagination from the start. Her stories flow seamlessly and morph into unexpected shapes within the turn of a sentence. You come to think you're reading about an abandoned baby left at a monastery, but by then you're following the life of a laundress, getting lost in a library where books whisper and rustle in the night, and of course, there is also the beautiful garden covered in wild roses and the mountain that protects those who believe.
But it's not just the stories-as-such that dance in these unpredictable kaleidoscopic forms. Oyeyemi's descriptions - of phenomena, people, relations - also defy conventions and rules. In introducing a character, Oyeyemi for example does not describe their appearance, needs, aspirations, or other standard fare, but rather reveals them more subtly, by telling us that this person "wore a chain around her neck, [and] told people that she was fifty years old and gave them looks that dared them to say she was in good condition for her age" (she was 35).
Oyeyemi is, in other words, a poet. Her book has been described by more illustrious reviewers as "fever-dream" in quality (NY times book review cover blurb) - but really, this is no Timothy Leary; what this is, is vivid, completely lucid/sober and magnificently penetrating poetry. And, thankfully, through a character's research into the term bigarurre, Oyeyemi offers us a vital clue to unpacking her style, because the orchestra of images she conducts is precisely both "a medley of sundry colors running together" and/or "a discourse running oddly and fantastically, from one matter to another."
Did I enjoy this book? Well, while I loved being swept off my feet and carried along on a surreal journey into creative genius, I can't say I enjoyed being pulled under by the currents. At times, I was drowning - I had absolutely no way to grasp either what was happening or the meaning behind a gesture, a character, the entire story. And I know that's the beauty of such genius - it leads you to ask your own questions. But still, at times I felt so unmoored I lost interest, and was not very compelled to continue- you could say I was bored. But, as any teacher knows, boredom is most often a symptom of incomprehension, for which scaffolding is critical! Which means, I suppose, that I need to start reading poetry (I should! I've been wanting to! I know it's so critical..). And perhaps some books on poetry. At some point after that, I will make plans to revisit this book.
That said, I can absolutely see why this book is one which is raved about by the critics but maybe not as highly regarded by the rest of the public. I personally did not enjoy it, because put simply, this is top-tier mind-blowing poetry, and, as a novice poetry-reader, I didn't "get" much of it (my ultimate goal in life is to shed my scientific training and critical mindset and be able to fully appreciate art and poetry in their sensuous, embodied splendor. I am not even close to that now btw).
Still, my rating, based on my appreciation of Oyeyemi as an artist, cannot be less than a 5. I highly recommend this if you like thoughtful books, and especially if you appreciate poetry!
I was mesmerized by Oyeyemi's dizzying imagination from the start. Her stories flow seamlessly and morph into unexpected shapes within the turn of a sentence. You come to think you're reading about an abandoned baby left at a monastery, but by then you're following the life of a laundress, getting lost in a library where books whisper and rustle in the night, and of course, there is also the beautiful garden covered in wild roses and the mountain that protects those who believe.
But it's not just the stories-as-such that dance in these unpredictable kaleidoscopic forms. Oyeyemi's descriptions - of phenomena, people, relations - also defy conventions and rules. In introducing a character, Oyeyemi for example does not describe their appearance, needs, aspirations, or other standard fare, but rather reveals them more subtly, by telling us that this person "wore a chain around her neck, [and] told people that she was fifty years old and gave them looks that dared them to say she was in good condition for her age" (she was 35).
Oyeyemi is, in other words, a poet. Her book has been described by more illustrious reviewers as "fever-dream" in quality (NY times book review cover blurb) - but really, this is no Timothy Leary; what this is, is vivid, completely lucid/sober and magnificently penetrating poetry. And, thankfully, through a character's research into the term bigarurre, Oyeyemi offers us a vital clue to unpacking her style, because the orchestra of images she conducts is precisely both "a medley of sundry colors running together" and/or "a discourse running oddly and fantastically, from one matter to another."
Did I enjoy this book? Well, while I loved being swept off my feet and carried along on a surreal journey into creative genius, I can't say I enjoyed being pulled under by the currents. At times, I was drowning - I had absolutely no way to grasp either what was happening or the meaning behind a gesture, a character, the entire story. And I know that's the beauty of such genius - it leads you to ask your own questions. But still, at times I felt so unmoored I lost interest, and was not very compelled to continue- you could say I was bored. But, as any teacher knows, boredom is most often a symptom of incomprehension, for which scaffolding is critical! Which means, I suppose, that I need to start reading poetry (I should! I've been wanting to! I know it's so critical..). And perhaps some books on poetry. At some point after that, I will make plans to revisit this book.
That said, I can absolutely see why this book is one which is raved about by the critics but maybe not as highly regarded by the rest of the public. I personally did not enjoy it, because put simply, this is top-tier mind-blowing poetry, and, as a novice poetry-reader, I didn't "get" much of it (my ultimate goal in life is to shed my scientific training and critical mindset and be able to fully appreciate art and poetry in their sensuous, embodied splendor. I am not even close to that now btw).
Still, my rating, based on my appreciation of Oyeyemi as an artist, cannot be less than a 5. I highly recommend this if you like thoughtful books, and especially if you appreciate poetry!
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was a non-traditional collection of short stories, since all the stories intertwined. I enjoyed some, but was totally baffeld by others. I read this in a span of a few days, so maybe taking it slowly and letting each story sink in would have been a better approach.
This book took me a record long time to finish based on the length. It’s not because I didn’t love it, but because Oyeyemi’s writing is just so intense! And I mean that as the highest compliment. I would finish each story and then need to take a break for a day to digest before moving on to the next. In every short story collection I feel like there’s always one that I enjoy less, and while they was technically true here every story was so interesting, and introduced interesting ideas, even if it wasn’t my favorite. I’m going to be thinking about this one for a long time (and maybe now I’ll have the courage to read one of her novels—her intensity is why I’ve had trouble, and these bite sized chunks made it easier, but i have the ARC of Gingerbread just sitting on my shelf so
A pleasure to escape into these stories.
These short stories are varied, but all feature keys as an essential plot point and employ magical realism. If you enjoy the genre you'll likely find these stories as delightful and readable as I did. I think it's challenging to draw a reader in to the world of a short story, and it's impressive how often I found these stories took me completely out of the real world and made me lose track of time.
These short stories are varied, but all feature keys as an essential plot point and employ magical realism. If you enjoy the genre you'll likely find these stories as delightful and readable as I did. I think it's challenging to draw a reader in to the world of a short story, and it's impressive how often I found these stories took me completely out of the real world and made me lose track of time.
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
I guess I don't get Oyeyemi and this will be my last book from her. This was a boring hot mess.