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seymone's review
4.0
3.75 stars
Brinkley is incredibly deft at creating short stories that capture your imagination and transport you into the actual storyline. I found the prose of some of these stories, to be superbly lyrical - at times, I had to really stop and appreciate, the imagery and emotions evoked by the lyricism.
Brinkley is incredibly deft at creating short stories that capture your imagination and transport you into the actual storyline. I found the prose of some of these stories, to be superbly lyrical - at times, I had to really stop and appreciate, the imagery and emotions evoked by the lyricism.
marta_fiona's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
fionystory's review
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
4.0
rebecca316's review
3.0
Meh. More like a 2.5. As with some Junot Diaz, I found the line between writing about misogyny and writing misogyny to be pretty blurry.
ridgewaygirl's review
4.0
This is a noteworthy collection; not only are short stories a hard sell for established authors, but for a new author like Brinkley, published by a smaller publisher outside of the Big Five to get any attention at all is unusual. Yet this book shows up on prize lists as diverse as the National Book Award and The Tournament of Books. The attention the is book is getting is well-deserved, the stories collected here are varied, but all speak to the experience of growing up as a person of color in New York. Like most collections, there were a few weaker offerings sandwiched between the strongest stories at the front and back of the book, but all were worth reading. Brinkley's skill is to bring the inner life of a child to life and to make the reader feel every uncertainty. This is a collection that brings to life the people living in the ungentrified areas of New York's boroughs. It's a good collection and I'll be sure to read whatever Brinkley writes next.
erynn01's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
wmmcmanlypants's review
4.0
Best stories, IMO, were “I Happy Am”, “J’ouvert 1996”, and “Everything the Mouth Eats”. The connective tissue made this collection feel redundant in spots, but overall it is fantastic and highly worth anyone’s time. It’s currently shortlisted for the National Book Award for good reason.