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halcyon_nights's review against another edition
3.0
I really loved the stories in the first half of the book, which were all about lonely people and people who can never fit in and maybe don't really want to (hello, self). And then the stories started getting more magical and whimsical and less about the people and I just lost interest. Amber Sparks has a bit of an eclectic style and her stories are more flash fiction and stream-of-consciousness than pure narratives and I liked that. It's just a shame that I didn't completely like the collection.
caelyncobb's review
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Favorite stories—“Death and the People”; The World After This One”; “The Ghosts Need More Air”
melanie_page's review against another edition
3.0
What, exactly, is it? Sparks's book wears many hats. It's a collection of short stories and flash fiction. At times, it's a series of lists: objects in an exhibit, school periods and corresponding homework, numbering/bullet points, character types (Mother, Father, Child, etc.), math equations, and boxing rounds. It's an entry into all points of view: first, second, third. You'll find longer stories that are plot-driven, flash fictions that are exercises in descriptive language or pondering theories. Bonus: the effect of varied forms is varied experience for the reader.
May we shed these human bodies: what does this polite request mean? Amber Sparks suggests shedding the human body is a means of ridding oneself of the possibility of being lonely or waiting for another body to comfort you. Dare I argue that every single story in Sparks’s collection uses the word lonely or alone? She writes, “Dream of throwing a blanket over your lonely life at last.” She writes, “You would always be the strongest, and you would always, always be alone.” She writes, “It will leave you utterly alone.” This device holds the collection together, although I can’t help but wish for more varied human emotions. I became exhausted by loneliness, wishing I could tape together the pages, merge the worlds of multiple stories, thus giving each character a friend (albeit a lonely one). Nor was I fully comfortable with these characters whose only mobility is down (sometimes literally down the drain).
Her varied form comes with varied tone. “As They Always Are” is a story that presents a mother with a baby whose appetite is vicious, though his mother is too sweet to care. When she dies, he never eats again, though he grows chubbier. How does he thrive? Why, the ghost of his mother feeds him at night, which we know only because his new stepmother is caught by the baby’s ghost mom while spying from behind the crib. The next morning, “when the sun rose, the baby’s nursemaid came to check on him as she did every morning. She found him lying on his back, eyes open and quite dead. All the fatness and pinkness had gone from him: he looked as though he’d starved to death.” Does seeing a ghost kill it? Was the dead mother no longer able to feed him? Was the jig up!? Sometimes the stories seem shocking for its own sake, and I felt like the writer was trying to be "cute" or "clever."
Sparks writes in the voices of trees, teenagers, ghosts, dictators, a city, poets, and children. If you’re not sure what you like, there are so many options in Sparks’s collection, and perhaps you like "Surprise! Something weird happened out of no where!" more than I do.
May we shed these human bodies: what does this polite request mean? Amber Sparks suggests shedding the human body is a means of ridding oneself of the possibility of being lonely or waiting for another body to comfort you. Dare I argue that every single story in Sparks’s collection uses the word lonely or alone? She writes, “Dream of throwing a blanket over your lonely life at last.” She writes, “You would always be the strongest, and you would always, always be alone.” She writes, “It will leave you utterly alone.” This device holds the collection together, although I can’t help but wish for more varied human emotions. I became exhausted by loneliness, wishing I could tape together the pages, merge the worlds of multiple stories, thus giving each character a friend (albeit a lonely one). Nor was I fully comfortable with these characters whose only mobility is down (sometimes literally down the drain).
Her varied form comes with varied tone. “As They Always Are” is a story that presents a mother with a baby whose appetite is vicious, though his mother is too sweet to care. When she dies, he never eats again, though he grows chubbier. How does he thrive? Why, the ghost of his mother feeds him at night, which we know only because his new stepmother is caught by the baby’s ghost mom while spying from behind the crib. The next morning, “when the sun rose, the baby’s nursemaid came to check on him as she did every morning. She found him lying on his back, eyes open and quite dead. All the fatness and pinkness had gone from him: he looked as though he’d starved to death.” Does seeing a ghost kill it? Was the dead mother no longer able to feed him? Was the jig up!? Sometimes the stories seem shocking for its own sake, and I felt like the writer was trying to be "cute" or "clever."
Sparks writes in the voices of trees, teenagers, ghosts, dictators, a city, poets, and children. If you’re not sure what you like, there are so many options in Sparks’s collection, and perhaps you like "Surprise! Something weird happened out of no where!" more than I do.
iguana_mama's review against another edition
2.0
Posted at Shelf Inflicted
This strange, experimental, imaginative collection is full of brilliant ideas and explores serious issues, but I felt many of the stories were a little too clever, wispy and insubstantial as air. I like the combination of magic realism, fantasy and horror and the variety of stories. There was enough weirdness and bizarre situations to capture my interest, and my enjoyment of stories by Aimee Bender and Kelly Link drew me to this collection. Unfortunately, the character development was lacking and I felt no connection to anyone. I’m sad these stories are already starting to slip away.
This strange, experimental, imaginative collection is full of brilliant ideas and explores serious issues, but I felt many of the stories were a little too clever, wispy and insubstantial as air. I like the combination of magic realism, fantasy and horror and the variety of stories. There was enough weirdness and bizarre situations to capture my interest, and my enjoyment of stories by Aimee Bender and Kelly Link drew me to this collection. Unfortunately, the character development was lacking and I felt no connection to anyone. I’m sad these stories are already starting to slip away.
hollandsays's review against another edition
2.0
I want to be the person who loves short stories but I just can't seem to plug into them. Ignore my review, read others. It's more about my lack of love of short stories than the acclaimed Amber Sparks.
mdbow22's review against another edition
4.0
This was really fun to read. Very weird. None of the stories are very long, which I didn't think I would like, but was actually best for the style.
thoughtsonbooks's review against another edition
4.0
I love Amber Sparks’ imagination and her way with words and the vagueness of her stories. She writes stories that are super short but filled with meaning and metaphors and hints of deeper darkness and I adore this. She writes longer stories that resonate deeply, often filled with fairy-taleness in a way that makes them feel both familiar and wonderfully original; I adored this too. The stories in this collection all share her special brand of weirdness - and weird short stories are my favourite.
My favourite story was hands down "when the weather changes you" - I loved the setting of a never-ending coldness and the desperate decisions resulting. I loved how this story is fairy-tale-like but grounded in reality. The framing device of a family myth really worked well for me.
Amber Sparks' manages to write stories that deeply resonate with me and I am somehow not capable of putting this resonance into words. I always struggle with reviews for short stories. I can say, however, that her brand of writing is highly fascinating to me and hat I am eager to read whatever she produces next.
My favourite story was hands down "when the weather changes you" - I loved the setting of a never-ending coldness and the desperate decisions resulting. I loved how this story is fairy-tale-like but grounded in reality. The framing device of a family myth really worked well for me.
Amber Sparks' manages to write stories that deeply resonate with me and I am somehow not capable of putting this resonance into words. I always struggle with reviews for short stories. I can say, however, that her brand of writing is highly fascinating to me and hat I am eager to read whatever she produces next.
8little_paws's review
5.0
OMG I absolutely loved this collection of very short stories. They're creative and passionate and even funny at times. Kind of reminded me of Kelly Link, but I felt I could connect better with these stories, personally. Can't wait to read her next collection now!!
pattireadsalot's review
5.0
I really really hope Amber Sparks will write a full length novel one day because she is brilliant! Her openings to these short stories are quite incredible and it would be fascinating to pick her brain and find out how she can articulate her ideas so well. In short, I'm jealous and wish I had that gift. There's no other way to describe it. I'm sure she's had mentors and teachers fostering her talent but its apparent she was born with her literary gifts.
One of my favorite passages from "When the Weather Changes You"-
"The year the earth froze hard as diamonds and the sky rained ash, my grandparents met and married. That's the way the story always starts, with a well established fact: two people met and were subsequently married. The details surrounding that fact are stranger, less certain. More like smoke than story. More like mirrors than memory".
Perfect:-)
One of my favorite passages from "When the Weather Changes You"-
"The year the earth froze hard as diamonds and the sky rained ash, my grandparents met and married. That's the way the story always starts, with a well established fact: two people met and were subsequently married. The details surrounding that fact are stranger, less certain. More like smoke than story. More like mirrors than memory".
Perfect:-)
moimoi's review
4.0
Lyrical and affecting. A great volume of micro-fiction (with a few forays into prose poetry as well). Carry this around with you to look cool and intriguing.