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3.83 AVERAGE
3.83 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
reflective
medium-paced
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Carver’s short stories in this collection are simple yet engaging. Hilariously I bought it based on the title thinking it would be sunshine and rainbows, but instead these short stories are filled with the dark sides of love: abuse, alcoholism, distance, infidelity, etc. A few stories stood out to me, a few left me puzzled. Carver sometimes ends his stories with unsatisfying ambiguity summarized in an ominous sentence referring to (or questioning the appearance of) a symbolic detail in the story. Yeah, yeah, maybe they mean something deep ™️ but it was too nihilistic for me. I liked “The Bath” “After the Denim” and “Gazebo” the best because of the story telling. Even “What we talk about when we talk about love” was engaging. I just wish he wrapped his stories off better— maybe I’m missing something big.
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It is hard to rate a body of work like this because, although the quality is consistent through all the short stories, it is impossible not to pick favorites (Sacks, Mr. Coffee and Mr. Fixit and the last three were highlights for me). Most of them share themes as well (love and relationships, family, death, guilt) but the narrative voice and style is so similar between them that I feel like the pieces didn't stand out enough for me. Still an enjoyable read.
fast-paced
emotional
reflective