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3.83 AVERAGE
3.83 AVERAGE
was part of my “these books must self destruct” and now i get to unhaul it. i know it’s a classic but the first few stories did nothing to capture my attention, and then there was some casual racism and misogyny that i just wasn’t in the mood to push through
Very short short stories reflecting an almost nonchalant appreciation of moments and relationships in the midst of an otherwise messy, lonely and tired life.
Underlying themes of marriage and its breakdown through death, divorce or sexual/physical violence.
Some favourites (without putting too much thought into it):
- Why don’t you dance*
- I could see the smallest things
- Sacks
- The bath*
- After the denim*
- Popular mechanics
- Everything stuck to him *
- What we talk about when we talk about love *
On a more personal note - I found myself questioning my reading comprehension at times when trying to orient myself to each new story on some tired evenings. Simply due to the nature of short stories, they are unforgiving if I zone out for even a little while.
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexism, Sexual assault, Murder
Moderate: Alcoholism, Alcohol
dark
reflective
medium-paced
Divorced-dad-core, in the nicest way possible. A few of the stories gripped me in classic Carver fashion. The titular story and “After the Denim” really stand out.
dark
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
dark
slow-paced
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Very interesting collection of short stories - there were some really fantastic ones and there was some really drab ones and I'm not really sure what the in between ground led me to. I feel like I learnt something from this book but I'm also not sure I learnt that much, still good!
2.5/5
This one didn't particularly do it for me - while the writing is strong, I didn't resonate with any of the characters or the stories. Any time I got into a story, it would end almost a page later. I don't imagine I'll remember any details particularly well, except for maybe that one quote which I knew from 'Stuck in Love' anyway....
This one didn't particularly do it for me - while the writing is strong, I didn't resonate with any of the characters or the stories. Any time I got into a story, it would end almost a page later. I don't imagine I'll remember any details particularly well, except for maybe that one quote which I knew from 'Stuck in Love' anyway....
Mi puntuación para este libro es de tres estrellas y media porque esperaba mucho más de este libro. Compuestos por muchos relatos en los cuales se juntan temas como el amor, alcohol y el caos, creo que todos ellos convivieron en la vida del mismos autor. Varios relatos me gustaron pero si me tengo que quedar con uno, elijo el relato que lleva el nombre del mismo libro, otros relatos no me gustaron. En fin, no tengo mucho para decir, solo que en la mayor parte de los relatos Raymond nos plasma un poco lo acontecido en su vida real problemas con el alcohol, un matrimonio caótico y problemas con las adicciones. Lo recomendaría? Lo tendría que analizar un poco más.