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saaraa96's review against another edition
2.0
They were twitter stories and I rated by considering that, but there are accounts on twitter who write short fiction stories and I liked them more.
ashrafulla's review against another edition
2.0
I'm not sure I read this correctly. As the book is an anthology of very short fiction stories, trying to read all of them in one shot is probably too much of a disservice to each piece. However, I think most people will read this book in one or two sittings. So that's how I'll review the book.
The book is a cross between poetry and prose. The short format forces the economy of words common in poetry. However, the focus is on story over rhythm which is common in prose. The result is that a lot of stories are the same. The first couple of times you chuckle at the "twist" in the story. The tenth time you are tired. By the end you are just reading words.
I think there is something to this theme though. This is a fantastic everyday snack, not a meal. You'd be dense to try to eat grapes as a meal. You'd be happy to eat a few grapes a day. The same goes for these stories. This book is better suited for a five-minute random read than as a book. That's because this style is in the streaming style of Internet literature, not the batch style of older literature. Whether or be Wordle, or Very Short Stories, or Ride the News, I am seeing a new way to ingest art. That ingestion is smaller and faster and more frequent. It is as good as the big thing (the Sunday crossword, the novel, the longform documentary). It's just different. Crossing over is too difficult: what works for appetizer art does not translate to main dish art, and vice versa.
Let me be very clear: appetizer art is not "easier" or "less" than main dish art. Both are fantastic. Packaging one as the other is where the failure occurs. This book attempts to package a few hundred of the same appetizer as a main course. That doesn't work.
The second star is because this book is still useful as a conversation piece.
The book is a cross between poetry and prose. The short format forces the economy of words common in poetry. However, the focus is on story over rhythm which is common in prose. The result is that a lot of stories are the same. The first couple of times you chuckle at the "twist" in the story. The tenth time you are tired. By the end you are just reading words.
I think there is something to this theme though. This is a fantastic everyday snack, not a meal. You'd be dense to try to eat grapes as a meal. You'd be happy to eat a few grapes a day. The same goes for these stories. This book is better suited for a five-minute random read than as a book. That's because this style is in the streaming style of Internet literature, not the batch style of older literature. Whether or be Wordle, or Very Short Stories, or Ride the News, I am seeing a new way to ingest art. That ingestion is smaller and faster and more frequent. It is as good as the big thing (the Sunday crossword, the novel, the longform documentary). It's just different. Crossing over is too difficult: what works for appetizer art does not translate to main dish art, and vice versa.
Let me be very clear: appetizer art is not "easier" or "less" than main dish art. Both are fantastic. Packaging one as the other is where the failure occurs. This book attempts to package a few hundred of the same appetizer as a main course. That doesn't work.
The second star is because this book is still useful as a conversation piece.
macbean221b's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 STARS
Exactly what it says on the tin. Some of the stories are good, some of them aren't. Some of them make you think in a good way, some of them make you think, "...Huh?" All in all, a quick, fun read. And since nothing was outstandingly memorable, it'll probably be a quick, fun read again one day.
Exactly what it says on the tin. Some of the stories are good, some of them aren't. Some of them make you think in a good way, some of them make you think, "...Huh?" All in all, a quick, fun read. And since nothing was outstandingly memorable, it'll probably be a quick, fun read again one day.
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