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cheapjelly's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
This book gets me in the mood to watch Kendall Roy edits whilst listening to Mitski.
hollydunndesign's review against another edition
3.0
This collection was a bit hit and miss. I loved the first story about a woman who cuts her boyfriend in half, and in half again, and again, until they start to live their own individual lives. However, the rest of the stories were a little ho-hum. There were a few others that caught my attention, but sadly nothing lived up to that first one, which I think was a shame. It has some great magical realism elements though, and there are definitely stories in here that are creative, interesting, and well worth reading.
bookswithbecs_'s review against another edition
challenging
dark
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
ltd's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.75
Really enjoyed this book - nice vignettes of magical realism with a theme of self-discovery
katiersmart's review
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
chris_davies's review against another edition
5.0
This is an utterly brilliant collection of short stories. These tales are clever, strange (in a good way), thought provoking and pack an emotional punch. Best of all, they are superbly written and, unusually for a short story collection, there is not a duff one amongst them.
What more is there to say other than read this book now! It's quite short and I expect some people could polish it off in an afternoon, but you'll want to savour every exquisitely turned phrase. Easily the best book I've read this year.
What more is there to say other than read this book now! It's quite short and I expect some people could polish it off in an afternoon, but you'll want to savour every exquisitely turned phrase. Easily the best book I've read this year.
chantalthebookavenger's review against another edition
3.0
My favorite part about this collection of short stories were the first sentences: "I cut my boyfriend in half; it was what we both wanted."; "my mother was like a Custard Cream, nothing special, an ordinary sort of nice though"; "Last summer, it was me and Eva against everything evil in the world: swimsuits, kale, something that buzzed in our room"; "It's not so bad being a dog-faced girl, even a stray" and so on..
murderousscottishgremlin's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
This was a really interesting little anthology, full of some great explorations of the human condition but ultimately, some of the stories were a bit dull. Also slightly batshit crazy but I love that.
angeliqueazul's review against another edition
3.0
Don't Try This at Home is a good short story collection. The twelve stories all explore a weird, funny, sad or unusual idea while at the same time being connected through themes like mother-daughter relationships, and 'what if's. Most of the stories take real life and give it a small twist or present a character or event in an unusual light, which makes all the stories really interesting to read.
I loved the title story and "There's a Woman Works Down the Chip Shop," which is one of the few more uplifting stories in this collection. I stopped reading for months after the first two stories because they were pretty gloomy, but I am really glad I came back to the book and finished it. Angela Readman is a really good writer and I am looking forward to reading some of her poetry. I would recommend Don't Try This at Home to readers who enjoy stories that explore relationships, include magical or unusual elements, and are often more on the gritty and serious side.
I loved the title story and "There's a Woman Works Down the Chip Shop," which is one of the few more uplifting stories in this collection. I stopped reading for months after the first two stories because they were pretty gloomy, but I am really glad I came back to the book and finished it. Angela Readman is a really good writer and I am looking forward to reading some of her poetry. I would recommend Don't Try This at Home to readers who enjoy stories that explore relationships, include magical or unusual elements, and are often more on the gritty and serious side.
novel_nomad's review against another edition
3.0
The first story was wonderful and really made me engage with ideas of self and identity. The other stories were alright, some I enjoyed and others I had to force myself to finish but we're thankfully short.