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raven_morgan's review
5.0
The Secret Lives of Books by Rosaleen Love is the tenth volume in the Twelve Planets series from Twelfth Planet Press. This volume collects five unconnected short stories (unconnected in terms of plot; like many of the other volumes in the series, there are connected thematic elements).
The first story in the collection is the titular The Secret Lives of Books. There is a deceptive simplicity about Love's prose which is especially evident in this story. Expect no baroque prose here, but rather an almost brutal simplicity, but there is absolutely nothing simple about Love's writing, with even the plainest of sentences containing layers of meaning. On the surface, this is a ghost story - a man dies and discovers that he loves his books more than his family. There is so much here that speaks of the deep love that people can have for books, and the homes that they can find in them. One of my favourites from the collection.
Next is Kiddofspeed. I was looking forward to this one in particular, being familiar with the controversy surrounding Elena Filatova's supposed solo motorbike ride through the radiation zone surrounding Chernobyl. This is a biting piece, short but extremely powerful, that speaks to the layers of meaning that occur at the place where fact blurs into fiction.
Qasida is a story that really highlights Love's precise talent with language. There are several threads running through this story, including explorers, Mars, alternate history and the connections that hold people together (and conversely, are not strong enough to hold them together). There's an almost psychedelic tone to this story, giving the impression of looking into a kaleidoscope of fractured images that, at the end, form into a whole. I am deeply impressed by the talent that it takes to write a story like this.
The Kairos Moment feels very much cut from similar cloth as Qasida, though the story itself isn't fractured into pieces. For me, it didn't work quite as well as the previous story (which probably reflects much more on me as a reader than Love as a writer).
The final story in the collection is The slut and the universe. To me, this story reads as a feminist fable, exploring the ideas of feminine sexuality and the ways in which women choose to present themselves to the world. A stunning story, and a strong finish to the collection.
This is the first Rosaleen Love that I've read (much to my shame) and I am certain that it won't be the last. I suspect that many of the stories will stand up well to rereading (and will possibly gain depth upon each reread). Like all of the volumes in the Twelve Planets, it is highly recommended.
The first story in the collection is the titular The Secret Lives of Books. There is a deceptive simplicity about Love's prose which is especially evident in this story. Expect no baroque prose here, but rather an almost brutal simplicity, but there is absolutely nothing simple about Love's writing, with even the plainest of sentences containing layers of meaning. On the surface, this is a ghost story - a man dies and discovers that he loves his books more than his family. There is so much here that speaks of the deep love that people can have for books, and the homes that they can find in them. One of my favourites from the collection.
Next is Kiddofspeed. I was looking forward to this one in particular, being familiar with the controversy surrounding Elena Filatova's supposed solo motorbike ride through the radiation zone surrounding Chernobyl. This is a biting piece, short but extremely powerful, that speaks to the layers of meaning that occur at the place where fact blurs into fiction.
Qasida is a story that really highlights Love's precise talent with language. There are several threads running through this story, including explorers, Mars, alternate history and the connections that hold people together (and conversely, are not strong enough to hold them together). There's an almost psychedelic tone to this story, giving the impression of looking into a kaleidoscope of fractured images that, at the end, form into a whole. I am deeply impressed by the talent that it takes to write a story like this.
The Kairos Moment feels very much cut from similar cloth as Qasida, though the story itself isn't fractured into pieces. For me, it didn't work quite as well as the previous story (which probably reflects much more on me as a reader than Love as a writer).
The final story in the collection is The slut and the universe. To me, this story reads as a feminist fable, exploring the ideas of feminine sexuality and the ways in which women choose to present themselves to the world. A stunning story, and a strong finish to the collection.
This is the first Rosaleen Love that I've read (much to my shame) and I am certain that it won't be the last. I suspect that many of the stories will stand up well to rereading (and will possibly gain depth upon each reread). Like all of the volumes in the Twelve Planets, it is highly recommended.
thiefofcamorr's review
3.0
Secret Lives of Books, is the tenth book in the Twelve Planets series, released by Twelfth Planet Press, which showcase the talent of female Australian authors. There is now to be a thirteenth in the series, but that's a review for another time. The brief given to authors was to write several short stories of up to 40,000 words in total. The stories could be separate, discrete narratives or linked through character, setting or theme.
This collection contains five short stories that don't appear to be connected in the first light, however when you've read them all there appears to be some faint thread of deeper meaning. My full review can be read here.
This collection contains five short stories that don't appear to be connected in the first light, however when you've read them all there appears to be some faint thread of deeper meaning. My full review can be read here.
anna_hepworth's review
4.0
A slender collection of short stories, each one packing quite a punch. Love's writing style is quite pared back, understated, and the subtlety of the stories is a delight. Each story interrogates a different aspect of culture and/or politics, investigating the domestic and small, as well as the world-spanning and world-changing. Well worth a read.
mizzelle's review
4.0
The Secret Lives of Books is the tenth in the Twelfth Planet series of short story collections, showcasing female writers. Five stories showcase Rosaleen Love's quirky and distinctive point of view. The title story "Secret Lives of Books" feels like a cautionary tale for book hoarders -- even if you could live amongst your books, would you want to? "Kiddofspeed" feels strangely apt in the age of "fake news" and online memes. The truth is rarely as interesting as the fiction created online. "Qasida" asks the perennial question of "Where does all the space junk and lost socks go?" Apparently it's Mars and we're not terribly good at translating. "The Kairos Effect" made me imagine a 12 hour intergalactic jam session finding "the music of the spheres". The only one I struggled with was the last one where a three women in post-apocalyptic Earth meet Gaia and try to make sense of it all. It's an odd set of stories, but they keyed on a facet of my interests (books, space travel, music, Internet) that I found fascinating. I was completely unfamiliar with Rosaleen Love's work, but I would eagerly pick up more after this.
tsana's review
5.0
Secret Lives of Books by Rosaleen Love is the latest volume in Twelfth Planet Press's Twelve Planets series of collections. With this one, I wasn't sure what to expect going in — other than feminism — since I'm not familiar with any of Love's other work. And it was about feminism, although that was mainly the last story, which I suspect is the one to stick in people's minds.
It's called Secret Lives of Books, but I think what it's really about is the secret lives of stories. All five stories within grapple with the story of stories on some level. "The Secret Lives of Books" is literally about the secret story of a particular collection of books, "Kiddofspeed" is about a story that developed around some photos, "Qasida" is about the mysteries of Mars and the plausibility of fantastical stories, "The slut and the universe" (which has a couple of long subtitles which I'll leave for you to discover yourselves) is about the stories of feminism and misogyny. Fitting least into this patter, "The Kairos Moment" is a story about music, muisic itself being a type of story, albeit not necessarily in the narrative sense. There is, of course, the expected feminism in this collection, but I found it mostly manifested through the existence of female characters, apart from in "The slut and the universe".
My favourite story was "Qasida", which I decided would probably be my favourite when I was still halfway through it and had two more stories left to go. It's sort of a surreal story about Mars and magic (for lack of a better term) travel and aliens, except it's not all that surreal. It's told rather sensibly, which I think is part of the appeal.
I highly recommend this collection to all SFF fans. The stories were all equally good and almost equally unusual. I'd tentatively say this is probably in my top four of the Twelve Planets. Which might not sound like much, but you have to remember there's some very stiff competition.
~
Secret Lives of Books — This was a strange story that didn’t go the way it initially seemed it would. The main character is a recently deceased writer, trying desperately to get a living person’s attention. And then there’s his extensive book collection, which he has always been very attached to. I’d call this soft horror, as we incrementally — creeping — learn more about the books.
Kiddofspeed — Another unusual story, sort of chronicling the adventures of a girl taking photos of Pripyat (near Chernobyl, and based on real events) and sort of talking about the nature of story.
Qasida — Probably my favourite story so far. It’s another story of stories, this time about Mars and strange happenings. Visits to Mars, objects from Mars and the
The Kairos Moment — An odd story about the uplifting feeling people experience when listening to good music. And a researcher trying to study the phenomenon. And some strange happenings. I was entertained and quite amused. (And in case it isn't obvious, this story is certainly represented on the gorgeous cover.)
The slut and the universe — I seem to have noted that all the stories in this collection are unusual and this is no exception. It's a post-apocalyptic fairytale about feminism. Despite the post-apocalyptic setting not much seems to have changed and there is discussion (literally) on such feminist topics as the meaning of the word "slut" an why feminism is the root of all evil. It was also a rather entertaining read.
4.5 / 5 stars
You can read more of my reviews on my blog.
It's called Secret Lives of Books, but I think what it's really about is the secret lives of stories. All five stories within grapple with the story of stories on some level. "The Secret Lives of Books" is literally about the secret story of a particular collection of books, "Kiddofspeed" is about a story that developed around some photos, "Qasida" is about the mysteries of Mars and the plausibility of fantastical stories, "The slut and the universe" (which has a couple of long subtitles which I'll leave for you to discover yourselves) is about the stories of feminism and misogyny. Fitting least into this patter, "The Kairos Moment" is a story about music, muisic itself being a type of story, albeit not necessarily in the narrative sense. There is, of course, the expected feminism in this collection, but I found it mostly manifested through the existence of female characters, apart from in "The slut and the universe".
My favourite story was "Qasida", which I decided would probably be my favourite when I was still halfway through it and had two more stories left to go. It's sort of a surreal story about Mars and magic (for lack of a better term) travel and aliens, except it's not all that surreal. It's told rather sensibly, which I think is part of the appeal.
I highly recommend this collection to all SFF fans. The stories were all equally good and almost equally unusual. I'd tentatively say this is probably in my top four of the Twelve Planets. Which might not sound like much, but you have to remember there's some very stiff competition.
~
Secret Lives of Books — This was a strange story that didn’t go the way it initially seemed it would. The main character is a recently deceased writer, trying desperately to get a living person’s attention. And then there’s his extensive book collection, which he has always been very attached to. I’d call this soft horror, as we incrementally — creeping — learn more about the books.
Kiddofspeed — Another unusual story, sort of chronicling the adventures of a girl taking photos of Pripyat (near Chernobyl, and based on real events) and sort of talking about the nature of story.
Qasida — Probably my favourite story so far. It’s another story of stories, this time about Mars and strange happenings. Visits to Mars, objects from Mars and the
The Kairos Moment — An odd story about the uplifting feeling people experience when listening to good music. And a researcher trying to study the phenomenon. And some strange happenings. I was entertained and quite amused. (And in case it isn't obvious, this story is certainly represented on the gorgeous cover.)
The slut and the universe — I seem to have noted that all the stories in this collection are unusual and this is no exception. It's a post-apocalyptic fairytale about feminism. Despite the post-apocalyptic setting not much seems to have changed and there is discussion (literally) on such feminist topics as the meaning of the word "slut" an why feminism is the root of all evil. It was also a rather entertaining read.
4.5 / 5 stars
You can read more of my reviews on my blog.
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