Scan barcode
A review by rigbees
Homesick: Stories by Nino Cipri
5.0
Wow! Nino Cipri's Homesick is definitely a book that I'm going to come back to. Originally, I was recommended to read this collection based on its similarity to [b:Her Body and Other Parties|33375622|Her Body and Other Parties|Carmen Maria Machado|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1485266434l/33375622._SX50_.jpg|54116423]. It has the same socially conscious horror threads, starting with a bigender character in the first story, same-gender romances throughout, and including the messy community of three queer researchers in the final story.
The best stories come later on in this collection. The final (and longest) story, Before We Disperse Like Star Stuff, is about the fallout of a joint research project between two academics and an environmental activist (with an MA in archaeology). It, like most of the other stories, is both queer in its representation of LGBT characters and queer in how it wrestles with questions about humanity. The researchers had discovered the remains of a non-human civilization with a written record, and questions of "what respect do we owe their remains" and "what respect do we owe each other" push the characters further.
Some of the stories in this collection are a little rougher than others. Not the Ocean, but the Sea sticks out in particular as a story that doesn't fit in with the rest. It's more focused on imagery and the emotional arc than the plot-driven stories that preceded it. While it's not bad, per se, it's not well-served as part of this collection.
Favorite Story: A tie between The Shape of My Name and Before We Disperse Like Star Stuff
Scariest Story: Dead Air (I made the mistake of reading this right before bed!)
The best stories come later on in this collection. The final (and longest) story, Before We Disperse Like Star Stuff, is about the fallout of a joint research project between two academics and an environmental activist (with an MA in archaeology). It, like most of the other stories, is both queer in its representation of LGBT characters and queer in how it wrestles with questions about humanity. The researchers had discovered the remains of a non-human civilization with a written record, and questions of "what respect do we owe their remains" and "what respect do we owe each other" push the characters further.
Some of the stories in this collection are a little rougher than others. Not the Ocean, but the Sea sticks out in particular as a story that doesn't fit in with the rest. It's more focused on imagery and the emotional arc than the plot-driven stories that preceded it. While it's not bad, per se, it's not well-served as part of this collection.
Favorite Story: A tie between The Shape of My Name and Before We Disperse Like Star Stuff
Scariest Story: Dead Air (I made the mistake of reading this right before bed!)