A review by janneyf
Both Ways is the Only Way I Want It by Maile Meloy

5.0

I got this book as a Goodreads Giveaway. This is my first reading of Maile Meloy, and I will certainly continue to read her work. All of these stories are excellent, and I've already decided to use one or two of them in my teaching of high schoolers next year. There's much to think and talk about for each story, and Meloy's characters are believable, especially in their self-absorbed, ego-driven ways. The title of the collection applies to all of the stories in one way or another, as characters try to live out their dreams with various success. It seems like I'm saying here that the characters are all jerks, but they're not--just morally compromised to some degree, like the rest of us.

I just read this collection a second time, and it holds up to everything that makes reading wonderful - which is why I now give it 5 stars instead of my previous 4. These stories are gems, and the book is worth purchasing for its continued enjoyment.