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A review by dreamgalaxies
I Hold a Wolf by the Ears: Stories by Laura van den Berg
5.0
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I really enjoyed this book of short stories. 4.5 stars. Highly atmospheric and creepy. There's often a moment toward the end where it seems the story is going to capsize into magical realism, but they mostly hang around the edges of reality. Characters' voices are highly developed despite in some cases very limited page counts, and these stories have wonderful structure.
There's a simmering menace in the background in the form of alienation, misogyny, violence, and economic decay. However, van den Berg keeps it subtle enough that there is no tendency toward the didactic. In fact, I think I see growth here in terms of making things a little less subtle; the other book I've read by her, [i]Third Hotel[/i], makes its themes too subtle and remote.
There are some common elements in these eleven stories: alienated/isolated young women, strained sibling relationships, grief upon losing a family member, substance abuse...but despite the repetition, I didn't get bored of any of them. I'll definitely be reading van den Berg's other work.
I really enjoyed this book of short stories. 4.5 stars. Highly atmospheric and creepy. There's often a moment toward the end where it seems the story is going to capsize into magical realism, but they mostly hang around the edges of reality. Characters' voices are highly developed despite in some cases very limited page counts, and these stories have wonderful structure.
There's a simmering menace in the background in the form of alienation, misogyny, violence, and economic decay. However, van den Berg keeps it subtle enough that there is no tendency toward the didactic. In fact, I think I see growth here in terms of making things a little less subtle; the other book I've read by her, [i]Third Hotel[/i], makes its themes too subtle and remote.
There are some common elements in these eleven stories: alienated/isolated young women, strained sibling relationships, grief upon losing a family member, substance abuse...but despite the repetition, I didn't get bored of any of them. I'll definitely be reading van den Berg's other work.