A review by lbarsk
The Empty Family by Colm Tóibín

3.0

Aw man, I'm so conflicted about this book. I LOVE LOVE LOVE Tóibín's prose, and the way he unfolds stories (even the smallest ones) is so rich and well-paced. So reading this collection was overall enjoyable! However, I can only give the book 3 stars because what I loved SO much about "Brooklyn"--his characterization, and the relationships between characters--is only present in some of the stories. "The New Spain," for example, I loved. "Two Women" and "One Minus One" were also excellent, and "The Colour of Shadows" was a punch to the gut. But the other few pieces in the book just didn't shine as brightly to me, and actually dampened the experience of those four stories. ARGH! I wanted to like it all so much!