By Joyce Carol Oates
A huge collection of stories, arranged mostly chronically. I liked the newer ones best. The collection starts with the newest ones, and the first three left tremendous impression on me. But I found the older ones too obsessed with rape and murder, which was quite disturbing. Some stories seemed to go on and on forever and never end (My Warszawa: 1980). Then there are some from the 1990's with a quality similar to that of the first three stories, which impressed me so much. [662 pp.]
Link to book
Monday, May 18, 2015
Saturday, May 16, 2015
The Feast of Love
By Charles Baxter
Multiple stories about love, or the feast it could become. Often funny, sometimes sad, usually fascinating. There are some great word combinations, especially when Chloé tells her stories, though not only. [308 pp.]
Link to book
Multiple stories about love, or the feast it could become. Often funny, sometimes sad, usually fascinating. There are some great word combinations, especially when Chloé tells her stories, though not only. [308 pp.]
Link to book
Sunday, April 19, 2015
The Lacuna
By Barbara Kingsolver
As always, Kingsolver does not disappoint. It took me a bit to get into the story, but then I was totally immersed. I love all that extra historical knowledge you can get by reading her books. It's never just a story, though the story part is strong indeed. [507 pp.]
Link to book.
As always, Kingsolver does not disappoint. It took me a bit to get into the story, but then I was totally immersed. I love all that extra historical knowledge you can get by reading her books. It's never just a story, though the story part is strong indeed. [507 pp.]
Link to book.
Sunday, March 22, 2015
Twilight of the Superheroes
By Deborah Eisenberg
Although I found the stories interesting and well written, it still felt like something was missing. I know the author is considered as someone who has mastered the art of short fiction, but a lot of the stories, to me, seemed more like epxressed opinions (with which I do agree) than actual storytelling. I guess lack of plot was the most prominent. The ideas were there, and they were good. The protagonists had desires and wishes. But it didn't seem like they were going anywhere with them. Some stories were more like that than others. Revenge of the Dinosaurs was the hardest for me to follow, probably because it didn't follow the usual dialog conventions, and it wasn't always clear when the narrator was saying something or simply narrating. [225 pp.]
Link to book.
Although I found the stories interesting and well written, it still felt like something was missing. I know the author is considered as someone who has mastered the art of short fiction, but a lot of the stories, to me, seemed more like epxressed opinions (with which I do agree) than actual storytelling. I guess lack of plot was the most prominent. The ideas were there, and they were good. The protagonists had desires and wishes. But it didn't seem like they were going anywhere with them. Some stories were more like that than others. Revenge of the Dinosaurs was the hardest for me to follow, probably because it didn't follow the usual dialog conventions, and it wasn't always clear when the narrator was saying something or simply narrating. [225 pp.]
Link to book.
Friday, March 13, 2015
Fantasy & Science Fiction - Oct/Nov 1991
This does not belong in my regular to-read list, but I needed a book, and it was available. Turns out it's not that far from my kind of readings... I was surprised that it didn't contain much of specific sci-fi/fantasy jargon that was unfamiliar to me. Some stories did have some fantastical aspect to them, especially the first one, The Honeycrafters, by Carolyn Ives Gilman, and the last one, Gasoline Lake, by Marc Laidlaw. Still, they were easily readable to a non-sci-fi reader such as myself. I liked most of the stories. Even the one that was pretty intense, by Bradley Denton - Rerun Roy, Donna, and the Freak. [240 pp.]
Link to book.
Link to book.
Wednesday, March 11, 2015
Tin House 34
Volume 9, Number 2
Favorites: Uncertainty, by Joshua Ferris, Going to Estonia, by Caitlin Horrocks, and Shawn Vestal's The First Several Hundred Years Following My Death. Also need to check out Charle's Baxter's The Soul Thief, as the excerpt is quite intriguing.
Link to website.
Favorites: Uncertainty, by Joshua Ferris, Going to Estonia, by Caitlin Horrocks, and Shawn Vestal's The First Several Hundred Years Following My Death. Also need to check out Charle's Baxter's The Soul Thief, as the excerpt is quite intriguing.
Link to website.
Thursday, February 26, 2015
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