Reviews

Horses talk, ravens gossip and humans exist in small, closely monitored colonies—such is the world created by Jane Smiley in this less-than-stellar offering that is part of the Warmer collection of cli-fi shorts. Smiley turns the world on its ear as animals and human beings trade places in the earthly hierarchy dictated by evolution gone amuck. Whilst I will concede to the fact that this was a “cute” premise (that, theoretically, could be construed as an indictment of our current society), it just didn’t follow through on the promise I felt it held in the first two pages. Nice idea—poor execution.

bleonard's review

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4.0

I really liked it. The kind of fable-esque prose of Smiley takes a little getting used to, but it helped that I'm reading "A Thousand Acres" at the same time as this. I appreciate that she commits to the central premise and plot, and that means this goes to some surprisingly dark places, but the ending is really quite lovely.

hannahcorness's review

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medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

hananas's review

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dark reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? N/A
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.25

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