wendoxford's review against another edition
4.0
How had I forgotten what a fantastic writer Ellen Gilchrist is? Her short stories are so succinct, nothing unnecessary and such a great use of perspective/point of view. Each of the stories here instantly draws you in and then spits you out unexpectedly somewhere else, too soon!
The stories are all "daily life" but so out of kilter with anything routine for me that they have made me question and look at everything day-to-day differently...and...instantly pick up more by Ellen Gilchrist!
The stories are all "daily life" but so out of kilter with anything routine for me that they have made me question and look at everything day-to-day differently...and...instantly pick up more by Ellen Gilchrist!
saschadarlington's review against another edition
3.0
I have been a fan of Ellen Gilchrist's for many years and when I saw this new collection of short stories, I was very much looking forward to reading it. Unfortunately I was disappointed. Don't get me wrong. There are some great moments in Acts of God, but there are also stories that cover so much ground chronologically and don't envelop the reader because it seems as if the theme or the idea is more important than the characters' relationships to them.
Most of the stories are about upheaval or disasters and human reaction to them. Perhaps the best is the one in which a young woman who is in the Air National Guard is called to New Orleans to rescue people from roofs after Katrina. This is one of the few stories in which a virtuous act is not cushioned by selfishness or self-absorption, but one in which the character reacts to horrors and the small miracles and feels changed and is changed.
Perhaps a couple of the other stories ring true simply because the characters are materialistic and self-absorbed and view an extraordinary situation from the viewpoint of what they can get from it or what it will make them into. There is some heavy-handedness with what I consider to be preachiness and I am not certain that it's Gilchrist's intent for that to be unleashed upon the reader (because I am giving her the benefit of the doubt), but then again, it's been years since I have read any of her work and maybe what I once overlooked is now an elephant.
Most of the stories are about upheaval or disasters and human reaction to them. Perhaps the best is the one in which a young woman who is in the Air National Guard is called to New Orleans to rescue people from roofs after Katrina. This is one of the few stories in which a virtuous act is not cushioned by selfishness or self-absorption, but one in which the character reacts to horrors and the small miracles and feels changed and is changed.
Perhaps a couple of the other stories ring true simply because the characters are materialistic and self-absorbed and view an extraordinary situation from the viewpoint of what they can get from it or what it will make them into. There is some heavy-handedness with what I consider to be preachiness and I am not certain that it's Gilchrist's intent for that to be unleashed upon the reader (because I am giving her the benefit of the doubt), but then again, it's been years since I have read any of her work and maybe what I once overlooked is now an elephant.
alsmilesalot's review against another edition
5.0
For years, I've been disappointed in 90% of the short stories I've read, and yet, I still consider myself someone who loves the form. Ellen Gilchrest is in part, why (2 very different writers, Raymond Carver and Jim Harrison, are also responsible)..
It's been at least 8 years since I read anything by her (but had, up until that point read almost everything) and I didn't realize how much I missed her writing until I picked up this collection. I'm not sure any would make it to my "top 10 EG stories" but they shine with compassion and humor.
Maybe I'd really only give 4 stars for the stories, but it's an unequivocable 5 for the joy of rediscovering a long lost favorite.
It's been at least 8 years since I read anything by her (but had, up until that point read almost everything) and I didn't realize how much I missed her writing until I picked up this collection. I'm not sure any would make it to my "top 10 EG stories" but they shine with compassion and humor.
Maybe I'd really only give 4 stars for the stories, but it's an unequivocable 5 for the joy of rediscovering a long lost favorite.
amandanan's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars
Best quote: "The human race. You have to love it and wish it well and not preach or think you have any reason to think you are better than anyone else. Amen. Good-bye. Peace…"
Best quote: "The human race. You have to love it and wish it well and not preach or think you have any reason to think you are better than anyone else. Amen. Good-bye. Peace…"
litdoes's review against another edition
4.0
This collection from Arkansas short story writer Ellen Gilchrist focuses on characters who deal with forces beyond their control; from natural disasters like hurricanes, debilitating illnesses, terrorist attacks, accidents, to simply the passing of time and old age. Despite the potentially sombre subject matter, Gilchrist approaches each of the ten stories with a light touch, doling out in small doses, her wit and backporch wisdom that betray her Southern roots.
Longtime readers will be pleased to welcome back the brash and alarming Rhoda Manning, who had seared herself into readers' consciousness in Gilchrist's earlier writing. Rhoda feature in "The Dogs", in a fiery exchange of letters with her new neighbours, and with an interesting development by the end of the story. Writer Anna Hand, another familiar character, makes an appearance via her niece, a documentary writer, in of all places, Heathrow airport, during the terrorist attacks in the summer of 2004 in the piece "Toccata and Fugue in D Minor".
Two stories focus on characters who respond to the call for help. A group of teenagers help out in Adkins in the aftermath of a tornado and are forever changed by a moving event in "Miracle in Adkins, Arkansas". Single Mother, new professor and a First Responder with the National Guard, goes on a Mission to New Orleans, suffers betrayal and finds an unexpected turning point in her life that gives her a second wind.
In all of these stories, Gilchrist shows how people deal with the unexpected, and while they may not always handle the situations in the most ideal ways, they always look for that little bit of grace and beauty, and some dignity, when they confront their own mortality.
Longtime readers will be pleased to welcome back the brash and alarming Rhoda Manning, who had seared herself into readers' consciousness in Gilchrist's earlier writing. Rhoda feature in "The Dogs", in a fiery exchange of letters with her new neighbours, and with an interesting development by the end of the story. Writer Anna Hand, another familiar character, makes an appearance via her niece, a documentary writer, in of all places, Heathrow airport, during the terrorist attacks in the summer of 2004 in the piece "Toccata and Fugue in D Minor".
Two stories focus on characters who respond to the call for help. A group of teenagers help out in Adkins in the aftermath of a tornado and are forever changed by a moving event in "Miracle in Adkins, Arkansas". Single Mother, new professor and a First Responder with the National Guard, goes on a Mission to New Orleans, suffers betrayal and finds an unexpected turning point in her life that gives her a second wind.
In all of these stories, Gilchrist shows how people deal with the unexpected, and while they may not always handle the situations in the most ideal ways, they always look for that little bit of grace and beauty, and some dignity, when they confront their own mortality.
litdoes's review against another edition
4.0
This collection from Arkansas short story writer Ellen Gilchrist focuses on characters who deal with forces beyond their control; from natural disasters like hurricanes, debilitating illnesses, terrorist attacks, accidents, to simply the passing of time and old age. Despite the potentially sombre subject matter, Gilchrist approaches each of the ten stories with a light touch, doling out in small doses, her wit and backporch wisdom that betray her Southern roots.
Longtime readers will be pleased to welcome back the brash and alarming Rhoda Manning, who had seared herself into readers' consciousness in Gilchrist's earlier writing. Rhoda feature in "The Dogs", in a fiery exchange of letters with her new neighbours, and with an interesting development by the end of the story. Writer Anna Hand, another familiar character, makes an appearance via her niece, a documentary writer, in of all places, Heathrow airport, during the terrorist attacks in the summer of 2004 in the piece "Toccata and Fugue in D Minor".
Two stories focus on characters who respond to the call for help. A group of teenagers help out in Adkins in the aftermath of a tornado and are forever changed by a moving event in "Miracle in Adkins, Arkansas". Single Mother, new professor and a First Responder with the National Guard, goes on a Mission to New Orleans, suffers betrayal and finds an unexpected turning point in her life that gives her a second wind.
In all of these stories, Gilchrist shows how people deal with the unexpected, and while they may not always handle the situations in the most ideal ways, they always look for that little bit of grace and beauty, and some dignity, when they confront their own mortality.
Longtime readers will be pleased to welcome back the brash and alarming Rhoda Manning, who had seared herself into readers' consciousness in Gilchrist's earlier writing. Rhoda feature in "The Dogs", in a fiery exchange of letters with her new neighbours, and with an interesting development by the end of the story. Writer Anna Hand, another familiar character, makes an appearance via her niece, a documentary writer, in of all places, Heathrow airport, during the terrorist attacks in the summer of 2004 in the piece "Toccata and Fugue in D Minor".
Two stories focus on characters who respond to the call for help. A group of teenagers help out in Adkins in the aftermath of a tornado and are forever changed by a moving event in "Miracle in Adkins, Arkansas". Single Mother, new professor and a First Responder with the National Guard, goes on a Mission to New Orleans, suffers betrayal and finds an unexpected turning point in her life that gives her a second wind.
In all of these stories, Gilchrist shows how people deal with the unexpected, and while they may not always handle the situations in the most ideal ways, they always look for that little bit of grace and beauty, and some dignity, when they confront their own mortality.
liloud0626's review against another edition
2.0
Like so many others, I've been a fan of hers for many years, but I was disappointed in this book of stories. Many of them felt forced, and her clever sense of humor was missing from so many of them. It made me a little sad.
ldv's review
1.0
Acts of God? More like Acts of Humanity or even Humanism.
The first story, Acts of God, was humourous. "Miracle in Adkins, Arkansas" was heart-warming. "Toccata and Fugue in D Minor" (about the woman with the loser boyfriend who (the woman not the boyfriend) rescues people in New Orleans from rooftops and returns as a celebrity and meets Mr. Perfect) was eye-rolling chicklit. From there the stories just got worse. "The Dogs" was ridiculous, and the others just silly.
Not my thing.
(Note: I received this as an ARC from LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program.)
The first story, Acts of God, was humourous. "Miracle in Adkins, Arkansas" was heart-warming. "Toccata and Fugue in D Minor" (about the woman with the loser boyfriend who (the woman not the boyfriend) rescues people in New Orleans from rooftops and returns as a celebrity and meets Mr. Perfect) was eye-rolling chicklit. From there the stories just got worse. "The Dogs" was ridiculous, and the others just silly.
Not my thing.
(Note: I received this as an ARC from LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program.)