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mallomello's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
3.5
gmrosiee's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.75
tiredtannah's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Animal wife as a whole book ends the short stories, as the first explores a child longing to find her mother, and the last explores a mother who is lost to her child. In between is all the stories of women trapped inside their marriages, or grief, or their own mental illnesses, their hypochondria or their insecurities and doubt. Some stories are much stronger than others, animal wife itself being the strongest throughout. Most of the other stories are unmemorable, but animal wife has stuck with me already. A lot of these stories are eerily whimsical and indulgent in rich metaphors and allusions. I can’t say that I enjoyed this book in the sense that it was gripping and exciting and fun, but I enjoyed this book in the sense that it was challenging and well written. I’m going to think of the tale of animal wife and all that it means for a long time.
shiloniz's review against another edition
5.0
Animal wife is a series of stories about the ferocity of women and their desires. "She had been afraid of her own ravenous hunger," Lara Ehrlich writes in stories about women who have secret lives as fighters, women who disappear from their lives, women who turn themselves into deer, fall in love with bears, dare to dream of different lives. Women who have been wronged, who have been abused, who have been plagued, haunted, gutted, become feral, grow claws and root around in the muck of their own losses. Although these stories aren't connected, surprising repetitions appear throughout, weaving a sort of tapestry, like those yarn quilts we all had in the 90s. Not thick enough to keep you warm, but something seems better than nothing, at least that's the case for so many of these women until something causes a rupture, a tear in the fabric of the lives they built, thought they wanted, imagined them to be.
andrewreads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
3.75
apapale's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
daniella84's review against another edition
4.5
4.5
This book entirely came to me by fate - I picked it up from the library knowing nothing apart from seeing the quote from Italo Calvino (one of my faves) on the back and the cool cover - and boy I'm glad I took a chance on it! I am convinced the low rating is because this just hasn't found its audience, cause it's really doing it for the girlies:
For fans of [a:Mariana Enríquez|4930107|Mariana Enríquez|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1664995750p2/4930107.jpg] - commentary on the sexualisation and objectification of female bodies, even those of children.
For fans of [a:Ottessa Moshfegh|3276202|Ottessa Moshfegh|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1651525567p2/3276202.jpg] - the general weird tone that sometimes verges on the bizarre and disgusting (poop, bestiality)
For fans of [b:Nightbitch|55835474|Nightbitch|Rachel Yoder|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1612737468l/55835474._SX50_.jpg|77328435] - commentary on motherhood and how the identity of 'mother' consumes that of the woman - generally 'mothers not coping'
I'm sure there's more but this was just really up my alley. Weird in the best possible way, with the stories making their points without being too ambitious for the limited page count. Lots of really interesting commentary on the place of women in Western society and culture - women seeking the male gaze but also rejecting it; wild women having to be 'saved' by domesticity and perhaps enjoying it but still yearning to return to the wild; and how a woman's life is always a compromise.
Not a full five stars cause there were some elements I didn't love (like the bestiality) and it could have been cool to also see some commentary on being female from a broader perspective (e.g. queer/trans) but overall I was really surprised by how much I enjoyed this. I think it is extremely relevant to this moment, and will especially resonate with the 20-something female group that the above titles seem to do well with. A couple of my favourites were The Tenant (a bear just moves into this lady's house and she's just like...slay) and The Vanishing Point (lady makes a suit to just live in the woods as a deer).
This book entirely came to me by fate - I picked it up from the library knowing nothing apart from seeing the quote from Italo Calvino (one of my faves) on the back and the cool cover - and boy I'm glad I took a chance on it! I am convinced the low rating is because this just hasn't found its audience, cause it's really doing it for the girlies:
For fans of [a:Mariana Enríquez|4930107|Mariana Enríquez|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1664995750p2/4930107.jpg] - commentary on the sexualisation and objectification of female bodies, even those of children.
For fans of [a:Ottessa Moshfegh|3276202|Ottessa Moshfegh|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1651525567p2/3276202.jpg] - the general weird tone that sometimes verges on the bizarre and disgusting (poop, bestiality)
For fans of [b:Nightbitch|55835474|Nightbitch|Rachel Yoder|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1612737468l/55835474._SX50_.jpg|77328435] - commentary on motherhood and how the identity of 'mother' consumes that of the woman - generally 'mothers not coping'
I'm sure there's more but this was just really up my alley. Weird in the best possible way, with the stories making their points without being too ambitious for the limited page count. Lots of really interesting commentary on the place of women in Western society and culture - women seeking the male gaze but also rejecting it; wild women having to be 'saved' by domesticity and perhaps enjoying it but still yearning to return to the wild; and how a woman's life is always a compromise.
Not a full five stars cause there were some elements I didn't love (like the bestiality) and it could have been cool to also see some commentary on being female from a broader perspective (e.g. queer/trans) but overall I was really surprised by how much I enjoyed this. I think it is extremely relevant to this moment, and will especially resonate with the 20-something female group that the above titles seem to do well with. A couple of my favourites were The Tenant (a bear just moves into this lady's house and she's just like...slay) and The Vanishing Point (lady makes a suit to just live in the woods as a deer).
zellm's review against another edition
4.0
Wow! This book is apparently polarizing, and I can see why. I absolutely loved it though. The author's use of imagery and vivid natural descriptions of taste, smell, sensation, feelings, are just so lovely and vibrant. The wildness captured in these stories, as well as the anxiety, uncertainty, and conflictedness feel so real and hit really close to home. All of the stories were good, but some in particular were fantastic- Animal Wife Revisited, Beware the Undertoad, Desiree the Destroyer, The Vanishing Point, and The Tenant in particular really stood out to me.
lattelibrarian's review against another edition
4.0
“She is eager to rewrite the pages. They are too grandiose, too preachy. She has come to appreciate short sentences.”
Animals, husbands, lovers. Turning the animal spouse trope on its head, Lara Ehrlich creates tales in which women are allowed to come to terms with girlhood, trauma, and life itself. One girl gets her first kiss as a monster gets close to shore. A widow invites a bear into her house. A student turns herself into a deer.
Told with lyrical prose, ranging from one paragraph to twenty-or-so pages, these short stories are beautiful, strange, and at times, haunting. Not to mention the absolutely stellar cover art!
Animals, husbands, lovers. Turning the animal spouse trope on its head, Lara Ehrlich creates tales in which women are allowed to come to terms with girlhood, trauma, and life itself. One girl gets her first kiss as a monster gets close to shore. A widow invites a bear into her house. A student turns herself into a deer.
Told with lyrical prose, ranging from one paragraph to twenty-or-so pages, these short stories are beautiful, strange, and at times, haunting. Not to mention the absolutely stellar cover art!
groves1987's review against another edition
5.0
Lovely prose. Deeply disturbing stories. Stone Fruit is my favorite of this collection, although there are many here that will speak to others for various reasons. This collection is excellent for those who enjoyed Machado’s Her Body and Other Parties. I’m excited to see what this author will write next.