zeezeemama11's review against another edition
3.0
Short stories are hit or miss with me and I only attempt then once in a blue moon. Creating characters was the object of each story. Each as different as the last. Some self obsorbed, sick, lonely or alien. I appreciate it as the experience it was. Skipped the stories that tried too hard. The comic one was strange.
The lunch date that died and the monster self realizing were my favorites. I'd give five stars to those the rest were blah.
The lunch date that died and the monster self realizing were my favorites. I'd give five stars to those the rest were blah.
heathernj9's review against another edition
3.0
Now that work is slowing down I am finally getting around to reading again, yay! This book intrigued me as I love many of the authors featured in it, and short stores in general. For the most part, I enjoyed it. My favorite pieces I realized I had actually already read in The New Yorker, and the other ones were just OK. A good read, but not memorable.
alfyasmeen's review against another edition
4.0
Believe it or not: I chose this book based on its cover. It was illustrated by Charles Burns (author/illustrator of Black Hole - which I LOVE).
It's really hard to rate a book that's a collection of short stories written by the same author, let alone when it's written by different authors. Overall, I really liked it. The concept was interesting. Zadie Smith has asked several authors (including himself) to write about a character. That's it. Some results were very impressive and amazing, while others... not so much. It has introduced me to the writing styles of several writers that I've wondered about for a long time. Dave Eggers is one of them, and I am definitely going to read some of his books.
It's really hard to rate a book that's a collection of short stories written by the same author, let alone when it's written by different authors. Overall, I really liked it. The concept was interesting. Zadie Smith has asked several authors (including himself) to write about a character. That's it. Some results were very impressive and amazing, while others... not so much. It has introduced me to the writing styles of several writers that I've wondered about for a long time. Dave Eggers is one of them, and I am definitely going to read some of his books.
sharonfalduto's review against another edition
3.0
A book of short stories, written by Edwidge Danticat, Nick Hornby, AR Kennedy, and a bunch of other people I don't remember. The only objective was to create a character. Good short stories with compellingly written characters, for the most part. From all walks of life.
bougainvillea's review against another edition
2.0
This was an ok book. That's the problem with short story collections, especially those with several contributors. Some stories are beautiful, some are funny, and some are just blah. The most vivid ones for me: Judith Castle (I could just see her!), Lele, Magda Magdalena, Judge Gladys Parks-Shultz (I loved this one! Perfect.), Puppy, and Soleil. Oh, and Roy Spivey, I liked that one, too. Theo definitely intrigued me. I wasn't too keen on the illustrated stories, it's just not my thing. I'll definitely be looking out for some of these authors now.
mattstebbins's review against another edition
3.0
Some of these stories were great ("Lele," for instance) and some were clever ("The Liar" comes to mind); some were somewhat familiar ("Hanwell Snr," "Perkus Tooth"), and some were mildly amusing ("Frank," certainly). Most, though, seemed awfully full of themselves and awfully thin on flesh and development... MFA jerk-off work, to be impolite. At least it was a fun concept?
[3 stars for the occasional flash that made me temporarily forget the droll-ness of the rest.]
[3 stars for the occasional flash that made me temporarily forget the droll-ness of the rest.]
margeryk101's review against another edition
3.0
Really, this should be 3.5 stars: there were a few stories that just didn't appeal, otherwise it would be a four-starrer.
Fave stories:
Judith Castle
Gordon
Hanwell Snr
Lele
The Liar
Puppy - excellent
Theo - giant
A nice introduction to some new authors.
Fave stories:
Judith Castle
Gordon
Hanwell Snr
Lele
The Liar
Puppy - excellent
Theo - giant
A nice introduction to some new authors.
whitneyborup's review against another edition
5.0
Maybe I'm too easy of a critic, but I just about loved just about every story in this book.
donutcome4me's review against another edition
3.0
Een beetje hit en miss. De ene schrijver is de andere natuurlijk niet en het zijn meer korte karakterschetsen voor een goed doel, waardoor er nogal wat niveau en kwaliteitsverschillen zijn ontstaan. Al met al toch een fijn tussendoortje.
jwmcoaching's review against another edition
4.0
Zadie Smith's short story collection for charity is a pretty worthwhile read. Not only does she contribute one, but so do 22 of her contemporaries. Nick Hornby, Dave Eggers, Vendela Vida, Jonathan Lethem and many others all create a new character which their piece revolves around. Each piece is titled after said character with a narrator that is usually telling us about them, i.e. rarely does the specific character tell the story. Some of them are a miss, but nearly half of them are great, with most others that fall in between. The best are the ones that tell a story that neatly fits into a small space, but not too neatly.