Reviews

Safe as Houses, by Marie-Helene Bertino

taradoeswriting's review

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4.0

Wonderful and weird and quirky and surreal. Beautiful language that surprises you at every turn. Favorites: “The Idea of Marcel,” “Great, Wondrous,” and “Carry Me Home, Sisters of Saint Joseph.”

radi's review

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emotional funny hopeful medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

knitter22's review

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4.0

Book Bingo 2017 - Collection of short stories

futurama's review

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emotional funny hopeful reflective medium-paced

4.5

lemonflower's review

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5.0

This author has a very specific style that is not for everyone, but I really really love it. There are some really interesting ideas in these stories… They’re not exactly twists but I’m not sure what a better word is to describe them. Unexpected and original. But written in an almost dreamlike style. Sometimes the past and present are not immediately distinguishable. I think it’s purposeful, but even if not, I really enjoy it. But as I said, not for everyone.

heres_the_thing's review

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3.0

3.5 stars. Some really lovely stories in here—favorites are The Idea of Marcel and Carry Me Home, Sisters of Saint Joseph.

readbydusk's review

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4.0

It took a while for me to warm up to these short stories but by the time I finished the book I was in bits. Each story starts out to tell you about something on the surface but then becomes a conduit through the very human tales of love, depression, heartbreak, desire to live. I loved "Great, Wondrous" but the last story "Carry Me Home, Sisters of Saint Joseph" is one I will be thinking about a lot.

bookishcassie's review

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4.0

My review is at the following link: http://booksandbowelmovements.com/2013/06/07/perfectly-lined-teeth-like-choir-boys-of-the-mouth/

This book was amazing and the stories are brilliant. Read READ READ!!!! There are also links online to some of the stories so that you can test them out before you buy the book.

drewsof's review

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4.0

Charming, magical stories - although they don't hold quite the same potency as Bertino's spectacular debut novel [b:2 A.M. at The Cat's Pajamas|18815488|2 A.M. at The Cat's Pajamas|Marie-Helene Bertino|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1385350936s/18815488.jpg|26755968]. Still, they're good over a period of time (longer, frankly, than I read them would be advisable) and they remind me of how excited I am to see what Bertino does next.

sarahc3319's review

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I want to like this book but I do not. Stopping midway.