perpetually_reading's review against another edition
3.0
This book started out quite strong with intriguing stories that made me feel uneasy, uncomfortable (in a good way). But after the halfway point it started to get a little dry, and I ended up having to push myself through to the end. The stories in the latter half seemed a bit too complain-y and read like a story of a social complaint rather than social commentary. 2.5 stars rounded up to 3 because I feel like I've read more unsettling stories than these, and the last half of the book really just dragged this down. Also, one of the last stories include a part where the character speaks in Japanese, but when she explains what she said in English this translation is incorrect (I'm Japanese American and am bilingual) - I wish South at least researched this one little part to make sure this was correct before putting that in.
perpetuallyreading's review against another edition
3.0
This book started out quite strong with intriguing stories that made me feel uneasy, uncomfortable (in a good way). But after the halfway point it started to get a little dry, and I ended up having to push myself through to the end. The stories in the latter half seemed a bit too complain-y and read like a story of a social complaint rather than social commentary. 2.5 stars rounded up to 3 because I feel like I've read more unsettling stories than these, and the last half of the book really just dragged this down. Also, one of the last stories include a part where the character speaks in Japanese, but when she explains what she said in English this translation is incorrect (I'm Japanese American and am bilingual) - I wish South at least researched this one little part to make sure this was correct before putting that in.
livjhooper's review against another edition
2.0
2.5⭐️ I really wanted to like this collection, & there were some bits I did like, but overall something felt a bit... forced? To me. I appreciate some of them are meant to be quite dark & ghoulish but I struggled to gel properly with any. Kind of felt like George Saunders & Diane Cook mixed together - a combination I should love, but on paper it didn’t work for me.
asunnybooknook's review
4.0
Strong and darkly funny collection of short stories that, in some ways, toe the line between contemporary and speculative, and in other ways, are just the embodiments of the humor and depravity of technology’s implications on humans relationships with one another. Worth reading if you enjoyed We Had To Remove This Post or Several People Are Typing.
3.5
3.5
bethreadsandnaps's review against another edition
3.0
These were all kind of odd stories. The one about a woman who breastfeeds a multitude of men was particularly *interesting*.
joy_ong's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
maybebil's review against another edition
2.0
2 stars for that one story that i liked - “frequently asked questions about your craniotomy”. as an avid fan of black mirror, i don’t get the comparison of this book to the show :/