Reviews

it’s this kind of post-war, male american author thing that I don’t enjoy much, I guess. I didn’t see much love in this, but most of the stories were somewhat interesting to me. I know it’s a classic… maybe I’m just ignorant.

j4sythe_1's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny inspiring reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

levelstory's review against another edition

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After reading a few stories and not wanting to read any more, I have decided that Carver's writing is not for me...which is a shame because the story this collection is titled after is very good from what I remember. Shame you have to get through all the other stories to get to that one.

katherineloder's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

A beautifully written short story collection with very dark/unsettling themes. Some of the stories are a little more plodding than others, but the better stories were VERY captivating.
Personal favourites:

Gazebo
The Bath
Tell The Women We're Going
Popular Mechanics

junoi's review against another edition

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“Something’s died in me,” she goes. “It took a long time for it to do it but, but it’s dead. You killed something just like you’d took an axe to it. Everything is dirt now.”

schenkelberg's review against another edition

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4.0

forgot how utterly bleak and dismal the majority of these stories are

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