Reviews

Shoot the Horses First by Leah Angstman

lsmith36's review

adventurous emotional hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

anj_t's review

adventurous emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

chelz286's review

adventurous informative inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

I enjoyed these quick historical reads. This is a nice book to have on the coffee table to read a story or two when you don't have a lot of time or just want a few moments to escape every day life. I would love if some of these stories were turned into actual novels. It was also a great mix of different stories. War, Indians, orphans, World's Fair and more. It was a mix in that each story was different and gave you a bit of something you had not maybe known or heard of. This is a nice in between novel when you need a break from a full length story or just want to learn a few tidbits of history. Thank you to HFVBT for the invite, and to the author and publisher for the free book. 

notsarahconnor's review

adventurous dark emotional informative sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

 Thanks to The Next Best Book Club for sending me this book in exchange for an honest review!

Leah Angstman's debut novel was my first read of 2022 and now her short story collection is my first read of 2023. I like this pattern! A wonderful collection of short stories covering a variety of topics and times in American history. I was especially impressed with how Angstman features disabled characters with so much respect in her work!

Read the full review for each of the stories on my blog! 

kateofmind's review

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful informative mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

4.75

margaretpinard's review

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

"Visceral" is the word that best describes the experience of reading this book . Also "plunged into" and "pinned down by her gaze" -- all ways to describe Leah Angstman's well-muscled prose, evocative descriptions, and high-drama choice of moments in history to represent. It's hard to pick favorites in the collection because almost all of them 'stood out' in some way. I appreciated the choice of diverse character POV and specific, rich experiences of persons of color and marginalized individuals in history. The author shows a fight each time, whether it be exhibited in self-control or in shooting first. Speaking of which, I don't recall any horses being shot, so don't let the title deter you--these stories are about people claiming their right to their own destiny.