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bookedbymadeline's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.0
I don’t always like short stories but this was one of the best I’ve read! Groff is able to give us insight into each character whether we follow them for 10 or 50 pages. Some stories and characters I connected with more than others of course, some I wanted to stay with and others did have confusing endings where I didn’t fully understand what the point was. I think I’ve found that I enjoy short stories more when I’ve read the author’s novels first, and can therefore better understand their writing style and appreciate the stories and characters more!
I marked quite a few pages/passages-I love Lauren Groff’s lyrical writing and exploration on humanity! I enjoyed the first half of the collection much more than the second half.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Rape, and Blood
Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Racism, Death of parent, and Abandonment
Minor: Infidelity, Suicide, and Vomit
sargasso_c's review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Groff’s work is always a pleasure to read, and a couple of the stories resonated deeply with me. However, as a whole, this collection seems like a series of self-insert musings. Not bad, per se, but perhaps better suited to a memoir.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fatphobia
Minor: Infidelity
alybark's review against another edition
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fatphobia
hkburke2's review against another edition
3.75
She's very consistent with her lyrical prose that captures universal experiences so precisely. A little uneven for me, and some of these stories ran together. Lots of nauseating imagery that really does it's job (and many other content warning worthy events). And still with the fatphobia, so that's consistent too! Not my favorite of hers but I do love her writing.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fatphobia