jb_slasher's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
msaari's review against another edition
3.0
Taitavasti kirjoitettu, mitä vähän osasin toivoa [b:Mennä, meni, mennyt|43054611|Mennä, meni, mennyt|Jenny Erpenbeck|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1543605975l/43054611._SY75_.jpg|46013087] -kirjan pohjalta, mutta eehkä vähän jätti kuitenkin kylmäksi. Erikoinen juttu, mutta pointti oli mikä? Mutta omituisen, vaikenevan tytön tarinassa tapahtui kuitenkin sen verran kasvua ja kehitystä, että mielenkiinto säilyi koko pienoisromaanin verran, jotta loppu saattoi sitten ihmetyttää, että kuinkas tässä nyt näin.
bjr2022's review against another edition
My book club picked the title story for our September meeting, so I bought this slim volume of stories. The writing is good, but the stories, for me, were so misery-inducing that had I not committed to read them, had I not bought the book, I'd probably have aborted my effort a few pages in. They largely dwell, itemize, and wallow in the thoughts and feelings of the disintegration of aging. I'm almost 70, still thriving, fit, and of sound mind, and this stuff felt like ingesting a sometimes fog and sometimes roiling swirl of dead skin cells. I just don't want it in my psyche.
These stories were first copyrighted in 1999 and 2001 when the author was 32. I note that because there is something interesting to me in the contrast between the material and her lovely youth at the time of publication. She is now 53, a well-known writer and an opera director (the stories do have an operatic quality), and I find myself wondering if her point of view on aging has changed with time.
Erpenbeck's talent is most definitely deserving of attention and her East German background and history are rich and valuable. But I'm not her reader.
These stories were first copyrighted in 1999 and 2001 when the author was 32. I note that because there is something interesting to me in the contrast between the material and her lovely youth at the time of publication. She is now 53, a well-known writer and an opera director (the stories do have an operatic quality), and I find myself wondering if her point of view on aging has changed with time.
Erpenbeck's talent is most definitely deserving of attention and her East German background and history are rich and valuable. But I'm not her reader.
ginafly's review against another edition
4.0
Darkly quietly brilliant. Reminiscent of Salinger's 9 Stories. Definitely want to check out her full length novels.
wtb_michael's review
3.0
I'm still struggling to figure out what I think about this - the stories are obscure, foreboding and full of mysterious symbols whose meanings I feel like I never quite grasp. This is a much more challenging book than [b:Visitation|8638226|Visitation|Jenny Erpenbeck|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348829216s/8638226.jpg|10864336], and one that I got less out of. The use of language is precise and occasionally surprising and their are sharp moments when a turn of phrase or a small twist hits home, but it really felt a bit like a lot of what Erpenbeck was doing here was passing over my head.
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