samana_ali's review against another edition
When the stories fail to have a plot and abundant unidimensional characters, you end up with a disaster at hand i.e. this book!
halschrieve's review against another edition
3.0
This short story collection about Hasidim in the new world and survivors of pogroms in the old is interesting and ambitious, though I have my doubts about the way the author approaches female characters and I wish he had been slightly more ambitious in terms of bringing up questions about racism in America/identity differences between liberal Jewish communities and Hasidic sects and interactions between the two in Israel and America. There are points where it feels like he is exotifying the Orthodox characters in his stories, and I was disappointed that the story he set in Israel wasn't more invested in fleshing out the internal lives and politics of the characters. Englander's best stories are those set in Europe which evoke Zweig and Kafka and explore fantastic potential for survival in the context of historical antisemitism. His modern settings lack the immediacy and the political tone of the historical ones and center on interpersonal and social issues rather than questions of nationalism , fascism and religious identity--or it seems that way to me. I am curious to see where future collections of his go in this regard.
itsbecksmidwest's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
quietmachine's review against another edition
4.0
I love good short stories, and these are great short stories.
randrenfrow's review against another edition
3.0
Best stories were, "The Twenty-seventh Man", "Reunion", and "The Gilgul of Park Avenue".
I'll write a better review in a bit, hopefully.
I'll write a better review in a bit, hopefully.
thirdcoast's review against another edition
4.0
Read this for part of a discussion group on campus, as Nathan Englander came to give a reading and work with students. Stories are a mix of humor and heartbreak. Really wonderful collection. A few favorite stories of mine were: The Twenty-seventh Man, The Tumblers, The Wig, The Gilgul of Park Avenue, Reb Kringle and the title story, For the Relief of Unbearable Urges.
aneumann's review against another edition
3.0
I'm really disappointed in this book after reading What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank which I loved. The stories in this started off good but got progressively worse until I was just reading the book to finish it without any enjoyment. It is really cool to see how far Englander's writing has come though.
dblelk13's review against another edition
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
I pretty much enjoyed all of the short stories in this book but my favorite was "The Twenty-Seventh Man." The way that Englander writes really puts me into the story. I was immersed with these characters and I wanted to know more about what influenced this story. Once I dug deeper, I learned that this was the writer's adaptation of the executions that were passed down from Stalin in 1952.
It was really well written and imagined.
The second story that really captured my attention was "The Wig."
It was really well written and imagined.
The second story that really captured my attention was "The Wig."