jexjthomas's review against another edition
5.0
Lydia Davis is, bar-none, one of the greatest fiction writers I have ever read. Simply stunning.
earlyandalone's review against another edition
4.0
I wasn't able to make it all the way through this because it was returned to the library, but I really liked Davis' short, quirky stories and would pick this up again to finish some day.
kk0sanda's review against another edition
Did not read “Helen and Vi” or “Kafka Cooks Dinner”
hannahbethreads's review against another edition
5.0
I have read so many books in my lifetime, and I am unsure if I can say this definitely, but this collection of short stories might just be my favorite book of all time. It's by FAR my favorite book of short stories - and that's beating out 9 Stories by J.D. Salinger, which is saying something. I am going to buy a copy for all of my friends and give them out as gifts for every single gift giving occasion that happens. My little brother loves short stories, and I have already bought him a copy. I cannot express enough how moving and beautiful and important this collection is to me. I am scared to start reading anything else because I know that it won't be this good. God bless Lydia Davis.
brookexwest's review against another edition
5.0
Lydia Davis is officially my favourite author and this is officially my bible. Her capacity to evoke such strong feelings in a matter of sentences is just mind blowing.
A collection of stories this big (god knows how many are actually in here, must be nearly a thousand??) is bound to have it’s peaks and troughs, but I think Davis’ troughs are probably the average writer’s peaks.
A collection of stories this big (god knows how many are actually in here, must be nearly a thousand??) is bound to have it’s peaks and troughs, but I think Davis’ troughs are probably the average writer’s peaks.
clarkness's review against another edition
5.0
Every once in a while a writer comes along and does everything differently and it's refreshing to read their work. I think people will one day view Lydia Davis in the same way that they view Raymond Carver. Every story here is a new experiment. They don't all work, of course, but what a pleasure to watch a restless experimentalist at the bench. The voice is unique at all times.
I was struck by how interior the characters were. Everyone was living deep in their own heads. I actually had the sense at many points that I was gaining a better understanding of a particular ex-girlfriend and the way that she seemed to inhabit her own mind. I'm not sure that I would want to read this work constantly because it can become a little claustrophobic, but I was fascinated nearly throughout. Moreover, I found the work to be extraordinarily emotionally generous.
I was struck by how interior the characters were. Everyone was living deep in their own heads. I actually had the sense at many points that I was gaining a better understanding of a particular ex-girlfriend and the way that she seemed to inhabit her own mind. I'm not sure that I would want to read this work constantly because it can become a little claustrophobic, but I was fascinated nearly throughout. Moreover, I found the work to be extraordinarily emotionally generous.
lifesaverscandyofficial's review against another edition
5.0
would that I could make my sentences like these ones
bettyvd's review against another edition
2.0
Davies schrijft goed, dat kan ik niet ontkennen. Maar ik ben geen liefhebber van het korte verhaal en deze verzamelbundel heeft me niet overstag doen gaan. Ik ben na ruim een derde gestopt... Ook al zijn de typeringen van de personages vaak bijzonder indringend en fascinerend, de algemene sfeer van narigheid begint snel te wegen...
Davies is a good writer, I can't deny. But I am not a fan of the short story an this book has not changed this. I stopped after a third of the book... Very catching and fascinating, but the overall atmosphere of dread becomes soon too heavy.
Davies is a good writer, I can't deny. But I am not a fan of the short story an this book has not changed this. I stopped after a third of the book... Very catching and fascinating, but the overall atmosphere of dread becomes soon too heavy.
adriarato's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
kinbote4zembla's review against another edition
3.0
Thank Jesus, I am done this book.
What a slog. I mean, Lydia Davis is a very skilled stylist. But there is little more to most of these stories than wit. For instance, here is the story, "Mother's Reaction to My Travel Plans," in its entirety: "Gainesville! It's too bad your cousin is dead!" Okay. Great. Yeah.
Davis's stories are typically very short, sometimes consisting of a single sentence. This can be interesting. But, ultimately, I just don't think they work as stories. They aren't even memorable. Also, her style is so all-consuming that most of the stories seem redundant. So many of her linguistic tricks are repeated ad nauseam. The semantic games she plays, although effective occasionally, begin to seem less like a choice and more like a tic. How many times can a story just be a character puzzling over the exactness of a word? "If I am x and x is me, then to add a y, I am no longer x. And if I am no longer x, then what am I? Maybe x+y is z and z is something else," etc. Just kind of lame.
Davis is a smart writer and I respect her drive to condense, condense, condense. There were plenty of stories I really enjoyed. And even her playful stories gave me a chuckle every once in awhile. It just doesn't add up to much, for me. I come away from this book with not much more than I already had. She has a very specific literary sensibility that I think appeals to people who also like a New Yorker cartoon. I respect it. I get it. I just don't like it all that much.
3 Wind-Passing Dogs out of 5
What a slog. I mean, Lydia Davis is a very skilled stylist. But there is little more to most of these stories than wit. For instance, here is the story, "Mother's Reaction to My Travel Plans," in its entirety: "Gainesville! It's too bad your cousin is dead!" Okay. Great. Yeah.
Davis's stories are typically very short, sometimes consisting of a single sentence. This can be interesting. But, ultimately, I just don't think they work as stories. They aren't even memorable. Also, her style is so all-consuming that most of the stories seem redundant. So many of her linguistic tricks are repeated ad nauseam. The semantic games she plays, although effective occasionally, begin to seem less like a choice and more like a tic. How many times can a story just be a character puzzling over the exactness of a word? "If I am x and x is me, then to add a y, I am no longer x. And if I am no longer x, then what am I? Maybe x+y is z and z is something else," etc. Just kind of lame.
Davis is a smart writer and I respect her drive to condense, condense, condense. There were plenty of stories I really enjoyed. And even her playful stories gave me a chuckle every once in awhile. It just doesn't add up to much, for me. I come away from this book with not much more than I already had. She has a very specific literary sensibility that I think appeals to people who also like a New Yorker cartoon. I respect it. I get it. I just don't like it all that much.
3 Wind-Passing Dogs out of 5