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matildazq's review against another edition
3.0
I haven't read any Patricia Highsmith, and my only familiarity is Hitchcock's version of her first novel. I was looking to read something by her, and the title of this caught my eye. It's hard to describe. It's certainly not "enjoyable" in any conventional sense, but it's brilliant in its brutality, as if she were writing the most honest, stripped-down version of every feminine archetype in Western film and literature. The plots, such as they are, end up Kafka-esque, but the thrill is in how easy it is to see them fluffed out into conventional narratives with their one-dimensional women.
kutingtin's review against another edition
3.0
what a funny book of women dying in the most sudden and absurd ways, these are short stories told shorter- introducing them on the 1st page then they die on the second, hahahha! whut?! so kulit and twisted!
thejumblygirl's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I enjoyed the fast sharp writing style but reading about women getting punished again and again (I know it is literally called Little Tales of Misogyny and I'm sure it's meant to be ironic) is a bit tiring and redundant. Very readable though.
alavandula's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
1.5
A difficult read
tillyreadsnothing's review against another edition
dark
funny
informative
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
e_gray_n's review against another edition
4.0
Very thought-provoking, extremely dark art piece. Loved it, but wouldn't recommend it as, say, an airplane read. Kind of like a box of cynical feminist chocolates.
tfitoby's review against another edition
4.0
Seventeen short stories, seventeen different women, the same offence everytime - being a woman.
Patricia Highsmith, the famed hater of women, or so they say. The Talented Ms Highsmith, the poet of apprehension (thank you Graham Greene,) and creator of countless literary psychological thrillers.
In her novels she takes time, slowly building the suspense and the tension page by page but some of these stories are only two pages long, instead she utilises her skill in observing and dissecting human behaviour with short, sharp bursts of insight.
From the story of a cave woman to the stories of the sexually liberated 70's step by step we meet "The Prude," "The Breeder," "The Victim," and "The Middle-Class Housewife." Satirical and dark sketches of obviously real people that are often caustically funny.
The caricatures of women in each incarnation carry the overall theme that a woman can never win, can never be in the right, that she is doomed to die horribly; even if she lives to old age she'll find that somewhere along the line her essence died yet allowed her body to continue.
On the surface you might consider that yes, infact Highsmith did hate women and these are nothing more than seventeen attacks on the behaviour of those she deemed worthless but it doesn't take much consideration to realise there's so much more to these stories.
It's sad, a criticism of men and society that when a female author discusses these crimes against women she is criticised for hating women.
Patricia Highsmith, the famed hater of women, or so they say. The Talented Ms Highsmith, the poet of apprehension (thank you Graham Greene,) and creator of countless literary psychological thrillers.
In her novels she takes time, slowly building the suspense and the tension page by page but some of these stories are only two pages long, instead she utilises her skill in observing and dissecting human behaviour with short, sharp bursts of insight.
From the story of a cave woman to the stories of the sexually liberated 70's step by step we meet "The Prude," "The Breeder," "The Victim," and "The Middle-Class Housewife." Satirical and dark sketches of obviously real people that are often caustically funny.
The caricatures of women in each incarnation carry the overall theme that a woman can never win, can never be in the right, that she is doomed to die horribly; even if she lives to old age she'll find that somewhere along the line her essence died yet allowed her body to continue.
On the surface you might consider that yes, infact Highsmith did hate women and these are nothing more than seventeen attacks on the behaviour of those she deemed worthless but it doesn't take much consideration to realise there's so much more to these stories.
It's sad, a criticism of men and society that when a female author discusses these crimes against women she is criticised for hating women.