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amycamp's review against another edition
No reason other than running out of time with a library book. That and I was specifically interested in one of the stories (same name as the book title) after I saw a movie that it had inspired. The movie was heartbreaking.
richardleis's review against another edition
5.0
Every single story in this collection of historical fiction and contemporary fiction pieces is breathtaking, full of incredible and often all-too-real details, and features characters (whether based on real people or not) that leap off the page. I particularly appreciate how writer Jim Shepard finds the humanity and depth in characters that are otherwise difficult to like.
The title story is a gorgeous examination of a forbidden love that simply cannot survive in its era. It's a great story, but one that is a little hard for me to take after the transcendence of Call Me By Your Name and that book (and movie's) powerful rejection of the old tropes in LGBT fiction. Yet this book is very much about catastrophe, so "The World to Come" fits in well. I frequently found myself looking up information about the events Shepard writes about in his stories that sound so unbelievable but really did take place. The three stories set in modern times are perfectly placed breathers from history no less lacking in concrete details and relevant facts.
I was not looking forward to reading this book at first because I thought I didn't enjoy history, but The World to Come: Stories has convinced me that historical fiction is a powerful and necessary lens through which to see our shared humanity, and perhaps learn how we can avoid such catastrophes in the future. This collection is a revelation.
The title story is a gorgeous examination of a forbidden love that simply cannot survive in its era. It's a great story, but one that is a little hard for me to take after the transcendence of Call Me By Your Name and that book (and movie's) powerful rejection of the old tropes in LGBT fiction. Yet this book is very much about catastrophe, so "The World to Come" fits in well. I frequently found myself looking up information about the events Shepard writes about in his stories that sound so unbelievable but really did take place. The three stories set in modern times are perfectly placed breathers from history no less lacking in concrete details and relevant facts.
I was not looking forward to reading this book at first because I thought I didn't enjoy history, but The World to Come: Stories has convinced me that historical fiction is a powerful and necessary lens through which to see our shared humanity, and perhaps learn how we can avoid such catastrophes in the future. This collection is a revelation.
lawlipop7's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
It was okay. A lot of the stories and writing itself were tedious and frankly, boring. Several of the stories made it worthwhile to keep going, though. “Safety Tips for Living Alone” was a good starting point, although the wide array of characters in such a short story made it hard to care about anyone.
Standouts include “The World to Come,” “Positive Train Control,” and “Forcing Joy on Young People”.
Standouts include “The World to Come,” “Positive Train Control,” and “Forcing Joy on Young People”.
johndiconsiglio's review against another edition
3.0
Shepard follows-up his brilliant Holocaust novel Book of Aron with an uneven story collection. (Aren’t they all?) Once again, it’s historical characters staring death in the face: sailors on a doomed 19th-century Arctic expedition; the claustrophobic crew of a WWII English submarine in enemy waters; a frontier housewife whose marriage is as barren as the frosty landscape. Drags a bit, but his research is thorough & he’s comfortable shifting styles from diaries to internal monologues. The few modern settings can seem jarringly out of place, even if they’re a welcome break from the magical misery tour.
kategci's review against another edition
4.0
This short story collection gets 4 stars from me, while I recognize that this is not the book for me. I am not a fan of the short story format (Helen Ellis being the exception). I feel over the past several years, I have given a number of collections a try, but the form annoys me. That said, these are interesting, amazing sad stories. I did a lot of web searching about the situations and now I want to read more about the Arctic, Queensland etc. Beautifully written, this collection will no doubt please many of my fellow Booktopians more than it did me.
nssutton's review against another edition
3.0
Well researched and well written, but ultimately I didn't love it as I did his other works. I liked Safety Tips for Living Alone, but the styles of HMS Terror & The World to Come made this drag along. Maybe it was the timing of so much destruction while I raced toward summer vacation.
adamrbrooks's review against another edition
3.0
People who write sad stories tend to write sad stories. But these stories are too uniformly sad. The writing is good and each seems to capture a different voice. Too many of the particulars are the same in each, despite the historical settings. The tale of farm wives broke from that mold, and it was also my favorite of the collection. Not a coincidence.
Read this because I really loved the interview Roger Bennett (of Men in Blazers) did with Shepard.
Read this because I really loved the interview Roger Bennett (of Men in Blazers) did with Shepard.
lifesaverscandyofficial's review against another edition
Jim Shepard's short story "Love & Hydrogen" is one of those that blew my mind and broke my heart as an undergraduate English major, such that every year I have to be talked out of tattooing a sentence from it to my body somewhere (said sentence being, "This complicates just about everything.").
That said, I had never read a full collection by him, and with this one specifically, I felt I could really see the strings being pulled. I mean, about half of these have the same ending as each other, not to mention not too dissimilar from the (heart-rending!) ending of "Love & Hydrogen." So now it's like, I see the gimmick, I know the trick. Some great details and fun characters, but repetitive and slow overall when you know how they all go.
That said, I had never read a full collection by him, and with this one specifically, I felt I could really see the strings being pulled. I mean, about half of these have the same ending as each other, not to mention not too dissimilar from the (heart-rending!) ending of "Love & Hydrogen." So now it's like, I see the gimmick, I know the trick. Some great details and fun characters, but repetitive and slow overall when you know how they all go.
hackjuber's review against another edition
4.0
Overall, not as complete of a collection as his first, but the highlights were excellent. The first story about the radio tower was amazing.
darren_cormier's review against another edition
3.0
I am a Jim Shepard fan. I have attended two of his readings. For my critical essay in graduate school I analyzed his works and his overarching themes of the liminal space between being unable and unwilling to communicate with others; and how we don't understand or disguise from ourselves our own true natures until faced with calamity and natural disaster. For this project, I interviewed him via email over the course of many months.
I am also a fan of the short story format.
However, for me, this collection had more misses than hits. That's not to say the misses weren't failures: they just didn't connect with me. There are two stories in particular in this volume where Shepard is trying something new: examining the affects of disaster on a group of individuals (as opposed to a group as a collective), instead of examining them on a specific person: the first story "Safety Tips for Living Alone," and the last story "Intimacy." This technique is stronger in the first piece, but because it's exploring so many lives in such a small space, the affect of the disasters is diffuse. These two stories are ensemble films told in a short film format, where a lot of the film pores over the technical details of what it's exploring.
There are also standout stories in this collection, starting with the shortest of them all "Cretan Love Song." At three pages it shows the harrowing thoughts of a father on the isle of Crete with his son racing to their house shortly after the eruption of Thera that wiped out most of Minoan civilization. The father knows their racing is futile, that the massive swell of water will drown and wash them away, but he must do the expected, and proffer the appearance and remote possibility of hope; always try to make an effort at making things better.
"The Ocean of Air" chronicles the invention of the hot air balloon (and manned flight) in 18th century France by the Montgolfier brothers. It takes the first person point of view of the older (12th of 15 children) Joseph-Michel who invented the idea but was profligate with money and business, and his exclusion by his younger brother Etienne, who had a calmer temperament and sound business sense. when showing the idea to aristocracy and those who could fund them. It's a story of muted sibling rivalry and the power of quiet accomplishment.
For me, the most powerful of the collection is the title story "The World to Come" which focuses on the lives and relationship/friendship between two pioneer wives in early America. In every Shepard collection, there are one of two lines that feel as if they could be stated by all of the characters, that capture their inner emotional turmoil and fugue. On the second paragraph of this story:
"With little pride and less hope and only occasional and uncertain intervals of happiness, we begin the new year. Let me at least learn to be uncomplaining and unselfish. Let me feel gratitude for what I have: some strength, some sense of purpose, some capacity for progress. Some esteem, some respect, and some affection. Yet I cannot say I am improved in any manner, unless it is preferable to be wider in sensation and experience."
This is a collection of people wanting to be better versions of themselves and unable to move out of their own ways to accomplish it; people unable to see beyond themselves despite their personal aspirations, people wanting the quiet acknowledgement of accomplishment and affection from those they crave it from the most, and not knowing how to proceed if they don't receive it, even if they know they won't.
It's familiar territory for one of our best short story writers.
I am also a fan of the short story format.
However, for me, this collection had more misses than hits. That's not to say the misses weren't failures: they just didn't connect with me. There are two stories in particular in this volume where Shepard is trying something new: examining the affects of disaster on a group of individuals (as opposed to a group as a collective), instead of examining them on a specific person: the first story "Safety Tips for Living Alone," and the last story "Intimacy." This technique is stronger in the first piece, but because it's exploring so many lives in such a small space, the affect of the disasters is diffuse. These two stories are ensemble films told in a short film format, where a lot of the film pores over the technical details of what it's exploring.
There are also standout stories in this collection, starting with the shortest of them all "Cretan Love Song." At three pages it shows the harrowing thoughts of a father on the isle of Crete with his son racing to their house shortly after the eruption of Thera that wiped out most of Minoan civilization. The father knows their racing is futile, that the massive swell of water will drown and wash them away, but he must do the expected, and proffer the appearance and remote possibility of hope; always try to make an effort at making things better.
"The Ocean of Air" chronicles the invention of the hot air balloon (and manned flight) in 18th century France by the Montgolfier brothers. It takes the first person point of view of the older (12th of 15 children) Joseph-Michel who invented the idea but was profligate with money and business, and his exclusion by his younger brother Etienne, who had a calmer temperament and sound business sense. when showing the idea to aristocracy and those who could fund them. It's a story of muted sibling rivalry and the power of quiet accomplishment.
For me, the most powerful of the collection is the title story "The World to Come" which focuses on the lives and relationship/friendship between two pioneer wives in early America. In every Shepard collection, there are one of two lines that feel as if they could be stated by all of the characters, that capture their inner emotional turmoil and fugue. On the second paragraph of this story:
"With little pride and less hope and only occasional and uncertain intervals of happiness, we begin the new year. Let me at least learn to be uncomplaining and unselfish. Let me feel gratitude for what I have: some strength, some sense of purpose, some capacity for progress. Some esteem, some respect, and some affection. Yet I cannot say I am improved in any manner, unless it is preferable to be wider in sensation and experience."
This is a collection of people wanting to be better versions of themselves and unable to move out of their own ways to accomplish it; people unable to see beyond themselves despite their personal aspirations, people wanting the quiet acknowledgement of accomplishment and affection from those they crave it from the most, and not knowing how to proceed if they don't receive it, even if they know they won't.
It's familiar territory for one of our best short story writers.