theshaggyshepherd's review against another edition
3.0
Alone Together // edited by Jennifer Haupt
I've always struggled with short story collections but wanted to give it another try. This one just sounded perfect for our pandemic year with short stories, poems, and interviews all mixed together. There was a great variety of authors from diverse cultures and backgrounds as well as varying narrators. In the print book, 69 authors contributed to this work that includes their collective pain and dreams during this time. While I loved learning how everyone perceived this period in their lives both differently and the same, I did struggle to connect to more than just a few. It generally takes a while for me to get invested in a story and whenever I felt close to doing so, I had to move on to a different person or set of people. This isn't necessarily an issue with the book itself and probably has more to do with me as a reader. Sometimes I struggled to understand why a certain piece was included in this collection, but overall it was really interesting to see how people took something from their lives and connected it to the pandemic in some way or another that I wouldn't have thought of like that at all. While I probably won't pick up another book like this anytime soon, I am still happy I was able to read and experience this.
Thank you to the authors, editor, publisher, and NetGalley for providing me with a free copy in exchange for an honest review.
I've always struggled with short story collections but wanted to give it another try. This one just sounded perfect for our pandemic year with short stories, poems, and interviews all mixed together. There was a great variety of authors from diverse cultures and backgrounds as well as varying narrators. In the print book, 69 authors contributed to this work that includes their collective pain and dreams during this time. While I loved learning how everyone perceived this period in their lives both differently and the same, I did struggle to connect to more than just a few. It generally takes a while for me to get invested in a story and whenever I felt close to doing so, I had to move on to a different person or set of people. This isn't necessarily an issue with the book itself and probably has more to do with me as a reader. Sometimes I struggled to understand why a certain piece was included in this collection, but overall it was really interesting to see how people took something from their lives and connected it to the pandemic in some way or another that I wouldn't have thought of like that at all. While I probably won't pick up another book like this anytime soon, I am still happy I was able to read and experience this.
Thank you to the authors, editor, publisher, and NetGalley for providing me with a free copy in exchange for an honest review.
livannereads's review against another edition
Had to return to the library. Hope to get again in the future and finish!
kellyreadingbooks's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
2.0
I guess this just wasn't really what I had wanted it to be. I had wanted a more well rounded collection of essays. I wanted to hear from more than just artists/authors, maybe that was my mistake in thinking there would be other perspectives such as nurses/teachers/government workers etc. And many of the essays actually weren't really about COVID and just had one or two lines like "and now we are here, in a pandemic"... hmm. Perhaps I missed the point of these. Two essays did make me cry, the ones that felt like there was more of an emotional connection to grief and COVID. A lot of poetry that I didn't feel connected to either, but I am not huge into poetry. Another reviewer said something along the lines of "boomers talking about early days of COVID" and it made me laugh because that did feel on par. I believe this was published in the 1st year of the pandemic so in light of what we know now/what was to come, some felt awkward when referencing "the world opening back up again" when that essay said it was 2 months into the pandemic .... um, okay, no it wasn't?
dame_samara's review against another edition
5.0
At the halfway point of this book, I was already on the search to see if I could get a physical copy of it locally. Because I know I will be coming back to it time and time again.
This book has stories that made me laugh, and made me nearly cry. It feels like the touch of humanity that we all need in a time like this. But also it has the kinds of stories that you find yourself turning to time and time again.
Paired with the beautiful variation of narrators this audiobook has, I can't recommend this enough no matter what version you choose.
This book has stories that made me laugh, and made me nearly cry. It feels like the touch of humanity that we all need in a time like this. But also it has the kinds of stories that you find yourself turning to time and time again.
Paired with the beautiful variation of narrators this audiobook has, I can't recommend this enough no matter what version you choose.
bethreadsandnaps's review against another edition
4.0
Really enjoyed this collection that takes place in the early months of the pandemic. Most of these are SUPER short, and there's an eclectic mix of short stories, interviews and poems. There is something about the early days of the pandemic that's so nostalgic even though technically we're still in the pandemic. The collective confusion, the kindness and generosity, trying to figure out Zoom, etc.
Many of the authors are local to Seattle, so it was also nice to see so many mentions of the area.
Many of the authors are local to Seattle, so it was also nice to see so many mentions of the area.
melissasue81's review against another edition
3.0
I ended up reading this quite a bit after it’s release and I thought it might help me process all the feelings I’d had during that time. It was definitely a mixed bag. Some essays were compulsively readable and filled with emotion. Some were pretty dull. A few I had trouble following. Then there were a few that seemed to have absolutely nothing to do with COVID or lockdown. Not bad, but probably could have benefitted from better curation/editing.
ethaden's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars. Some stories I really enjoyed, and others not so much.
carlaalonsogm's review against another edition
3.0
Thank you NetGallery for the ARC of this book.
It was such a powerful book that was still hard to read, especially when we are still going through the pandemic. Some stories were full of hope and helped me realize the many other perspectives of how hard or easy the rest of the world is handling the pandemic. Some other stories made me really nostalgic that actually hurt reading them . It’s really special to read a book to go away from real life and travel to imaginary worlds, but it’s more important to see different points of view from the world you are actually living in. I love the different steps or areas we have during covid. Also I love the different types of writing: poems, memoirs, short stories, etc.
It was such a powerful book that was still hard to read, especially when we are still going through the pandemic. Some stories were full of hope and helped me realize the many other perspectives of how hard or easy the rest of the world is handling the pandemic. Some other stories made me really nostalgic that actually hurt reading them . It’s really special to read a book to go away from real life and travel to imaginary worlds, but it’s more important to see different points of view from the world you are actually living in. I love the different steps or areas we have during covid. Also I love the different types of writing: poems, memoirs, short stories, etc.
heidirgreen's review against another edition
4.0
I wasn't sure what to expect from this anthology - I haven't read work by a lot of the writers included, and it has quite a strong American focus, but I'm really glad I picked it up. The American focus didn't actually matter at all because the emotions discussed were so broad that they definitely encompassed experiences from all over the world. I enjoyed the way the book was split into different themes, each of the included works work well within the themes but give different perspectives within them. As with any anthology, there are some pieces that I enjoyed more than others, but overall I really enjoyed this book. It made me tear up in parts, it made me laugh, and it made me feel much less alone in this very strange time. Mission accomplished, Jennifer Haupt! I'm looking forward to flicking back through this and exploring the work of new to me authors.
Thank you to NetGalley and Central Avenue Publishing for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you to NetGalley and Central Avenue Publishing for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
merricatct's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed this! Like most collections, some pieces were standouts and some didn't work as well for me, but overall this was a good read. If you're looking for escapism, this definitely isn't it - we're all living through this pandemic in our own ways, facing our own struggles, but this book puts the struggles and concerns of 90+ other people right in your face. Personally, I found it comforting to be reminded that within our walls, we're all grappling with similar emotions, even if our circumstances are different. It also helped give me perspective ... I found myself instinctively starting to roll my eyes at some of the stories, but it was a wake-up call to realize that I've voiced those same grievances, and they're not petty at all. Likewise, hearing about others' experiences who are dealing with so much more than I am helped ground me and make gratitude easier.