A review by rebmarara
Cat Person and Other Stories by Kristen Roupenian

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

“Cat Person” is one of my favorite short stories of all time so I was really excited to read this collection. However, other than that one story and another entitled “The Good Guy,” I felt that the book fell flat overall. I think the short story format did not work in Roupenian’s favor at certain points, because I was often wanting more from the stories she was telling but couldn’t get more due to their length. I also felt like some of the situations were a bit too on the nose and weren’t really presenting anything that new or interesting. The story “Cat Person” is wonderful because it’s so raw and real, and yet it discusses the topic of dating in a manner that I personally do not see often. So, the more fantastical stories were not as powerful for me because they lacked what was so great about “Cat Person.” Had this story not been included in the collection, I probably would’ve have rated the book 2 stars, but “Cat Person” alone deserves an extra star, in my opinion.