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A review by daniellewalsh
Total: Stories by Rebecca Miller
4.0
It's been a long time since I've read a collection of short stories, so this was something fairly new for me.
I enjoyed being able to take a dip into so many different worlds and characters for a short period of time. I actually really liked experiencing a whole well-rounded story in around 20 pages, and it's incredible that Rebecca Miller manages to convey the background, context, and setting of characters and deliver a dark twist within each one.
As with many dystopian stories today, there are elements that don't seem too far removed from our current society, and even though 'Total' (the short story, not the collection) is a futuristic tale, the terror of it is that it doesn't seem
Compared to the others, 'Total' is the most different in terms of its setting, however all of the short stories revolve around relationships and families. It shows how the mundane in our lives can change in an instant, and the scandalous things that go on behind closed doors.
Many of the shorts also include infidelity as a theme, and it never fails to anger me, so well done to Miller for doing that several times.
The writing is vivid and powerful, with each story immersing you into a different family or relationship.
Thank you to Canongate for sending me this copy. Total is out on 1st September and I highly recommend it if you want to be thrown into seven different moods in just 173 pages.
I enjoyed being able to take a dip into so many different worlds and characters for a short period of time. I actually really liked experiencing a whole well-rounded story in around 20 pages, and it's incredible that Rebecca Miller manages to convey the background, context, and setting of characters and deliver a dark twist within each one.
As with many dystopian stories today, there are elements that don't seem too far removed from our current society, and even though 'Total' (the short story, not the collection) is a futuristic tale, the terror of it is that it doesn't seem
Compared to the others, 'Total' is the most different in terms of its setting, however all of the short stories revolve around relationships and families. It shows how the mundane in our lives can change in an instant, and the scandalous things that go on behind closed doors.
Many of the shorts also include infidelity as a theme, and it never fails to anger me, so well done to Miller for doing that several times.
The writing is vivid and powerful, with each story immersing you into a different family or relationship.
Thank you to Canongate for sending me this copy. Total is out on 1st September and I highly recommend it if you want to be thrown into seven different moods in just 173 pages.