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discotrashreads's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
hjacunski's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
diverse cast of characters over the short stories
copu's review against another edition
didn't finish.
weaving for the empire was cool though.
weaving for the empire was cool though.
yodamom's review against another edition
4.0
Partial read only read first story. An excellent short story with a very different twist of the vampire tale. I plan of reading the rest soon.
savaging's review against another edition
5.0
The fifth star is purely for 'Reeling for Empire' which is perhaps the best short story I have ever read (is this just because it connects insects and feminism and resistance to empire? I can't prove otherwise). But I was charmed by all of these stories - presidents who become horses, vampires with fear of heights, seagulls who nest in regrets.
Sometimes amid the uncanny and creepiness something is left out. Can you write frontier settler horror without ever mentioning indigenous genocide? Can you write about war-vet ptsd without bringing up violence done to civilians in occupied territory? Sometimes the hauntings seem to stop short of the actual horror in the world, wrapped back up into safer, whiter topics. (Except for Reeling for Empire, which reaches into the depths of something).
But these pieces still hold weight. Russell is playful but not frivolous when she tells a world full of eerie minds that aren't human. We live in an uncanny, more-than-human world. Russell is only being realistic.
Sometimes amid the uncanny and creepiness something is left out. Can you write frontier settler horror without ever mentioning indigenous genocide? Can you write about war-vet ptsd without bringing up violence done to civilians in occupied territory? Sometimes the hauntings seem to stop short of the actual horror in the world, wrapped back up into safer, whiter topics. (Except for Reeling for Empire, which reaches into the depths of something).
But these pieces still hold weight. Russell is playful but not frivolous when she tells a world full of eerie minds that aren't human. We live in an uncanny, more-than-human world. Russell is only being realistic.
abbynordman's review against another edition
One story was interesting but the rest were pretty boring
mrsmcg's review against another edition
I think I was reading this at the wrong time. I didn't give it the time and care it deserved. I'll probably try it again when I can slow down and stay with it.
r0b3rta's review against another edition
4.0
The 8 short stories are overall good. The 1st short story Vampires in the Lemon Grove is one of my favorites and I assumed most of the short stories would be similar. As I read on they became a bit more dark, and macabre. There are Presidents Horses, Antarctic Tailgaiting, and Women who become Silkworms. Karen Russell writes very vividly and you feel for the characters in the stories.