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hedgehogbookreviews's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
allisonwhite167's review against another edition
4.0
i really enjoyed reading Gaitskill’s collection of stories. i loved that way she painted the world as sort of a cesspool, a world that practices and produces disgust, but her characters (well, most of them) don’t harbor these qualities. her characters are complex and fallible, often oscillating between two extremes—sex/love, old friendships/better futures, authority/camaraderie, pursuit of passion/staying in your comfort zone, etc. even though i think this is what she’s doing to some level, it’s too reductionist to say that what she’s exhibiting is the connection between all these characters is good natured people afflicted by the evil world. there is so much nuance in the characters, their stories, and their occupations that are seen as taboo.
gaitskill uses disgust as an aesthetic, making the readers turn their noses at first but by the end of the story, these characters are people we know and some often relatable to our own lives.
i love the way that she explores gender here—very typical portrayal of gender in which there is strictly a man/woman, abuser/abused, boss/employee, john/sex worker binary. in a world filled to the brim with disgust, who’s to say that this binary shouldn’t be revolting as well?
the last story comes as sort of a reminder that even those with sort of picture perfect, cookie cutter lives are prone to this inherent worldly suffering: no matter what you do, it’s inescapable.
although i think that my takeaway from this book may be too simple or easy, and i may not see all it has to offer, i definitely want to read more of gaitskill’s work.
gaitskill uses disgust as an aesthetic, making the readers turn their noses at first but by the end of the story, these characters are people we know and some often relatable to our own lives.
i love the way that she explores gender here—very typical portrayal of gender in which there is strictly a man/woman, abuser/abused, boss/employee, john/sex worker binary. in a world filled to the brim with disgust, who’s to say that this binary shouldn’t be revolting as well?
the last story comes as sort of a reminder that even those with sort of picture perfect, cookie cutter lives are prone to this inherent worldly suffering: no matter what you do, it’s inescapable.
although i think that my takeaway from this book may be too simple or easy, and i may not see all it has to offer, i definitely want to read more of gaitskill’s work.
bee_phe's review against another edition
5.0
picked it up because of a video essay about the maggie gyllenhaal movie Secretary. changed my life. i love deeply flawed women and i love mary gaitskill
ladytstanz's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.0
retroarmadillo's review against another edition
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
samcibula's review against another edition
4.0
Obviously I've been a fan of Mary Gaitskill for a while but I had never actually read this whole collection until recently. The only story from this I'd read was "Secretary," and for almost the entire book I felt that it was clearly the best in the collection, but I was surprised how much I liked the final story, "Heaven." While these had their moments, they did kind of all run together. But I guess that happens with most short story collections.
rekams's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
While Gaitskill is often lauded as a feminist writer before her time, most, if not all of these stories seem to have been written for the male gaze, dating them in an unpleasant way that's, in my view, unconnected from the unpleasantness of the subject matter itself, and might not be entirely intentional on the author. I do understand that works of literature must be contextualised against the culture from which they emerged, so I did not take this into account when rating this book, but nonetheless I wanted to note this, as it's not something I've seen in reviews of this book at all, despite the laundry lists of various trigger warnings and caveats many of them highlight.
So, if not the above, then why the 2.5 stars? Well, to me, the main issue was that the stories were simply too similar, and also not very good. There are two in particular, Something Nice and Trying to Be, that focus on the relationship between a young, struggling-writer-turned-prostitute in New York and an older, professional man that frequents said prostitute. I put the book down for the night partway through the latter, and when I picked it up the next morning, I really had to struggle to remember, that the first story ended, and that this was now, supposedly, a different story. Although the plots for the rest of the stories weren't as repetitive as these two, the characters were, to the point where I frequently had to flip back a page or two to double check what the self insert female character was now called so that I could make sense of a more confusing passage here and there.
The only reason why I haven't rated the collection lower is the last story, Heaven, which I found quite solemn, but also hopeful. It shows that Gaitskill has the talent and skills to write a tight, interesting, and meaningful short story, if only she chooses to. Of course, I suspect that stories like this one wouldn't have sold the same way as a woman writing about BDSM did in the late 1980s, but I do find it a shame, as while shock value and novelty of the latter has worn off over the years, it's the stories like Heaven that aged well in my opinion.
So, if not the above, then why the 2.5 stars? Well, to me, the main issue was that the stories were simply too similar, and also not very good. There are two in particular, Something Nice and Trying to Be, that focus on the relationship between a young, struggling-writer-turned-prostitute in New York and an older, professional man that frequents said prostitute. I put the book down for the night partway through the latter, and when I picked it up the next morning, I really had to struggle to remember, that the first story ended, and that this was now, supposedly, a different story. Although the plots for the rest of the stories weren't as repetitive as these two, the characters were, to the point where I frequently had to flip back a page or two to double check what the self insert female character was now called so that I could make sense of a more confusing passage here and there.
The only reason why I haven't rated the collection lower is the last story, Heaven, which I found quite solemn, but also hopeful. It shows that Gaitskill has the talent and skills to write a tight, interesting, and meaningful short story, if only she chooses to. Of course, I suspect that stories like this one wouldn't have sold the same way as a woman writing about BDSM did in the late 1980s, but I do find it a shame, as while shock value and novelty of the latter has worn off over the years, it's the stories like Heaven that aged well in my opinion.
nikatheestallion's review against another edition
3.0
I liked it, her short stories are vibrant but I wish I took a break after they wanted to.
meghzz_reads's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
jaymesisreading's review against another edition
dark
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
i enjoyed this but found the stories very repetitive . maybe i just kept reading it when i was very sleepy