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celjla212's review
3.0
This is my first collection of short stories I've ever had to review, so forgive me if this seems a little clunky...I'm not quite sure how to rate the entire book.
Love, in Theory is composed of ten short stories that deal with all kinds of love: new love, old love, husband and wife, mother and daughter.
Some of the stories were very good, while others were less than enthralling. My favorite was "Small Bright Thing", in which both a mother and daughter must face that the other's life is changing.
The author definitely has a gift for making you feel what the character is feeling, which is pretty cool since the characters across the stories are all so different and so many different emotions are present. He also has a knock for getting inside each person's mind and making them confront things they don't really want to.
I'm not entirely sure short stories are for me, but this offering was rather intriguing and I'm glad I read it. If nothing else, it concretes the idea that love is anything but straightforward.
Love, in Theory is composed of ten short stories that deal with all kinds of love: new love, old love, husband and wife, mother and daughter.
Some of the stories were very good, while others were less than enthralling. My favorite was "Small Bright Thing", in which both a mother and daughter must face that the other's life is changing.
The author definitely has a gift for making you feel what the character is feeling, which is pretty cool since the characters across the stories are all so different and so many different emotions are present. He also has a knock for getting inside each person's mind and making them confront things they don't really want to.
I'm not entirely sure short stories are for me, but this offering was rather intriguing and I'm glad I read it. If nothing else, it concretes the idea that love is anything but straightforward.
talyasoytas's review
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
2.5
There’s a reason this short story collection took me so long to get thru and that is because while some stories were interesting in set up and concept, most just fell flat for me and said nothing new.
notallbooks_mp's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.75
meghanc303's review
4.0
Love, in Theory by E.J. Levy is a gorgeous collection of short stories examining the nature of love, need, desire, and connection in human experience. Levy’s prose is compelling and poetic, succeeding in embodying each character with complexity and uniqueness. This is an especially impressive accomplishment because Levy dives deeply into all types of love—affairs, new romances, decades of marriage, gay and lesbian relationships, family feuds—with the same meticulous attention to detail and voice. It’s this kind of fluidity that makes it easy to understand why this collection is a winner of the Flannery O’Connor Award for Short Fiction. (Full review:
http://inthenextroom.blogspot.com/2012/10/meghan-review-love-in-theory-by-ej-levy.html?m=1)
http://inthenextroom.blogspot.com/2012/10/meghan-review-love-in-theory-by-ej-levy.html?m=1)
kelseymfox21's review
4.0
This book is the kind a reader should keep for easy reading before going to sleep, or something to flip through on a slow afternoon. Love, In Theory is a relaxed read, but more than that it is quirky and leaves you giggling to yourself because we have all been the characters on these pages. The cover of this book states that the book is ten pieces of short fiction in the dealings of life, love, and relationships- yet E. J. Levy has created here ten stories that mirror anyone who has ever waded into the dating pool. We have all been the woman who packed a beautiful picnic meal for her boyfriend only for him to comment on the impracticality of it all, and in turn we have all been the family outcast at a wedding when the truth of your father’s affair and mistress comes to light.
Each piece is written from the perspective of a completely different character with no surface ties to the other stories in this book, yet Levy makes the reader forget that all of these were written by one author, creating ten completely unique narrators with their own personality and own views on love. One story is told from the view of a philosopher whose narrative is more longwinded and thoughtful than others, while in contrast another is told from the point of view of a mental institution worker who speaks in short sentences and never wonders about the divinity of monogamy or the morality of lovers. The one thing that all these characters share in common, the piece of evidence that links them to Levy’s writing style, is the satirical and witty narrative that each character makes of their situation. It is not only refreshing but also relatable as each character faces a different facet of the turmoil that love can often bring. Levy also does a fantastic job of creating characters that are real in the sense that they all have down-to-earth jobs, budgets, and they get Vietnamese take-out for one.
Other than the wit of the characters, they are linked by an underlying theme of adultery that sneaks into almost all ten of Levy’s fiction pieces. Affairs can be an old and tired subject for fiction, yet Levy approaches it from so many different characters that it becomes a topic worthy of fascination. Sometimes the narrator is the one cheating but justifies it because they are tired in their long relationship, and other times it is the faithful narrator who is cheated on. Regardless, the adultery in Love, in Theory is unique to every story Levy has included here, and addresses a different issue that sometimes comes with relationships and love; getting too comfortable, the loss of passion, resentment, and the question begging if the institution of marriage can truly stay monogamous ‘til death do the poor bastards part.
Overall, E. J. Levy has created a delightful read on the bittersweet pains new love offers, and the growing pains of worn-in relationships. This book is a great read for anyone looking for a quick and fun read, but do not come to this collection of stories looking for a deep, soul-wrenching analysis of love. Instead, come to this book ready to face your own experiences; told by the tales of ten people who clumsily fumble through dating in the adult world, and whose happy ending is sometimes not a grand wedding, but yet a brownstone apartment, with chipping paint and creaky floors, that is on the other side of town from your ex and his new girlfriend.
Each piece is written from the perspective of a completely different character with no surface ties to the other stories in this book, yet Levy makes the reader forget that all of these were written by one author, creating ten completely unique narrators with their own personality and own views on love. One story is told from the view of a philosopher whose narrative is more longwinded and thoughtful than others, while in contrast another is told from the point of view of a mental institution worker who speaks in short sentences and never wonders about the divinity of monogamy or the morality of lovers. The one thing that all these characters share in common, the piece of evidence that links them to Levy’s writing style, is the satirical and witty narrative that each character makes of their situation. It is not only refreshing but also relatable as each character faces a different facet of the turmoil that love can often bring. Levy also does a fantastic job of creating characters that are real in the sense that they all have down-to-earth jobs, budgets, and they get Vietnamese take-out for one.
Other than the wit of the characters, they are linked by an underlying theme of adultery that sneaks into almost all ten of Levy’s fiction pieces. Affairs can be an old and tired subject for fiction, yet Levy approaches it from so many different characters that it becomes a topic worthy of fascination. Sometimes the narrator is the one cheating but justifies it because they are tired in their long relationship, and other times it is the faithful narrator who is cheated on. Regardless, the adultery in Love, in Theory is unique to every story Levy has included here, and addresses a different issue that sometimes comes with relationships and love; getting too comfortable, the loss of passion, resentment, and the question begging if the institution of marriage can truly stay monogamous ‘til death do the poor bastards part.
Overall, E. J. Levy has created a delightful read on the bittersweet pains new love offers, and the growing pains of worn-in relationships. This book is a great read for anyone looking for a quick and fun read, but do not come to this collection of stories looking for a deep, soul-wrenching analysis of love. Instead, come to this book ready to face your own experiences; told by the tales of ten people who clumsily fumble through dating in the adult world, and whose happy ending is sometimes not a grand wedding, but yet a brownstone apartment, with chipping paint and creaky floors, that is on the other side of town from your ex and his new girlfriend.
unabridgedchick's review
5.0
You know how when you meet someone, and you immediately decide they're a total snob and you hate their guts, and then you spend more time with them and you realize you were totally wrong and this person is actually wildly cool, and now you've got to backpedal to all your friends about how that person is actually not as awful as you originally said...? Well, that's exactly my experience with this book.
On Friday I blogged about how I was kind of on the fence about this book because there's adultery and a lesbian who falls for a married man, and I definitely had my eyeballs rolling as I opened the first page. Ooops.
I loved this collection. (Not in theory, either, but for real.)
Every story was like, I don't know, something delectable and redolent. Be it a piece of chocolate or a slice of cake or a gorgeous aria -- Levy's writing sucked me in from the first line and I wanted to savor her stories, linger with them.
The characters felt real, immediately, their emotional state familiar and resonant, and their challenges and conflicts achingly, uncomfortably articulated. In the much feared 'Theory of Dramatic Action', with the lesbian and married man, I found a character I could relate to and understand, and a poignant situation that made me tear up a little. The volume's opening story, 'The Best Way Not to Freeze', about a woman's first real love, was so good I read it twice, then read it to my wife, then to a friend. After that, when I started reading 'The Three Christs of Moose Lake, Minnesota' to my wife, she just took the volume from my hands to inhale on her own. (I raced through this book in one night, then reread almost all the stories over the following two days.)
I have to stop saying I dislike short fiction because clearly, I do like it. These snapshots of relationships, of people, of emotional landscapes are as satisfying as a chunky novel. Maybe more so -- they're like the first bite of a fabulous meal. You want the taste to linger, but it disappears. The next story, the next bite, is just as intriguing. The only perk is, after glutting myself on Levy's book, I still wanted more.
On Friday I blogged about how I was kind of on the fence about this book because there's adultery and a lesbian who falls for a married man, and I definitely had my eyeballs rolling as I opened the first page. Ooops.
I loved this collection. (Not in theory, either, but for real.)
Every story was like, I don't know, something delectable and redolent. Be it a piece of chocolate or a slice of cake or a gorgeous aria -- Levy's writing sucked me in from the first line and I wanted to savor her stories, linger with them.
The characters felt real, immediately, their emotional state familiar and resonant, and their challenges and conflicts achingly, uncomfortably articulated. In the much feared 'Theory of Dramatic Action', with the lesbian and married man, I found a character I could relate to and understand, and a poignant situation that made me tear up a little. The volume's opening story, 'The Best Way Not to Freeze', about a woman's first real love, was so good I read it twice, then read it to my wife, then to a friend. After that, when I started reading 'The Three Christs of Moose Lake, Minnesota' to my wife, she just took the volume from my hands to inhale on her own. (I raced through this book in one night, then reread almost all the stories over the following two days.)
I have to stop saying I dislike short fiction because clearly, I do like it. These snapshots of relationships, of people, of emotional landscapes are as satisfying as a chunky novel. Maybe more so -- they're like the first bite of a fabulous meal. You want the taste to linger, but it disappears. The next story, the next bite, is just as intriguing. The only perk is, after glutting myself on Levy's book, I still wanted more.
reader_fictions's review
5.0
In the past, I have always avoided short fiction, with the grudging exception of some anthologies with really appealing themes (ex. Zombies vs. Unicorns). Generally, short stories haven't made a whole lot of sense to me, since they tend either to be scrapped ideas that weren't good enough to make into a novel or too short to do a fabulous idea justice. Either I don't want the story at all or I want it to be much longer, a proper novel. Well, I happily report that E. J. Levy's short story collection Love, in Theory is precisely what I want short fiction to be.
These ten stories dovetail together nicely, covering a lot of the same ground with slight variations. I love Levy's writing, even in the stories I didn't care for as much. She also makes a lot of fabulous observations with a cynicism and honesty I find quite delightful. I expected this collection of stories about love to be something like a written version of the film Love, Actually, and I suppose it sort of is. However, Levy's stories are all a bit on the melancholy side, lacking the cute couples uniting to make a happy ending, like Love, Actually has, though it actually does have several stories that do not end well.
The last TLC blog tour I participated in was for [b:Before the Rain: A Memoir of Love and Revolution|13202108|Before the Rain A Memoir of Love and Revolution|Luisita Lopez Torregrosa|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1344670974s/13202108.jpg|18385058], a memoir supposedly of love and revolution that follows the romance of two lesbian reporters. I could not help comparing these two, because for all that Before the Rain is non-fiction and Love, in Theory fiction, this short story collection feels infinitely more personal. Having finished this, whether incorrectly or no, I feel I have a sense of who E. J. Levy is, through some of the themes that continually appeared throughout the stories, especially as several of the main characters were writers or worked in academia. In reading this, I felt as though I could sense Levy working through issues she had confronted in her own life or in the lives of close friends and family members. This closeness I felt for the author, whether I'm right or not, made the stories so much more powerful for me.
Over half of the stories focus on well-educated women in their late twenties to early thirties, who struggle with love and romance. These women long for romance, for connection, but, when they find it, the theory of the emotion, the ideal, the dream, does not really seem to fit into their lives. These stories, while they might bore some with the similarity of the heroines, held the most appeal for me, since I cannot help seeing myself reflected in them. Reading about women who have similar reactions and difficulties with romantic relationships to mine was incredibly cathartic.
Another subject that comes up in nearly every story is adultery. If you can't handle stories of infidelity, this collection will not be for you. The adultery comes in just about every form, and, though that's a subject I don't tend to love either, handled quite deftly. This does not seem to have been included for shock value or torridness, but just because that's life; it's a thing that happens and, unfortunately, has to be included in any depiction of love, in the working out of what love really might mean in the face of all of this cheating.
The other most interesting repetition, that again I can't help but stick out to me as perhaps being personal, is that of a lesbian becoming very attracted to a straight man, whether or not she acts on it. Interesting, too, is that the sole gay main character does not question his sexuality, though he does fight against settling down, as almost all of these characters do. The LGBT themes run strongly here, appearing in slightly less than half of the stories.
These stories will not appeal to everyone, but I loved it. A couple of the stories in the middle fell flat for me story-wise, so I couldn't quite rate this five stars. The themes and tone herein remind me a lot of Carol Shields' [b:The Republic of Love|368503|The Republic of Love|Carol Shields|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1320496572s/368503.jpg|990655], so if you enjoyed that I recommend this heartily, and vice versa.
These ten stories dovetail together nicely, covering a lot of the same ground with slight variations. I love Levy's writing, even in the stories I didn't care for as much. She also makes a lot of fabulous observations with a cynicism and honesty I find quite delightful. I expected this collection of stories about love to be something like a written version of the film Love, Actually, and I suppose it sort of is. However, Levy's stories are all a bit on the melancholy side, lacking the cute couples uniting to make a happy ending, like Love, Actually has, though it actually does have several stories that do not end well.
The last TLC blog tour I participated in was for [b:Before the Rain: A Memoir of Love and Revolution|13202108|Before the Rain A Memoir of Love and Revolution|Luisita Lopez Torregrosa|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1344670974s/13202108.jpg|18385058], a memoir supposedly of love and revolution that follows the romance of two lesbian reporters. I could not help comparing these two, because for all that Before the Rain is non-fiction and Love, in Theory fiction, this short story collection feels infinitely more personal. Having finished this, whether incorrectly or no, I feel I have a sense of who E. J. Levy is, through some of the themes that continually appeared throughout the stories, especially as several of the main characters were writers or worked in academia. In reading this, I felt as though I could sense Levy working through issues she had confronted in her own life or in the lives of close friends and family members. This closeness I felt for the author, whether I'm right or not, made the stories so much more powerful for me.
Over half of the stories focus on well-educated women in their late twenties to early thirties, who struggle with love and romance. These women long for romance, for connection, but, when they find it, the theory of the emotion, the ideal, the dream, does not really seem to fit into their lives. These stories, while they might bore some with the similarity of the heroines, held the most appeal for me, since I cannot help seeing myself reflected in them. Reading about women who have similar reactions and difficulties with romantic relationships to mine was incredibly cathartic.
Another subject that comes up in nearly every story is adultery. If you can't handle stories of infidelity, this collection will not be for you. The adultery comes in just about every form, and, though that's a subject I don't tend to love either, handled quite deftly. This does not seem to have been included for shock value or torridness, but just because that's life; it's a thing that happens and, unfortunately, has to be included in any depiction of love, in the working out of what love really might mean in the face of all of this cheating.
The other most interesting repetition, that again I can't help but stick out to me as perhaps being personal, is that of a lesbian becoming very attracted to a straight man, whether or not she acts on it. Interesting, too, is that the sole gay main character does not question his sexuality, though he does fight against settling down, as almost all of these characters do. The LGBT themes run strongly here, appearing in slightly less than half of the stories.
These stories will not appeal to everyone, but I loved it. A couple of the stories in the middle fell flat for me story-wise, so I couldn't quite rate this five stars. The themes and tone herein remind me a lot of Carol Shields' [b:The Republic of Love|368503|The Republic of Love|Carol Shields|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1320496572s/368503.jpg|990655], so if you enjoyed that I recommend this heartily, and vice versa.
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