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book_concierge's review against another edition
4.0
Digital audiobook performed by Holter Graham, Luke Daniels and Andi Arndt
4****
In this collection of short stories Butler explores relationships: men and women; male bonding; fathers and children; people and the land.
In one story a group of young couples has a “chainsaw party” … cutting firewood for the coming winter, and two long-term friends’ paths diverge. In another an aging environmentalist takes matters into his own hands after he hears news of a major oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. And then there is the story of a group of men who annually hunt for morels in the woods of their youth, and find despair instead. A man and his wife work to clear out his recently deceased mother’s home, and he comes to a decision about their future. Two women help one another seek revenge against a man who has hurt many. A man inherits a family and grows into fatherhood.
The ten stories are dark and mesmerizing, Butler’s characters are lonely and yet reaching out for connection. I recognize the landscape which can be brutally unforgiving for the person not experienced or equipped to survive the dangers of the north woods. I’ve been in these bars, hiked the wooded trails, fished on the pristine lakes (but NOT ice-fishing), stayed in remote cabins where you’re more likely to see deer or even a bear than another human. I could smell the wood smoke, hear the squeak as I walked across a snow-packed path, taste the butter-soaked morels, feel the sting of icy sleet and the almost uncomfortable warmth of a blazing fire.
The audiobook is marvelously narrated by a trio of skilled voice artists. I have no idea which artist reads which stories, but they are all equally good. I can hear the gravelly, whisky-soaked, cigarette fueled rasp of a lonely man, and also the quiet, despair of a woman who has been beaten down by life. They give the listener the exuberance of youth and the quite confusion of an older woman’s encroaching dementia.
4****
In this collection of short stories Butler explores relationships: men and women; male bonding; fathers and children; people and the land.
In one story a group of young couples has a “chainsaw party” … cutting firewood for the coming winter, and two long-term friends’ paths diverge. In another an aging environmentalist takes matters into his own hands after he hears news of a major oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. And then there is the story of a group of men who annually hunt for morels in the woods of their youth, and find despair instead. A man and his wife work to clear out his recently deceased mother’s home, and he comes to a decision about their future. Two women help one another seek revenge against a man who has hurt many. A man inherits a family and grows into fatherhood.
The ten stories are dark and mesmerizing, Butler’s characters are lonely and yet reaching out for connection. I recognize the landscape which can be brutally unforgiving for the person not experienced or equipped to survive the dangers of the north woods. I’ve been in these bars, hiked the wooded trails, fished on the pristine lakes (but NOT ice-fishing), stayed in remote cabins where you’re more likely to see deer or even a bear than another human. I could smell the wood smoke, hear the squeak as I walked across a snow-packed path, taste the butter-soaked morels, feel the sting of icy sleet and the almost uncomfortable warmth of a blazing fire.
The audiobook is marvelously narrated by a trio of skilled voice artists. I have no idea which artist reads which stories, but they are all equally good. I can hear the gravelly, whisky-soaked, cigarette fueled rasp of a lonely man, and also the quiet, despair of a woman who has been beaten down by life. They give the listener the exuberance of youth and the quite confusion of an older woman’s encroaching dementia.
dewey_scrapper's review against another edition
3.0
I liked this, but it wasn't as good as his first book, Shotgun Lovesongs.
aliena_jackson's review against another edition
3.0
I love reading short stories, so I was excited to read this collection.
jeffmauch's review against another edition
4.0
This is a solid short story collection for an author that shows an immense amount of promise. I enjoy collections like this a lot. They show me what an author is capable of while also giving me a variety of their thoughts all at once. With Butler you see an author who love the grit and somewhat darkness of rural Midwestern America. With abbreviated writing selections like this we get to see both where the writer excels and where they struggle. Butler seems to truly excel with complex, rough characters and hard, unforgiving descriptions of landscapes. This also shined through in the one novel of his I read. As for criticisms, He seems to lack succinct endings, though that just may be the genre. After all, what is a short story really, but a novel that's not quite there yet. Butler is a very bright talent to keep an eye on.
carolinevaught's review against another edition
3.0
There's not much I really have to say on this book. I was disappointed, but I think I knew I wouldn't really like it. Not only is it not in my usual genres, but it's a little too realistic. I've never been a big fan about a book of stories (other than LET IT SNOW). It's my opinion that a story is meant for one book, so when you take a bunch of small stories and compile them, it just ruins the effect. However, there were a few select stories that I took a liking to, therefore the 3/5, but with small stories, I can't form relationships with the characters, because the characters are constantly changing.
kmwilder's review against another edition
4.0
I had some mixed feelings about some of the stories and even skipped one but the last two made the book for me! Apples will melt even the iciest heart.
leonie_s's review against another edition
5.0
Really enjoy Nickolas Butlers writing, can't wait to read more of his work. Almost every short story made me wish for more.
leapfeetfirst's review against another edition
5.0
I really loved this collection of short stories. Each story was so well told and the characters were so lifelike. As a long time Wisconsinite, I could easily conjure up an image of someone in my life, or someone I've seen in the bars or grocery store when reading these stories. While some of the stories may be fantastical, they are all beautifully tragic in their own way.
krismarley's review against another edition
3.0
I liked Shotgun Lovesongs. This, not as much. His writing is so sad to me. Not sad like bad. Sad like makes me feel sad. Butler has a unique voice.
ktrusty416's review against another edition
5.0
I love Nickolas Butler's stories. Whether in the form of a novel(Shotgun Lovesongs) or in short form, as with collection, Butler writes with such humanity, imbuing his characters with such grace, vulnerability and kindness, that even as horrible things are happening around them you pray that they won't/can't be indelibly marked by what transpires. On the way to work this morning I actually cried on the subway whilst reading the final story, "Apples". Can't wait for more (tears, beauty and grace).