Reviews

Sorry Please Thank You by Charles Yu

xosirenox's review against another edition

fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

The stories veer between having no meaning, and having heavy-handed meaning shoved down your throat.

There also don't seem to be any women who exist outside the love interest role? And there's a running vibe of incel thought patterns which put me off.

If you want good sci-fi short stories read Ted Chiang.

vaia_the_reader's review against another edition

5.0

Playful and profound. The scope is the universe and the point is human experience and connection. Ready to read it again.

siebensommer's review against another edition

Maybe I am making a mistake, but maybe that’s what’s been missing. 

semmons99's review

dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious sad fast-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

3.0

rieshyanne's review against another edition

3.0

some of the short stories were really good, others i skimmed through. it was an interesting collection of short stories

alkatsi's review against another edition

3.0

A playfully serious collection of short stories. I didn't infer any earth-moving sentiments, but found most of the stories to be relatable on an emotionally modern level (i.e. one particular story is told from the perspective of a video game character as it exists in the context of the game -- though I'm not an avid game player, it wasn't difficult to understand or relate to artistic interpretation). Good selection for a "side-dish" type book if you're the type of reader who likes to read a variety of things concurrently.

robotswithpersonality's review

Yu's work continues to exhibit a distinct creative voice, occasionally happily absurd, some introspective rambling, good dash of sci fi tropes remixed, healthy portion of pathos. 
Faves: 
First Person Shooter: Big box store retail workers with speculative elements -I loved Finna, Defekt and Horrorstor - I love how well this subgenre works and that I keep finding stories in it. 
Hero Absorbs Major Damage: I know just enough about video games and DND to appreciate this take on the cliches.
Yeoman: A twist on that classic Star Trek 'red shirt' phenomenon, captain giving off definite 'randy Kirk' vibes
The Book of Categories: Enchanting storytelling format (at least to someone in info management/admin) and painful themes. 

⚠️ sexual harrassment in the workplace, child death(?), suicide

wynnepei's review

funny reflective medium-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

4.0

mauvenotebook's review

fast-paced

1.0

I have to say, I was kind of disappointed. I did enjoy many of his shorter stories(the one with the zombie, and Beginner Human), but a lot of the longer ones were a bit too meta for me. I also really disliked the final story. One one hand, I could relate to the main character's feelings of loneliness, but on the other hand there were major incel vibes. I also didn't like Hero Absorbs Major Damage. It was super predictable.

jaysen's review against another edition

3.0

Useful to anybody stuck in this simulated life, in this simulated universe, without access to the readme.