Status
Available
Publication
Big Mouth House (2010), Edition: 1, 256 pages
Description
A collection of stories includes tales about John Wilkes Booth's younger brother, a one-winged man, a California cult, a rebellious teen facing torture in a rehab facility, and a mother who invents a fairy-tale world for her son.
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Media reviews
Writing a review of what is, for the most part, a reprint collection of superb and already well-received stories comes uncomfortably close to gilding a lily. At the same time, one thing we can consistently say about Fowler's wide-ranging body of fiction is that it is always worth talking about.
User reviews
LibraryThing member jwhenderson
Based on Karen Joy Fowler’s work to date, it is clear that she likes books. The Jane Austen Book Club, for which she is mainly known is an engagement with the modern romance genre as well as Austen’s novels. The Case of the Imaginary Detective, also published as Wit’s End, is a crime novel
“The Dark”, my favorite, manages to combine a history of plague, the Vietnam war and feral children into a disturbing story which also contains references to the Pied Piper of Hamlin. “King Rat” is a simpler piece in which the narrator remembers a friend of her family, yet again the story of the Pied Piper and his attendant lost children lurks in the background.
These stories blend fantastic ideas with good writing for an entertaining read.
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about crime novels. What I Didn’t See is a collection of Karen Joy Fowler’s short stories, the first such collection since 1997’s Black Glass. Most of the stories in this collection have been published elsewhere, with the oldest (“The Dark”) first published in 1991 and the most recent (“Halfway People”) in 2010. So it’s unsurprising that they don’t immediately form a unified collection. However, while it would be reductive to say that literature is Fowler’s subject, this is a frequently recurring thread that is useful to hang on to.“The Dark”, my favorite, manages to combine a history of plague, the Vietnam war and feral children into a disturbing story which also contains references to the Pied Piper of Hamlin. “King Rat” is a simpler piece in which the narrator remembers a friend of her family, yet again the story of the Pied Piper and his attendant lost children lurks in the background.
These stories blend fantastic ideas with good writing for an entertaining read.
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LibraryThing member Jellyn
Science fiction? Fantasy? Neither? It can be hard to tell with some of Karen Joy Fowler's stories. And particularly difficult in this collection! I'd say they all appeal to sf/f readers, though, even if you're pretty certain it's neither.Most of the stories in this collection were published in the
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last few years, and there's at least one entirely new one. "What I Didn't See" is, I think, the oldest story in this collection. Or perhaps it was "Standing Room Only", which is my favorite one, even though I'd read it previously.The perfect gift to give to a friend who doesn't like sf/f (and they're still your friend?!) but does like short stories. Ease them into things.Then slip them some of her novels. Show Less
LibraryThing member aulsmith
I picked this up because I read Fowler's story "Always" in Asimov's. However, the first three stories of this anthology failed to engage me in the same way, so I passed it on.
LibraryThing member Cheryl_in_CC_NV
Saw this on the New Books display at the library, remembered loving Sweetheart Season, so grabbed it. So far (almost 1/2 way) it's, erm, 'interesting.' When she doesn't explain her stories, I'm adrift and unsettled and displeased. When she does explain them, they seem too simple & unmemorable. I'm
Update - done. Well, I just don't know. I'd suggest, if you're interested, read the title story, then decide whether you want to read the rest. I thought that one was one of the most accessible and still provocative and creative.
The last story was probably ironic. I'd love to hear from anyone who did read this through.
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probably not quite the target audience; not quite literary enough.Update - done. Well, I just don't know. I'd suggest, if you're interested, read the title story, then decide whether you want to read the rest. I thought that one was one of the most accessible and still provocative and creative.
The last story was probably ironic. I'd love to hear from anyone who did read this through.
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LibraryThing member kvrfan
Stories of wistfulness and beauty. Karen Joy Fowler is a treasure.
LibraryThing member viviennestrauss
I listened to these stories while working, some were pretty good, others were incredibly bland and immediately forgettable.
LibraryThing member steve02476
Strange short stories, some a bit dark, but nearly all had a sense of humor and humanity. Quite a variety, if there’s some overall commonality I didn’t see it. My second Fowler book, I’ll be looking into others: I’m curious about one called “The Jane Austen Book Club.”
LibraryThing member dmtrader
Whoa.
I should have been more prepared for this fiction collection. Each story is written in a realism that strays so subtly off the path of reality by the time you’re finished. Except once you’ve meandered off that path, you can’t seem to get back. And the conclusion is often haunting and
Another reviewer mentioned that Fowler's stories straddle the line between reality and not-quite-reality. I couldn’t say it any better.
I like to judge fiction by a simple formula. Do I remember the story a day after I read it? Does it make me feel something?
In this case, I can’t forget some of the things that happen.
There are some award winners in here. “Always” depicts a religious immortality commune, specifically a teen girl caught up in the hysteria. In “The Pelican Bar,” a girl is sentenced to a rehabilitative boot camp. “What I Didn’t See” has a “Heart of Darkness” feel to it; a woman travels to see the elusive silver back gorillas and attempts to shoot one to deter others from shooting the apes. And that’s not even the strange part of the story.
I think the whole collection won an award.
There’s two John Wilkes Booth stories. As if one wasn’t enough. “The Dark,” possibly my favorite story in the collection, connects incidents that are years and thousands of miles apart, that involve a “wild boy” in Yosemite Park and “tunnel rats” during the Vietnam War.
It’s worth a read, if you are looking for a few unforgettable stories.
I should have been more prepared for this fiction collection. Each story is written in a realism that strays so subtly off the path of reality by the time you’re finished. Except once you’ve meandered off that path, you can’t seem to get back. And the conclusion is often haunting and
Show More
disturbing.Another reviewer mentioned that Fowler's stories straddle the line between reality and not-quite-reality. I couldn’t say it any better.
I like to judge fiction by a simple formula. Do I remember the story a day after I read it? Does it make me feel something?
In this case, I can’t forget some of the things that happen.
There are some award winners in here. “Always” depicts a religious immortality commune, specifically a teen girl caught up in the hysteria. In “The Pelican Bar,” a girl is sentenced to a rehabilitative boot camp. “What I Didn’t See” has a “Heart of Darkness” feel to it; a woman travels to see the elusive silver back gorillas and attempts to shoot one to deter others from shooting the apes. And that’s not even the strange part of the story.
I think the whole collection won an award.
There’s two John Wilkes Booth stories. As if one wasn’t enough. “The Dark,” possibly my favorite story in the collection, connects incidents that are years and thousands of miles apart, that involve a “wild boy” in Yosemite Park and “tunnel rats” during the Vietnam War.
It’s worth a read, if you are looking for a few unforgettable stories.
Show Less
Awards
Shirley Jackson Award (Nominee — Collection — 2010)
Locus Award (Finalist — Collection — 2011)
World Fantasy Award (Nominee — Collection — 2011)
Otherwise Award (Shortlist — 2002)
Frank O'Connor International Short Story Award (Longlist — 2011)
Locus Recommended Reading (Collection — 2010)
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
2010
ISBN
1931520682 / 9781931520683