Why Visit America - Matthew Baker

Description

Welcome, dear visitor, to a proud and storied nation. When you put down this guidebook, look around you. A nation isn't land. A nation is people.

Equal parts speculative and satirical, the stories in Matthew Baker's collection portray a world within touching distance of our own. This is an America riven by dilemmas confronting so many of us, turned on its head by one of the most innovative voices of the moment.

Read together, these parallel-universe stories create a composite portrait of our true nature and a dark reflection of the world we live in.

Review

This book of short stories won't suit everyone. Cleverly written with such imagination and creative writing, each one is a story set in a future America - although that future could be nearer rather than farther away from us in some of the stories. It's a little like Black Mirror.

The writing style is unique with the descriptive nature of the prose coming in the main from very long paragraphs and sometimes lists. It's certainly effective in bringing home the message but as I said it won't be for everyone.

The first story was quite tragic and upsetting for me. It took me a while to fully realise what was happening and this is true of most of the stories, as you seem to fall into them and then slowly they unfold and explain themselves. Some of the stories left me wanting an explanation or an "ending" which is usually how I feel about them in general.

The last story will remain with me for some time. It's called "To Be Read Backward" and I actually read it twice to try to fully grasp it.

I'm giving this book 4 out of 5 stars and my thanks to the author and Pigeonhole for being able to read along.

Comments

The Invisible Women's Club - Helen Paris

Description Readers have fallen in love with this beautiful, heart-warming and uplifting story about one woman's journey from invisibility to being seen once more... 'A heart-lifting and thoughtful read, that gives a huge shout out to the power and strength of women ' 'This book is all heart and soul ... and just the right amount of humour ' 'A story of courage and strength that's witty , warm and filled with wisdom ' 'Helen writes so sympathetically about characters who may not fit into the 'normal' bracket but are so likeable and instantly relatable ' ------------------------------------------------- Ignored. Seventy-something Janet Pimm is invisible. Spending most of her days alone, she tends her beloved allotment with the care and love she doesn't receive from people. Plants, Janet thinks, are more important than friends. Overlooked. Janet's neighbour, Bev, has reached the age when a cloak of invisibility th

Clues to You - Claire Huston

Description One murder mystery weekend. Two rival sleuths. They’re looking for answers. But will they find love? Kate Brannon is delighted to be attending her first murder mystery weekend in a movie-worthy Victorian manor house. Still getting over being dumped, cracking the case would be a welcome boost to her flagging confidence. And the prize money wouldn’t hurt either. But Kate’s dreams of victory become a nightmare with the arrival of Max Ravenscroft. Smart, enigmatic and annoyingly handsome, Max is Kate’s sleuthing nemesis. When she and Max are forced to work together, Kate despairs. But, as the investigation brings them closer, she finds being his partner in solving crime isn’t all bad. With growing suspicions that the game is rigged against them, can Kate and Max beat the odds to find the killer? And, as their partnership deepens, can they find romance too? A sweet romantic comedy with a cosy mystery at its heart. Perfect for fans of Kathryn Freeman, Laura Jane Williams and Ka

Wednesday's Child - Yiyun Li

Description ‘One of our major novelists’ Salman Rushdie‘One of our finest living authors’ New York Times A dazzling new collection of short stories, spanning 15 years of writing, from Yiyun Li, the prize-winning author of The Book of Goose and Where Reasons End A dazzling new collection of short stories written over a decade, spanning loss, alienation, aging and the strangeness of contemporary life – from Yiyun Li, the prize-winning author of The Book of Goose A grieving mother makes a spreadsheet of everyone she’s lost. A professor develops a troubled intimacy with her hairdresser. And every year, a restless woman receives an email from a strange man twice her age and several states away. In Yiyun Li’s stories, people strive for an ordinary existence until doing so becomes unsustainable, until the surface cracks and grand mysterious forces – death, violence, estrangement – come to light. And even everyday life is laden with meaning, studded with indelible details: a filched jar o

BOOKSIMO

Search This Blog