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bakalamba's review against another edition
4.0
Short stories about rural Michigan, reads like minor characters from Breaking Bad or Ozark
lisawhelpley's review against another edition
4.0
A solid set of short stories. Decent writing and interesting characters, all set in rural middle America. I think what the author does best is her descriptions of relationships, and how people interact with and react to each other, under great hardships.
mercin's review against another edition
5.0
Loved, loved these short stories. They were so powerful and though provoking. Definitely worth reading.
amber_lea84's review against another edition
3.0
Did one of the characters fantasize about having sex with the ghost of her dead uncle who died before she was born or did I just hallucinate that? I read that part like a week ago so I don't have a super clear memory of what exactly what happened...but it kind of made it hard to focus on the entire rest of the book because I was so confused.
lifeinpoetry's review against another edition
4.0
Didn't enjoy as much as Mothers, Tell Your Daughters and was feeling that disappointment until the story Jenny (Reading Envy) mentioned, "The Burn," which was ugly but extremely readable/listenable, made me pause and give it my complete attention. It completely changed my feelings toward the collection and allowed me to enjoy the rest.
lizardgoats's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this collection of short stories. It's a poignant look at rural Midwestern life in all it's nitty-gritty glory.
"The Trespasser," pp. 1-4
"The Yard Man," pp.5-32
"World of Gas," pp. 31-38
"The Inventor, 1972," pp. 39-51
"The Solution to Brian's Problem," pp.52-55
"The Burn" pp. pp. 56-72
"Family Reunion," pp. 73-83
"Winter Life," pp. 84-91
"Bringing Home Belle," pp. 92-106
"Falling," pp. 107-113
"King Cole's American Salvage," pp. 114-130
"Storm Warning," pp. 131-143
"Fuel for the Millennium," pp. 144-150
"Boar Taint," pp. 151-167
"The Trespasser," pp. 1-4
"The Yard Man," pp.5-32
"World of Gas," pp. 31-38
"The Inventor, 1972," pp. 39-51
"The Solution to Brian's Problem," pp.52-55
"The Burn" pp. pp. 56-72
"Family Reunion," pp. 73-83
"Winter Life," pp. 84-91
"Bringing Home Belle," pp. 92-106
"Falling," pp. 107-113
"King Cole's American Salvage," pp. 114-130
"Storm Warning," pp. 131-143
"Fuel for the Millennium," pp. 144-150
"Boar Taint," pp. 151-167
kevinsmokler's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Collection of short stories about working class white folks in Michigan. Like a Walker Evans photo in fiction. Funny, tragic, real.