Review: Tomb Sweeping (by Alexandra Chang)

My Rating:  3.5 stars

This was an interesting collection of 15 short stories by Alexandra Chang, whose previous novel Days of Distraction I had read several years back and really enjoyed.  With this particular collection, I was drawn to certain stories more than others, which isn't surprising, as that's my usual reaction to short story collections that aren't linked somehow. While I would say that I did enjoy this collection overall in terms of content and writing, I didn't like that all the stories felt incomplete in some way — in some cases, I felt like I was being dropped in the middle of a scene that had already been happening, while in other cases, the ending felt so abrupt that I couldn't helping thinking I was missing some pages perhaps. That feeling of "incompleteness" is one of the things that makes short story collections a hit or miss for me (though at the same time, it's hard for me to not read them if I come across a collection that seems like it would suit my tastes).

For me, one of the things that stood out the most with this collection was the way Chang plays around with form in some of the stories. 

The first story that started off the collection, entitled "Unknown by Unknown"definitely captured my attention with its tense buildup, but then it veered a little bit into the abstract and in the end, I didn't really understand where it was going (though maybe that was just me).  The second story, "Li Fan" was the most interesting as well as the most obviously experimental one — the entire story was told backwards (which I actually didn't realize until I was about a quarter of the way through the story and was wondering why it read so oddly), with the last sentence first and the first sentence last.  This was definitely a unique structure, one that I'd never seen employed before, though to be honest, it didn't quite work for me, since I prefer stories in a more straightforward format (I get too distracted otherwise).  I actually had to go back and re-read this story the "right" way (starting at the end back to the beginning, which did irk me a little).  The story "Me and My Algo" features an algorithm as a main character (that is essentially in conversation with the unnamed first person narrator), while the story "Cat Personalities" consists of two characters talking about each other (and a friend) in relation to each of their cat's personality traits.

Even though I didn't necessarily resonate with some of the stories, I did appreciate overall the familiarity of the themes that we as Asian Americans and immigrants often struggle with — themes such as identity and our relationship with society, generational disparity and differences, reconciling past with present, the role of family and the way the dynamics evolve in an immigrant household, etc.   There also seemed to be quite a few stories relating to technology, which was interesting considering this was a central theme in Chang's previous work as well.

Overall, this was a pretty decent collection and I'm glad I read it, despite not necessarily understanding the message behind each story. I'm interested in seeing what Chang will write next, though I'm definitely hoping that it will be a novel rather than short stories.

Received ARC from Ecco Press via NetGalley.

Review: The Sorrows of Others (by Ada Zhang)

My Rating:  3.5 stars

Short story collections can be a bit of a hit or miss for me.  One reason is because I need stories to have some type of closure, as I don't like the feeling of being left hanging — for me, a story needs to have a beginning, middle, and ending (which can be good, bad, or indifferent — doesn't really matter to me as long as there's closure).  I also enjoy stories with characters that are well-developed and that I can root for.  Unfortunately, most short story collections are written in a way where we essentially only get a small "slice of life" snippet, with the story oftentimes ending abruptly – the result is that the stories usually feel incomplete and I'm left yearning for more.  In terms of the characters, it's hard for me to be invested enough to root for them when I'm given little to no chance of getting to know them and watching them evolve.

 

With Ada Zhang's debut collection of stories, The Sorrows of Others, this was exactly the type of situation I encountered.  While I loved the themes that the stories explored – the impact of immigration and assimilation, constant struggle with identity and belonging, cultural dissonance between generations, parent/child relationships, complex family dynamics, etc. – I felt that the stories were way too short and therefore the themes weren't covered as amply or deeply as I would've liked (as a point of reference, the entire collection was less than 150 pages, with the longest story being only 22 pages and the shortest story only 6 pages).  Nearly every story felt incomplete to me, which made for a frustrating read, as I kept having to start over with each story trying to get back into the groove of things and get acquainted with the new characters.

Format-aside though, the writing here was excellent — Zhang did a great job weaving the cultural elements into the stories, which I definitely appreciated, especially since, being from the same culture, many of the experiences were familiar to me. Also, with some of the characters, the emotional undercurrents were definitely felt within their respective stories, it's just that there wasn't enough time to develop further due to the brevity of the stories.

Out of the 10 stories in this collection, the ones that resonated most with me were:  The Sorrows of Others, Propriety, Silence, Sister Machinery, Knowing, and Compromise.

Overall, this was a good collection that I absolutely recommend for those who enjoy the short story format.  Though I prefer novels, I appreciated the writing enough in this one that, if Zhang were to put out another short story collection, I would definitely read it.

Received ARC from A Public Space Books via Edelweiss.

Review: No Two Persons (by Erica Bauermeister)

My Rating: 4 stars

I read Erica Bauermeister's previous novel The Scent Keeper a couple years ago and absolutely adored that book.  Two of the things I had loved about that book were the story itself (with its unique structure, interesting subject matter, and fascinating characters) as well as the gorgeously lyrical and immersive writing.  Given this experience, it's probably no surprise that when I was approved for an ARC of Bauermeister's newest work No Two Persons, I was ecstatic knowing that I would be in for another mesmerizing read.  While in the end, the experience was a little different from what I expected, I still really enjoyed this one overall.

In this book, Bauermeister once again employs a unique structure — this time, through a series of linked short stories — to explore the impact that one book has on 10 different people, starting with the young author who writes the book, Alice Wein.  Each story presents characters from different walks of life who are struggling in some way (whether it's with love, relationships, grief, illness, financial insecurity, etc.) but then they encounter Alice's book, simply titled Theo, which opens the door to a different perspective — and in some cases, a much-needed path forward — for each person.  I found it fascinating how Bauermeister was able to weave Theo so seamlessly into each character's story and adapt it to meet the situation they were in.  As I was reading each story, I knew Theo was going to make an appearance somehow, but I didn't know when or how, which made me want to keep reading to find out (and then marveling to myself afterwards how brilliant each instance was).  Each story also gave us insight into Theo's plot and while we never got the full story arc of course, enough details were revealed that it made me wish it were a real book, as it was one that I'd definitely be interested in reading. 

As an avid reader, I definitely resonated with the messages in this book — that no two persons will read the same book in the same way; that certain books have a way of meeting the reader where they're at in their lives; that some books have the power to change lives, but sometimes, we need to be willing to let them in and give them a chance.  In that sense, this was also an ode to books and reading, which I absolutely appreciated.  

The other thing I really liked about this book was the writing, which was beautiful and lyrical, similar to what I saw in The Scent Keeper.  I also found it refreshing that this book was written from the third person perspective — which normally wouldn't matter to me, but because most of the books I've read lately were written from the first person point of view, it was nice to finally read something where I got to see things from all the different characters' perspectives instead of having to remain in one character's head through the entire story. 

My one complaint — which I always have with short story collections (though more accurately speaking, this was actually a "novel in stories" where various characters cross over into each other's story) — is that each story is incomplete, so we only get glimpses into each character's background.  This made it hard to form a connection with the characters, which is important for me seeing how much I love character- driven stories — though having some of the stories be linked to each other (i.e. the writer, the agent, the publishing assistant for the same book all have their own stories) as well as having some of the characters "pass through" each other's stories did help.

Overall, I enjoyed this one immensely, though I didn't love it the way I did The Scent Keeper. Having said that, I still highly recommend this one, especially with its interesting structure and the way it explores various life situations that will likely resonate with many readers. I also think that people who love books and recognize the importance of reading will really appreciate this one.

Received ARC from St. Martin's Press via NetGalley.

Review: Tomorrow in Shanghai (by May-lee Chai)

My Rating:  3.5 stars

While I liked this short story collection overall, the problem I had with it was similar to what I usually experience with short stories — the way the stories begin in the middle of an event and then break off suddenly, created a feeling of "incompleteness"  that honestly made it difficult for me to truly enjoy this collection the way I would a complete story or novel.  When I read a story, I'm pretty big on character development — which, for me, means being able to follow a character (or characters) through their journey and watching them grow and evolve in the process.  Unfortunately, most short story collections naturally lack in this area due to the short amount of time the reader gets to spend with the characters.  Oftentimes, as soon as I start to warm to a character, the story is over - the abruptness of it makes me feel like I've been left hanging and that I'm perhaps missing something. It's a feeling I never enjoy having, which is why short story collections are oftentimes a hit or miss for me (the ones where the same characters "show up" throughout the collection or where there is some sort of connection between all the stories usually work better for me).

With this latest collection from May-lee Chai, one of the things I really liked was the variety of the stories in terms of type and genre — there were ones that explored modern day issues realistically while others veered more into the science fiction and fantasy realm.  Having said that though, this became a detriment when it came to the stories that felt inadequately short, as it felt particularly jarring when I was suddenly being plucked out of one world and dropped into an entirely different one.  This was made all the more frustrating when it would happen each time the story started to get interesting (or, as mentioned earlier, when I was starting to warm to a character and wanted to read more about them).  By the time I got to the end of the collection, I felt dissatisfied and (I hate to say it) also a bit cheated.  

Overall, I felt like this collection had potential, and based on the premise of this being about the global Chinese diaspora, I was actually quite looking forward to reading it.  The content of the stories were good, but the overall feel was too choppy, causing this collection to fall a bit short in the end.  I think if Chai were to take these short stories and expand them to be more complete (like perhaps turn them into novellas?), that would've worked better, at least for me (I would definitely read them if that were the case).

Received ARC from Blair Books via Edelweiss.

Last One Out Shut Off the Lights (by Stephanie Soileau)

My Rating:  3.5 stars

Last One Out Shut Off the Lights is an interesting collection of short stories, all set in Louisiana, and featuring ordinary people going about their everyday lives.  The various protagonists in these stories range from teenagers to senior citizens, and through their voices, we get a glimpse of what life is like living in the type of last-chance town where things always feel as though they are in a constant state of flux.  The setting looms large in these stories, and in many ways, can be considered a character in and of itself, lending a hugely atmospheric nature that serves as a backdrop to each story.  

Of course, as is usually the case with short story collections, some were hits and some were misses, though all shared the common feelings of incompleteness and lack of closure to them.  With that said, I did like how all the stories explored issues of identity and belonging in ways both subtle and obvious — but most significantly, each story felt realistic and relatable in some manner. One of the things that struck me after I finished reading was how "ambivalence" could manifest itself in such varied ways — a sentiment that the author, Stephanie Soileau, demonstrated in a masterful way through the very different characters in each of the stories.  

Overall, I enjoyed this collection, even though I wasn't necessarily able to resonate with each character or with each story.  The many blurbs for this collection describe the stories as striking, fierce, evocative, empathetic, engaging — I agree with all of these, though I would also add "cleverly and thoughtfully" written, as each story gave me pause and made me ponder, in a way that I wasn't expecting.  I also learned a lot about Louisiana  — a state that I knew little to nothing about outside of the city of New Orleans being located there and also what had been in the news about Hurricane Katrina.  This is a collection I definitely recommend, a worthwhile read that I'm glad to have discovered (this was Jesmyn Ward's July pick for her book club on Literati).  It's also a relatively short read, but one that doesn't skimp on details in its depiction of Louisiana life and culture.

Review: We Two Alone (by Jack Wang)

My Rating: 4 stars

Those familiar with my reading tastes have probably heard me say this way too many times:  I'm not usually a huge fan of short story collections because I don't like the "incomplete" nature of the format, as I always feel like I'm left hanging somehow, plus I oftentimes don't get the chance to connect to the characters the way I would in a full length novel.  Even though it can be a "hit or miss" reading experience for me, I will still pick up a short story collection if the themes or subject matter sound interesting enough to me – especially since, at least recently, I've encountered "hits" more than "misses" in the ones I've decided to try.  Such is the case with Jack Wang's debut short story collectionWe Two Alone, which I finished over the course of a busy weekend.  This well-written collection consists of seven stories, each of which features a Chinese protagonist from different walks of life, but with the common experience of having to navigate the world as immigrants.  

 

Over the years, I've read plenty of stories about the Chinese immigrant experience, but this particular collection stood out in several ways.  First was the setting of each story, which spanned not only continents but also decades -- starting in the 1920s and spanning to the modern day, each story takes place in a different part of the world:  Canada, China, Austria, South Africa, UK, and 2 states in the U.S. (Florida and New York).  Second was the characters, all of whom hailed from different backgrounds (from the poor, uneducated, disenfranchised, to the wealthy and privileged, to the middle class) and professions (doctor, actor, hockey player, student, teacher, etc.).  Not only that, each story was also told from a different life perspective -- ranging from an orphaned teenager struggling with identity and acceptance, to a mixed race couple navigating the complexities of an unconventional relationship, to a middle class family experiencing unexpected hurdles when buying a house, to an innocent child inadvertently witnessing the atrocities of war, to an itinerant actor endlessly trying to figure out his life while yearning to reunite with his ex-wife, etc. 

 

Taken together, this is a collection that truly does highlight the diversity of the Chinese diaspora, yet at the same time, it also infers that there is a certain universality to the immigrant experience in terms of discrimination, bias, and racial prejudice that so many of us can relate to, regardless of whether we are from the same cultural or socio-economic background.   In this regard, I was actually able to resonate with some aspect of every single story, which is a rare occurrence for me with short story collections (and especially with a collection as diverse as this one).  With that said though, this also made the feeling of disappointment greater for me knowing that I was only getting a snippet of each character's story and would be left to ponder their fate on my own.  This is one of the things with short story collections (specifically the ones with no inter-connected characters) that I can't stand – the feeling of being left hanging.  With whatever story I read, I need to have closure – whether good, bad, or ambiguous, doesn't matter as long I don't feel like something's missing or the story is incomplete.  But of course, that's just me -- aside from the lack of closure issue (which is a common feature of most short stories and definitely not exclusive to this book), I still enjoyed this collection immensely and absolutely recommend it.  Prior to reading this collection, I had actually never heard of this author before, but I'm happy to have discovered his work and look forward to reading more from him in the future.

 

Received ARC from HarperVia publishers via Edelweiss.

 

 

Review: Land of Big Numbers (by Te-Ping Chen)

My Rating: 4 stars

With her debut short story collection Land of Big Numbers, Te-Ping Chen brings us an insightful and thought-provoking portrayal of modern day China.  Over the course of 10 diverse and layered stories, Chen provides keen insight into the cultural, political, economic, and social realities of what life is like for citizens in contemporary China and also beyond that, extending to the Chinese diaspora in several instances.  A few of the stories were direct in depicting the plight of Chinese citizens' current reality, while others were more fantastical, employing elements of magical realism to get its point across — all of the stories were well-written though and compelling to read.

While I enjoyed the entire collection overall, a few of the stories were especially engaging, to the point that I couldn't help feeling disappointed when they ended abruptly, without closure.  I prefer fictional stories that are complete — with a beginning, middle, and end — which is why, in general, I'm not particularly keen on short story collections.  I don't like the feeling of being left hanging, though unfortunately, most short story collections do exactly that — this collection, of course, was no exception, though I will say that the quality of the stories does make up for it to some degree.

One of the things I really appreciate about this collection is that it gives readers a glimpse into what life is like for people living in contemporary China.  This is significant given that many of the stories nowadays are about the Chinese immigrant experience in the U.S., which I'm happy to see of course, but I also feel that it's hard to truly understand that experience without having some familiarity with the background history and culture — books like this one are important and necessary contributions to this understanding.

This is a collection that I definitely recommend. At less than 250 pages, the book is brief enough that it can be read in one sitting, yet each story is so deeply nuanced that some amount of reflection is needed before moving on.  As I mentioned earlier, while I did enjoy the entire collection, a few of the stories in particular stood out as favorites.  Among them were:

"Lulu" - about brother/sister twins who grow up in the same household but end up taking radically different paths in life — one becomes a professional gamer while the other becomes a political activist.  I felt this was the most emotionally nuanced story in the collection.

"Hotline Girl" - about a young woman who moves from the village to the city to work at a government call center and also to escape her violent ex-boyfriend, who eventually tracks her down.  

"New Fruit" - about the effects of the qiguo on a village — a 'peculiar fruit' that evokes different, mostly positive, responses from those who eat it, until the day that it suddenly doesn't.  This was an interesting story, one that demonstrated people's propensity toward fickleness but also their capacity for resilience.

"Field Notes on a Marriage" - about an interracial couple where the wife truly begins to understand her husband upon traveling to his home country after his death.  

"Shanghai Murmur" - about the divide between the rich and poor, manifested in a young woman's obsession with an object belonging to one of her customers.

"Gubeikou Spirit" - about a group of people trapped on a subway platform for months, unable to leave until the government gives them permission to do so.  This was by far the strangest story of the entire collection, but also the most fascinating and the one that stood out the most.

Received paper ARC from publisher (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt / Mariner Books).

Review: Stories from Suffragette City (edited by M.J. Rose and Fiona Davis)

My Rating: 5 stars

I'm usually not a huge fan of short story collections and when it comes to books related to politics, I try to steer as far away as possible -- based on these two reasons alone, I most likely would not have picked up this book under normal circumstances.   However, I ended up being drawn to this anthology mostly because of the 13 authors involved, as several of them are among my favorites in terms of previous works of theirs that I've read and adored – plus this one being historical fiction definitely helped, since it's one of my favored genres to read.   Also, this anthology is different from the typical short story collection in that there is a distinct connection between all the stories:  the women's march for the right to vote that took place in New York City on October 23, 1915.   One of the things I loved about this collection was how each author was able to weave into each of their stories some of the themes from their own works, yet still have it tie so perfectly back to the theme of the collection and the specific events that took place.  I thought the flow of the stories was wonderful as well and I absolutely loved seeing some of the same characters "show up" in each other's stories, even if it was only for a small "blink and you'll miss it" scene.  I also loved the diversity of the women in the story and how they were from all different walks of life, with a variety of experiences and backgrounds, yet all were impacted by the suffrage movement in a meaningful way.   Overall, what blew me away with this collection was how well it was put together (especially given the confines of the premise):  the flow was seamless, the writing was stellar, the stories were compelling, and best of all, the characters were wonderfully drawn.  Of course, this should come as no surprise given the 13 authors involved with this collection are all accomplished writers at the top of their craft.  I went into this one with high expectations and it absolutely delivered!

 

As this book is meant to commemorate the 100^thanniversary of the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment, I found this to be a fantastic tribute to all the women who played a role (whether directly or indirectly) in helping our voices be heard.   With most short story collections, each reader will usually have certain stories that they enjoyed more than others, but for me, that wasn't the case here – I can't say which stories I liked more because, to be honest, all the stories stood out and I loved all of them equally.   I definitely highly recommend this one, especially to historical fiction fans whom I'm sure will find much to enjoy with this collection, regardless of whether you've read these authors' previous works or not.  For me though, reading and loving this collection has inspired me to seek out the works of the other authors that I'm less familiar with and add those to my TBR list!

 

Received finished copy from publisher Henry Holt via BookBrowse First Impressions program.

 

 

Review: Deceit and Other Possibilities (by Vanessa Hua)

My Rating: 4 stars

 

Two years ago, I read Vanessa Hua’s debut novel A River of Stars, which presented a realistic take on the Chinese immigrant experience against the backdrop of the “birth tourism” phenomenon in the United States.  I enjoyed that book quite a bit, not just for the story and the characters, but also the way Hua was able to work the cultural references into the plot so smoothly.  I remember thinking at that time how much I looked forward to Hua’s next book and hoping that she wouldn’t make us wait too long.  Well, the wait isn’t exactly over yet, since Hua’s next novel has yet to materialize, however a compilation of short stories that she had written over the years was re-released earlier this month, in a collection which includes newer stories that weren’t part of the version released back in 2016. 

This particular collection consists of 13 stories featuring protagonists from various backgrounds and all different walks of life, but with one commonality – the characters were either immigrants or from immigrant families, with the shared experience of trying to navigate two worlds:  the one they came from and the one in which they currently lived.  Of course, given the title of the book, each of the story dealt with the underlying theme of deception – whether it was the characters deceiving themselves, their families, or others.  With that said though, these stories actually went much deeper than that, as Hua covered a lot of ground in terms of topics, such as identity and belonging, family, love, marriage and relationships, religion, infidelity, loneliness and isolation, etc.  One of the things that made this collection stand out for me was the diverse nature of the characters -- who hailed from places such as Hong Kong, Korea, Taiwan, Mexico, Vietnam, Japan, Serbia, Africa – as well as how creatively different and varied each of the stories was.  Not only that, the other thing that impressed me was the way Hua was able to incorporate aspects of each culture so seamlessly into the stories, all of which were immersive and interesting to read.  It’s certainly not often that we get such a varied portrayal of  immigrant life, encompassing so many different voices and perspectives, all in a single story collection.

This is an excellent collection that I enjoyed and absolutely recommend!  My only complaint is that these are short stories, which are “incomplete” by nature, and so like I do when I read any short story collection, I felt like I was left hanging when each story ended abruptly.  Some of the stories I actually felt a sense of disappointment when I got to the end because the plot was at a climactic point, but then I turn the page and the story is over – several times I felt like the rug was being pulled from under me just when things were getting good.   But of course, I have this problem with all short story collections in general, which is why I will always prefer full-length novels more.

With this collection, I actually liked all the stories, so to pick which ones were ‘favorites’ is extremely difficult.  Instead, I am just going to point out which stories stood out the most to me:  “Line, Please” and “Loaves and Fishes” (because of the familiarity with the Hong Kong culture and setting, though the parallels to former HK celebrity Edison Chen’s real-life scandal were way too obvious!), “For What They Shared” (this was the most cleverly-written out of all the stories), “The Responsibility of Deceit” (wonderfully written story about an interracial gay couple dealing with the fallout from one partner’s ‘coming out’ to his traditional Chinese parents), “VIP Tutoring” (this one gave me a sense of déjà vu, as I actually know people like those in the story, with very similar experiences), “The Older the Ginger” (probably one of the most culturally-resonant out of all the stories), and “Room at the Table” (this was the story that I personally resonated with the most).

Received ARC from Counterpoint Press via Edelweiss.

Review: Olive, Again (by Elizabeth Strout)

My Rating: 4 stars

In this sequel to the Pulitzer Prize-winning Olive Kitteridge, we once again get to revisit the town of Crosby, Maine and our old friend Olive, who is now entering her sunset years in what is possibly the last decade or so of her life, with new husband Jack in tow. As fierce and brash as ever, Olive is still insufferable at times and continues to be stubborn to a fault, but yet, she also seems more empathetic this go around, which I attribute to the fact that she has come to a somewhat better understanding of herself (ok, perhaps only slightly, haha).  Of course, Olive being Olive, the usual brutal honesty is expected, but she has also learned to be a bit more aware of other people's feelings and in that regard, understands how to let things go a little when circumstances call for it (though still depends on who she is interacting with).  

Structure-wise, we have the same short story format told from the perspective of different characters, nearly all residents of Crosby (with a few returning characters from the first book), but this time, I felt like more of the stories centered on Olive, and even the stories that were about others seemed to incorporate her presence a bit more directly.  For some one like me who is not a huge fan of short stories, this continuity of course worked better for me, since it made this read less like a series of short stories and more like a continuous novel.   One of the things I appreciate most about the sequel compared to the original is that this time around, we get more humorous moments with Olive — not that she deliberately tries to be funny, it's just that seeing the way she would react to certain situations made me chuckle (such as the entire baby shower segment and also her row with Jack about flying first class).

The original Olive Kitteridge was written in 2008, while this sequel Olive, Again was just published last month (October 2019).  To be very honest,  this book doesn't feel like it was written 11 years after the first one — when I picked it up and started reading, the transition between the 2 books was so seamless that I felt like I was merely continuing on from the first book.  Elizabeth Strout's writing continues to be masterful and despite only having read 2 of her books (so far), she can already be counted amongst my list of favorite authors.

Olive is the type of character who will probably never be "endearing" (she herself would never permit it anyway), but she IS a character who, like those in the most beloved of classics, will live forever in the hearts of readers like me who were lucky enough to have made her acquaintance.  I will most certainly miss Olive, but I am also grateful for the amount of time (the span of two books) that I was able to spend with her.

Received ARC from Random House via NetGalley.

Review: Olive Kitteridge (by Elizabeth Strout)

 My Rating: 4 stars

I recently got approved for an ARC of Elizabeth Strout’s latest work Olive, Again, which is the sequel to her Pulitzer Prize-winning Olive Kitteridge back from 2008.  Seeing that I don’t usually like to read sequels without first having read the original, I decided to take a break from working through my miles-long ARCs list so that I could get acquainted with Olive in preparation for tackling the sequel.  Despite having many of her books on my TBR, Elizabeth Strout is another famous author whose works I’ve not had the chance to read yet (what can I say except “too many books, too little time”), so I actually welcome the opportunity to finally experience one of her works for myself.  

Going into this, I will admit that I was a bit apprehensive at first, since I had heard that this book is written in a unique “novel in stories” format – that is, the book is comprised of 13 short stories, all set in Crosby Maine, told from the perspective of different characters, yet the stories are all linked together through the one character of Olive Kitteridge.  I’m usually not a fan of short stories, as I don’t like the “abruptness” that the short story format naturally lends itself to – I prefer novels with a full-length story that has a beginning, middle, and ending…a more in-depth story that I can immerse myself into, with characters that I can watch grow and develop over time.   But of course, this book is not your typical short story collection in that each story is connected through Olive, the one constant who somehow manages to make her way into each story, oftentimes subtly and unpronounced (except in the stories where she is actually the central character).   In some of the stories, Olive is a quiet presence; in others, she is a force to be reckoned with – regardless of how she may appear though, Olive’s distinctive “voice” as a character is strongly felt throughout the book.  I appreciate the interesting way Strout decided to approach the character of Olive in here – even though she is not the main character in most of the stories, we (as readers) still get to see her growth and development as she grapples with the various situations that occur in the town.  Olive is an interesting character – definitely not the “tolerable” type, and at times, she even comes across as downright annoying, but there was a certain authenticity to Olive as a character that made her really come alive for me despite her limited appearance in many of the stories.  In terms of the writing, this was smoothly and beautifully written, with what I felt was a solid balance of subtleness versus fierceness where it was warranted.  In the way Strout depicted the mundane and the minutiae of everyday life while providing insight into the trials and tribulations that many of us are bound to encounter, there was a resonance to each of the stories presented here.  

This was definitely a different reading experience for me, one that I enjoyed immensely more than I expected.  As I get ready to tackle the sequel in the coming days, I look forward to revisiting Olive and her “irrational sensitivities” once again.

Review: Home Remedies (by Xuan Juliana Wang)

My Rating:  4 stars

 

I’m usually not a huge fan of short story collections, mainly because I don’t like the “incomplete” nature of short stories and the feeling I always get that I’m being left hanging.  One of the things I detest most when I’m reading is to get deep into a story and its characters, only to have it end abruptly, with no logical conclusion to speak of – the ones that annoy me the most are those that feel like the author stopped in the middle of a thought and the writing all of a sudden drops off (these are also the ones that always make me think I am missing pages somewhere and perhaps I got a defective copy of the book).  I guess you can say that I like my stories with a beginning, a middle section, and an ending, with characters that I can watch grow and develop over time and maybe even become invested in, which is hard to do with short stories where the reader is often only offered a snippet of a character’s story – what’s worse is that we are usually thrown in somewhere in the middle of the story, which means that it will likely take more effort to read and understand the nuances and significance behind each story.

Given the above, I was really surprised that I enjoyed Xuan Juliana Wang’s debut short story collection Home Remedies as much as I did.  This collection is billed as centering on the Chinese millennial experience and while I’m not a millennial, I found that I was still able to relate to some aspect of each story.  Separated into 3 sections entitled “Family,” “Love,” and “Time and Space,” the 12 stories in this collection covered universally relatable themes, yet still managed to hone in perfectly on the cultural aspects of what it means to be Chinese in today’s society.  As a Chinese-American who has lived in the U.S. practically my entire life, I found the stories about the difficulties of Chinese immigrant youth having to straddle two worlds and never being fully accepted into either one especially relatable, as it reminded me of many of the same struggles I had encountered back in my youth.  This collection actually covered a lot of ground and each story managed to be deeply nuanced, despite the brevity that is usually expected with short stories.  I was surprised by the depth of the stories in this collection and the cultural as well as emotional resonance that they evoked in me – as I said earlier, it’s usually difficult for me to get into short stories, but I dove into this set full force and found myself completely immersed.  With that said though, I also found it frustrating that the journey with each character was so brief, with each story dropping off at what I felt was a significant moment.  I wanted each story to be more complete, wanted to know what would happen to these characters. 

One of the things that set this collection of short stories apart from others is the variety, as each story had a distinctive voice, not a single one the same, yet the feelings and emotions the stories explored were often commonly felt ones.  I also loved the writing, which was at times lyrical, at times straightforward, depending on the story, but was always completely engaging.  This is an exquisite collection, one that I absolutely recommend.  If you’re the type who generally only reads a limited number of short story collections (for me, it’s due to a preference for the fully fleshed-out stories and characters that are often only found in novels), this is definitely one that needs to be included on your list.  Personally, I can’t wait to see what Xuan Juliana Wang has in store for us next!

Lastly, here are a few of my favorites from this collection:

“Mott Street in July” – about the transformation a Chinese family undergoes after immigrating to the United States – the opportunities they gain but also the sacrifices they have to make.  As an immigrant myself, this was the story I was able to relate to the most.

“For Our Children and For Ourselves” – about a rich, successful business woman arranging a marriage for her special needs daughter and the implications of that decision for all involved.  This one was the most heartbreaking story for me, not necessarily because of how the story evolved, but the feelings evoked from what was not said – feelings that felt so familiar to me.

“Fuerdai to the Max” – about second generation Chinese rich kids who are used to not being held accountable for their actions and what happens when that day of reckoning finally arrives.  This was an interesting one and I loved the angle the author took in relaying the events as they unfolded.

“Home Remedies for Non-Life-Threatening Ailments” – presented as anecdotal advice for various ailments such as ‘boredom,’ ‘self-doubt,’ ‘bilingual heartache,’ ‘family pressure,’ etc., this one was both whimsical and original, which I absolutely loved!

“Vaulting the Sea” – a coming-of-age story about two synchronized divers on the verge of finding success at the Olympics.  This was a beautifully rendered story that I felt was the most real in the way it dealt with the characters’ emotions and relationships.

“Algorithmic Problem Solving for Father-Daughter Relationships” – about a father who uses equations and algorithms to explain his relationship with his daughter, this was a fun one that depicts what happens when cultures clash within a family.

“The Strawberry Years” – about a young man named Yang who is tasked with looking after a famous actress, only to have her refuse to leave and end up overtaking his life.  This one captured the ubiquitous influence of social media perfectly, which I found absolutely fascinating.

“Echo of the Moment” – about a Chinese-American girl living in Paris who finds herself in possession of an entire wardrobe of designer clothes belonging to a young model who had committed suicide a few days earlier.  The supernatural slant to this story made for some compelling reading!

Received ARC from Hogarth via Edelweiss.