Do yourself a favor and read this the way that nature intended: read aloud by Shirley Jackson herself.
NothingDo yourself a favor and read this the way that nature intended: read aloud by Shirley Jackson herself.
Nothing is more wicked than the terrifying Lottery: a strange and peculiar tradition carried out by townsfolk in order to ensure a good years harvest. In only about 30 pages, Jackson manages to create a sort of fever-dream atmosphere of "what the hell is going on" only to peak at the end with "the big reveal" and reading it present day, I remain shocked at the story's subtle but dark, foreboding tone. In The Lottery, Jackson warns readers of the dangers of conformity and of blindly following tradition—themes she really loves working in to her stories.
If you love The Lottery and find yourself wanting similar stories, the classic The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas is a great place to go. For something more modern, I can't recommend Pew enough....more
Not going to waste my time with this one any further; DNF. Not for me... Not for many, honestly. The writing here is working too hard to be edgy whileNot going to waste my time with this one any further; DNF. Not for me... Not for many, honestly. The writing here is working too hard to be edgy while revealing so little that it is impossible to care what is going on in this world. Like others have mentioned, there are pieces here that remind me of I Who Have Never Known Men and The Handmaid’s Tale but those two do it far better, in my opinion. The Unworthy is all about keeping readers in the dark but it's too much and became frustrating very quickly and, considering this is my first encounter with Bazterrica's work, it left a bad taste in my mouth.
I still remain immensely grateful to Scribner for providing me with an early copy....more
Science fiction is far from my favorite genre but Huang still manages to amaze me. Immaculate Conception is a remarkable piece that is enjoyable to reScience fiction is far from my favorite genre but Huang still manages to amaze me. Immaculate Conception is a remarkable piece that is enjoyable to read and will get the wheels of your brain turning.
Meditations on greed, AI and technology, digital identity, friendship, ownership over art, the wealth divide, bodily autonomy, and so much more. One of the more fascinating parts of Immaculate Conception (to me) was its focus on something that I have questioned a lot lately: what qualifies as original? Is there still such a thing as an original thought, an original idea, an original piece of work? Or are we all just regurgitating each others� thoughts and words and feelings in various forms?
The writing in this book is superb and exactly what I expected having read and loved Huang’s previous work. Something about this one though feels superficial; connections between characters and the rise of certain technologies grew at an alarming rate or occurred mostly off-page. Initially I enjoyed this style—the way it seemed like Huang was cutting through all the bullshit and unnecessary fluff in order to break through to the real story—but by the end, I found myself wishing for more depth and excavation. Even still, that didn’t steal too much enjoyment away from me and seems minor when compared to the quality of the rest of the book.
Thank you Dutton Books for the early copy in exchange for an honest review! Available May 13 2025...more
Readers follow three estranged and incredibly hostile adult sisters who have grown up and in to their own separate lives, coming back home and back toReaders follow three estranged and incredibly hostile adult sisters who have grown up and in to their own separate lives, coming back home and back together, after many years away, when they receive news that their father has died.
In this oddly dystopian world, time is separated into a Then and a Now; Then being before all the rain began. For many years, the rain has come non-stop making usual rituals—like burying the dead, for example—impossible.
Haunting and foreboding in its delivery but at 30% in, I’m still waiting for it to click for me. I think that I could connect so much better with this in audio format so I may try that in the future but as a physical copy, it feels like too much description with no pay-off to slog through and I’m already on the edge of a reading slump where nothing sounds interesting so I can’t do this right now.
Thank you Flatiron Books and NetGalley for the digital copy in exchange for an honest review! Available 12/03/2024....more
hiding my entire review because idk what's considered a spoiler here
(view spoiler)[this book didn't hit me like it did others though i can certainly shiding my entire review because idk what's considered a spoiler here
(view spoiler)[this book didn't hit me like it did others though i can certainly see the appeal as the prose was sharp and easy to read without being too simple. the beginning had me really invested and it was interesting to see how these women survived in such a desolate and barren environment. once they were out of the cage though, it got repetitive: walk, find bunker, eat, repeat. and i get that that was part of the point but it wasn't enjoyable to read over and over. i was left unsatisfied with the lack of answers & the amount of speculation: where were they? how did they get there in the first place? what purpose were they serving locked in the cage? there had to be a purpose! what was this weird siren? how did the guards just disappear? i didn't need clear-cut answers; i would have taken ambiguous answers even but the complete lack of, unfortunately, took away from the moral of the story for me. ultimately still a thought-provoking, albeit bleak, read. (hide spoiler)]...more
I devoured this. Just like I would a ripe pomegranate.
Cassie: thirty-three, living in Silicon Valley, head writer for a big tech start-up, abusing druI devoured this. Just like I would a ripe pomegranate.
Cassie: thirty-three, living in Silicon Valley, head writer for a big tech start-up, abusing drugs and alcohol to get through the day, trying to keep the precarious relationship with her parents afloat, sleeping with someone else’s boyfriend, hates the vapid Believers that she’s surrounded by each day, concerned about capitalism and the juxtaposition of wealth and poverty in San Francisco, has a deep, dark, black hole constantly hovering above her.
Some quotes that perfectly sum up the novel: *The way wild amounts of wealth brush up against extreme poverty and displacement here is like nothing I’ve ever seen. *Happiness seems like a mirage, a trick of the light that will dissolve. *The black hole hovers above the empty seat� No one else can see the black hole. It is mine and mine alone. It always has been. *How can anyone stare into the darkest corners of humanity and return to the office�? How do we all just keep working?
If that doesn’t sound interesting to you or if you don’t like the use of colons followed by lists, this may not be the book for you. It’s not a happy book but it’s a damn good one....more
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