Author: Eleanor Bluestein
Genre: Short Story Collection
Published: Tea & Other Ayama Na Tales, 2008
Personal Rating: 3.5/5 (good)
Yearly Count: 76
My trip to Ayama Na was definitely an interesting one. I met a lot of unique characters, which is usually fun, but the odd cultural differences made it out to be an uncomfortable place and one that I would not ever want to visit. Overall, I found this collection to be good, but felt a bit of gloom over most of the stories.
The author, Eleanor Bluestein, was the winner of the G.S. Sharat Chandra Prize for Short Story Fiction, Selected by Marly Swick. Congrats, Eleanor! :)
Here are the titles (linked to my thoughts) in the order in which I read them:
I almost always feel a bit of gloom over short stories. I wonder why that is? I can say that for every collection I've ever read!!!
ReplyDeleteMary ~ Oh, now that's interesting. Well, if I ever run across a collection that is happy-happy, I'll send it your way. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Joy : D
ReplyDeleteI have E. Berg's The Day I Ate Whatever I Wanted on my iPod. It has some lol moments, but some of it is rather poignant and yes, sad. I'm only a few stories in though. Not enough time lately. I post when I finish (someday. . .)
Like Mary I always think of short stories as mostly gloomy and having really heavy themes--maybe because some of the older 'classic' short stories I've read are usually dripping with some type of irony.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad this collection was mostly good for you. Amaya Na isn't a place I would ever like to visit either, but I enjoyed the glimpse of the culture and these characters' lives.
Mary ~ I've been reading a short story from a collection in-between books, so I understand how they can take a long time to get through. I really hope you find a collection that is just right for you. Don't give up! :)
ReplyDeleteTrish ~ I wish I enjoyed it more, but it was still an interesting adventure. Thanks for coming back to comment throughout the book. I enjoyed and appreciate it.
It's always fun to see what another person thinks--so I enjoyed it.
ReplyDelete