This is part of my Summer Reads series where I’ll be sharing book recommendations – a series of “not just cookbooks”.
It’s the summer of reading for me (I’ve read over 30 books since I got home from the hospital in early May!) and I’ve been trying to mix things up in terms of the types of books I am reading and like to intersperse novels with short stories. This week’s #summerreads pick is a delightful collection of short stories about what can only be described as a quirky cast of characters.
From the publisher:
The beloved author of Early Morning Riser (“The funniest novel of the year.” —The Washington Post) brings us eleven glittering stories of love—friendships formed at the airport bar, ex-husbands with benefits, mothers of suspiciously sweet teenagers, ill-advised trysts—in all its forms, both ridiculous and sublime.
The games and rituals performed by Katherine Heiny’s characters range from mischievous and edgy to tenderly touching.
In “Damascus,” a mother fears her teenage son is making the same youthful mistakes she did, only to realize that he is wiser than she had understood. In “Twist and Shout,” Ericka’s elderly father mistakes his four-thousand-dollar hearing aid for a cashew. In “Turn Back, Turn Back,” a bedtime story coupled with a receipt for a Starbucks babyccino reveal a struggling actor’s deception. And in “561,” Charlene pays the true price of infidelity when she is forced to help her husband’s ex-wife move out of the family home. (“It’s like you’re North Korea and South Korea… But would North Korea help South Korea move?”)
From one of today’s most accomplished bard’s of modern life—of waking up in the wrong bed, wearing the wrong shoes, being late for the wrong job, but being loved by the right people—a fresh and satisfying work of glorious humour and immense kindness.
Katherine Heiny’s writing style is engaging and easy to read, her tone is fun and, like her characters, quirky. As with any collection of short stories, they can be read one or two at a time which works well for *any* time, especially on a shorter commute (this would be perfect for my work commute). A well-written collection of short stories like this one is perfect for summer when you might be travelling, lazing by a pool /in your garden/ on your front porch because once you finish one, you’re happy to know there is another waiting to be read.
Of course, with a short story collection, you might enjoy some more than others though in this collection it was hard to choose which ones I enjoyed more because they were all so unique! Some of the stories make you wish there was a novel or tv show where the characters could continue to develop – this was the case with the first story, Chicken-Flavored and Lemon-Scented, revolving around the lives of a group of people who work for the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). The story of the lives of two flatmates thrown together just as the pandemic started in Pandemic Behavior incorporated coping skills and humour into what was a very uncertain time for everyone. Perhaps my favourite might have been CobRa (if I tell you why the unusual spelling, it gives away too much of the plot), it was genuinely laugh-out-loud! Bridesmaid, Revisited tells the story of a lack of clean laundry resulting in wearing an old bridesmaid dress to work with hilarious (and sometimes poignant) consequences involving a trip down memory lane. In Turn Back, Turn Back, a family’s life is turned upside down, thanks to a Starbucks receipt.
The situations described range from the ordinary to the ridiculous with a few edging towards the truly bizarre but each tale has such interesting, well-thought-out characters that I would have enjoyed longer versions of most of these stories! A sign of a most excellent collection of short stories, for summer or, well, anytime!
Buy Games and Rituals on Amazon (this affiliate link should bring you to the Amazon store in, or closest to, your country).
For free worldwide shipping, find Games and Rituals on Blackwell’s.
Please note: This post contains affiliate links. I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. This post also contains a Blackwell’s affiliate link. This means that if you click over and purchase something, I will receive a very small percentage of the purchase price (at no extra cost to you). Thank you in advance!
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