The Maladjusted

The Maladjusted

4.07 of 5 stars 4.07  ·  rating details  ·  28 ratings  ·  17 reviews
These urban, commuter-friendly stories capture quirky events in satisfying ways. Their dark undertones and sharp-witted ironies employ familiar settings such as apartments, lofts, studios and city streets, but use unusual and unexpected urban moments as backdrops to outré characters and their given idiosyncrasies.

Some of Hayes' characters are on the social fringe, such as...more
Paperback, 144 pages
Published 2011 by Thistledown Press
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Lexyvs
For those of us who lead busy lives — which is most of us, lets be honest — short stories offer the opportunity to get in a great read with little time commitment. You can read a story and put the book down not to pick it up again until the next day, or the following week, and you still feel sated. For me though, that was not the case with Derek Hayes' collection of short stories, The Maladjusted.

I don't mean that as a negative, though. What I mean is that I had a really hard time putting the bo...more
Michael Bryson
In his TDR interview, Derek Hayes describes the characters in his short story collection, The Maladjusted (Thistledown, 2011), as people "who suffer from anxiety or whose thinking is a bit distorted."

My Oxford Concise dictionary defines maladjusted as "(of a person) unable to adapt to or cope with the demands of a social environment."

Judged by that definition, Hayes' description of his book is bang on. This is not a noir collection of stories about people from the wrong side of the tracks or an...more
Jen
Posted originally at http://www.perogiesandgyoza.com/2012/...

One of my teachers was a very well-respected stage actor who came from the same city as the author of this book, in Ontario. He often made us do Q&A sessions in character. Sometimes it was a character from a play but most often he made us make characters up. I had a hard time doing this, so his advice to me was to watch the weirdos. Just people watch and look for the mannerisms and stories of the oddballs I encountered, because the...more
Dana Burgess
Derek Hayes is a Canadian author living in Toronto who has put together a riveting collection of short stories revolving around those who just don't quite fit. The Maladjusted, published by Thistledown Press in Saskatoon (my home town, no less) is a book for every short story lover out there.

The first thing I have to say about this little book has to do with the cover. As soon as I saw it I started to itch, just a little. There's nothing sinister about it; just a line of ants crawling up the pag...more
Andrew
I tell him I have a mental illness.

“Do you hear voices?”

“No, but sometimes I feel a bit maladjusted.”

“Do you hallucinate?”

“I don’t think so. I once was convinced that the ozone layer was going to rupture and that everybody would die. I’ve since read that the ozone layer is starting to heal itself. So I feel better.”

“I hear voices,” he says, matter-of-factly. “If I can concentrate on my moves I can drown them out. do you know what I am talking about?”

“I think so.”

“Let’s play chess.”

“All right.”


**...more
August Bourré
Originally posted here: http://www.vestige.org/2012/05/the-ma...

Appropriately titled, the common denominator across nearly all of the stories in Toronto-based author Derek Hayes' first collection is a character who is so wrapped up in themselves, has internalized their neuroses to such a degree, that they have become unable to see the reality of their position in the world and the truth of their relationships to others. Many are merely oblivious (see Steven W. Beattie's recent blog post on "Gree...more
Shannon (Giraffe Days)
The characters in Derek Hayes' collection of sixteen short stories are true representatives of modern society in a western culture: neurotic, obsessive, manic depressive, paranoid, or just a little bit off. From the diagnosed mentally ill Mike who hibernates in his apartment, venturing out to go to the food mart or to collect other people's discarded furniture (which, one time, he turned into a wall in the middle of his living room); to the immigrant teacher's assistant who takes over disciplini...more
Zoë Roy
The Maladjusted by Derek Hayes is a marvelous read. This is a collection of sixteen stories. Except for three stories that are set in Taiwan, Turkey, and Vietnam, most of the stories happen in Toronto—a mosaic of different cultures. The stories vividly portray the people of various walks of life, such as teachers, inland or overseas, people with mental disorders, office workers, an educational assistant, college students, social workers and so on. They are about the people living in Toronto or f...more
Dan Retson
I really enjoyed this short story collection. It reminds me of Bernard Malamud's short story collection, or perhaps even Cheever`s or Fitzgerald`s. It is well-written. The reader is completely absorbed in each of the stories. Hayes has a way of sympathetically portraying characters who, for whatever reason, are a bit off. But each of the characters seems like someone I've met--they could be my co-orker or neighbour or someone I knew from back home. My favourite stories are the title story, the R...more
Shonna Froebel
This collection of short stories features characters who are, in a word, maladjusted. Their situations vary, their ages vary, their sex varies, but they are all uncomfortable in their current circumstances and not always sure what to do about it. Some of them do find a way out, others merely change to another uncomfortable circumstance, and some simply go on with life as they know it.
The characters are interesting and the situations they find themselves in are too. This is an interesting premise...more
Loni
Jun 05, 2012 Loni rated it 4 of 5 stars
Shelves: canada
The first thing that caught my eye about Derek Hayes' short story collection, The Maladjusted, was the cover. If I had seen this in a bookstore, I definitely would have picked it off the shelf/display and given it a look. I didn’t see in the bookstore, however. The Maladjusted was kindly sent to me by the author for an honest review. Even after the craziness with my last short fiction collection, I still wrote a bit about each of the stories. It was a good collection and the stories definitely h...more
Benoit Lelievre
This will suffer from comparisons to Raymond Carver, which is only fair since Derek Hayes plays the same ball game as the short story master, but Hayes works his own themes and has rather different preoccupations than Carver even if his aesthetic is similar. His views on the obsession of gaming and professional sports in mankind was to me, the most interesting aspect of his collection. Really, it's tight, well presented and bold. Derek Hayes is not scared to play with the big boys of literature.
Sosena Tilahun
Feb 28, 2013 Sosena Tilahun marked it as to-read
Shelves: won-giveaways
I think the reason I like this book so much is that the short stories are well written and have more plot in them than some full novels that I have read.. These stories are easy to read and extremely practical for someon who leads a busy life and doesn't have time to read a novel. I love the fact that the shorts are so intriguing; some are more fascinating than others but they are all nicely written and they all leave a lasting impression, or a mark on me as a book should. It may seem weird but...more
Erika Steibelt
I loved this collection of short stories! The stories and characters were funny and endearing and I found it hard to put the book down at times. There's something about each character that makes them relatable.
Ramona
The how-to book for misfits. Thoroughly enjoyable!
Earl
Paradigm shifter even on holidays.
Marilyn Belsham
I found this difficult to rate. The writing is strong and to the point. As a reader I was immediately pulled into the story, however I didn't enjoy the characters and as a result didn't want to be in those particular stories. It became apparent to me, that I'm a Judgey Judgerton and hanging with people who are maladjusted isn't my thang. Still...good writing overall pulled up the final grade.
Sumsul Alam
Apr 21, 2013 Sumsul Alam marked it as to-read
Loretta
Apr 15, 2013 Loretta marked it as to-read
Belkis
Dec 27, 2012 Belkis marked it as to-read
Faith (Author)
Nov 28, 2012 Faith (Author) marked it as to-read
anonymous
Nov 06, 2012 anonymous marked it as to-read
Cheryl
Oct 29, 2012 Cheryl marked it as to-read
Linda Fast
Oct 15, 2012 Linda Fast marked it as to-read
Lianne (The Towering Pile) Lavoie
Sep 14, 2012 Lianne (The Towering Pile) Lavoie marked it as wishlist
Recommended to Lianne (The Towering Pile) by: Dan Retson
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Book Giveaways: 20 copies available for giveaway 2 33 Jun 30, 2012 05:22pm  
Derek Hayes is a Toronto writer who was born in London, Ontario. He has a BA in history from Queen’s University and a Bachelor of Education from The University of Maine at Presque Isle. He has worked as a high school teacher in Taipei, Istanbul, and currently teaches in Toronto.
More about Derek Hayes...
Historical Atlas of the Pacific Northwest: Maps of Exploration and Discovery: British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, Alaska, Yukon Historical Atlas of California: With Original Maps Historical Atlas of the United States: With Original Maps First Crossing: Alexander Mackenzie, His Expedition Across North America, and the Opening of the Continent Historical Atlas of Toronto

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