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Touchy Subjects
by
Emma Donoghue (Goodreads Author)
In this sparkling collection of nineteen stories, the bestselling author of Slammerkin returns to contemporary affairs, exposing the private dilemmas that result from some of our most public controversies. A man finds God and finally wants to father a child some reimagine biblical plots in modern contexts. With characters old, young, straight, gay, and simply confused, Don...more
Paperback, 288 pages
Published
May 7th 2007
by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
(first published June 2006)
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I hadn’t read any Donoghue, so thought a collection of short stories would be a good introduction and safer than investing in a novel (burned by Sarah Waters, I won’t assume a mainstream writer will necessarily be good).
These are terrific. If there had been more lesbian stories, it would have gotten the full five stars. I was disappointed by that at first, so flipped through and read all the lesbian ones first. Charmed, I went back to read the rest and found no lack of interest. Even...more
These are terrific. If there had been more lesbian stories, it would have gotten the full five stars. I was disappointed by that at first, so flipped through and read all the lesbian ones first. Charmed, I went back to read the rest and found no lack of interest. Even...more
Some of these stories absolutely slew me-- I read them over and over, at home, on the beach, and out loud to friends. Donoghue takes the familiar (romance, domesticity) and reveals the unfamiliar hidden within those everyday situations.
Her characters include heterosexual couples, lesbian and gay couples, single-businesswomen-seeking-sperm, evangelical Christians, and people who just really love dogs; all of these are treated with honest affection, making their stories relatable. Had I...more
Her characters include heterosexual couples, lesbian and gay couples, single-businesswomen-seeking-sperm, evangelical Christians, and people who just really love dogs; all of these are treated with honest affection, making their stories relatable. Had I...more
This is a 3.5 from me.
I like to inhabit the worlds that Donoghue creates in her stories. You generally know how the stories will wind up fairly early on, but that is not the point. What is far more interesting are the set-ups for each little world. Writing this a month and a half after reading the book, I would say the stories that really stick out in my head are "The Man Who Wrote on Beaches," "The Sanctuary of Hands," and "Speaking in Tongues."
...more
I like to inhabit the worlds that Donoghue creates in her stories. You generally know how the stories will wind up fairly early on, but that is not the point. What is far more interesting are the set-ups for each little world. Writing this a month and a half after reading the book, I would say the stories that really stick out in my head are "The Man Who Wrote on Beaches," "The Sanctuary of Hands," and "Speaking in Tongues."
...more
If you liked the movie The Kids are All Right, try this set of short stories about relationships and families by the British lesbian author Emma Donoghue. Divided into categories like birth and death, this collection includes two stories that were so touching and poignant that I almost couldn't stand it: in one, a woman finds herself accidentally browsing in the maternity section of a department store, and, flustered, pretends that she is pregnant when an elderly gentleman congratulates her. In ...more
I'm a longtime fan of Emma Donoghue, but this is the first time I have ventured outside of her historical fiction. This volume has been sitting on my shelf for years until I recently picked it up as part of my determination to finally figure out how to write a short story -- the best way to start, to my mind, it to read lots and lots of short stories.
It's interesting that I've always told myself I wasn't much interested in reading short fiction, and I think there's a part of me that's...more
It's interesting that I've always told myself I wasn't much interested in reading short fiction, and I think there's a part of me that's...more
I really liked this collection - the writing is taut and fresh, and some stories give a very unusual take on everyday but, as the title suggests, "touchy" subjects :) I felt the stories were a bit weaker towards the end, otherwise I would have given this four stars. Some of the stories are absolute gems, very moving and a window into the human condition and how we relate to others.
I'm not actually a fan of short stories at all. They typically don't let you get into the heart of a character enough to make it worthwhile. Frequently they lack any character development at all. Not so with Donoghue's stories. She pulls you in to her characters and leaves you wanting more, but not feeling denied. I was pleasantly surprised.
Since Emma Donoghue is a lesbian and she normally writes about lesbian subjects, I was hoping all these short stories would follow that theme. Sad to say, only one of them is about lesbians. I'm keeping this book only for that one story.
I discovered Emma Donoghue by reading her book Room for my book group. I really liked her style of writing. I went to the library and found Touchy Subjects, which is a collection of short stories. I loved them all. They were moving and insightful. And many of them were uncomfortable. I think I liked Team Men and The Welcome the best.
I thought this book started out better than it ended. The early short stories really gripped me and I could relate to them - awkward situations in which one mistake can bother you for years to come. The later stories just didn't reel me in like the earlier ones.
3-1/2 stars. While the stories were all good & the writing excellent, the general effect was spoiled for me by having the most fun, enjoyable story first; I kept waiting for more hilarity which did not ensue.
I would be more inclined to give it a 3.5, were it an option.
Read my full review here.
Read my full review here.
I'm such a fan of Kissing the Witch that I come to ever Emma Donoghue book with stupidly high expectations and am usually ambivalent for the first while. Then I get into it and read like she was a normal mortal writer. I didn't realise this was short stories, very nice for dipping in and out of.
Full of interesting, engaging stories about the small, private struggles of ordinary individuals, Touchy Subjects is most successful in exploring human frailty and the self-doubt and constant revaluation we all go through. But this impact is lessened by the thematic arrangement of the stories into categories – Birth through Death. The strongest stories are upfront and I was rather disappointed that the entirely of the Desire section explores homosexuality to the exclusion of all other themes t...more
Her short stories captivated me. I enjoyed it far more than her acclaimed novel Room as you could actually see what a talented author she is through these tales.
Donoghue's usual, beautiful writing with some great stories - the modern reworking of the David and Jonathon story was one of my personal favourites.
Confession - I told one of these stories to entertain some friends at dinner the other night. They all found it funny. Was it plagiarism?
I loved the diversity of the stories. Some of them were very intriguing and some were just fun to read, and they all seemed to have some sort of message.
A quick, easy, entertaining read about the ordinary moments that change people's lives. Not preachy, not too sentimental, just simple and relatable. Recommended for when you want something light but more involved than chick lit.
This got a lot of high reviews on amazon.com, but I'm not one of them. I guess I am not a huge fan of stories that just....end! I read this because I LOVED her new book "The Room".
Overrated crap. Sorry, writer-lady, this is like watching reality tv: tedious, crass and self-indulgent.
Good stuff. Love everything about her writing.
So far.. Not so good :(
I could love this woman.
highly rated
A fine collection, I'm sure & I enjoyed it. Just not a fan of short stories in general. Only tried this one b/c I love Donoghue so much.
I feel like I grew up with Emma Donoghue, and in a way I did since we're the same age. She's one of the first lezbo authors I read. With each book I watched her become stronger as a writer...and then there was Slammerkin...which is a must read. This collection of short stories is brilliant, and every one is raw and reeks of humanity. I loved it. "Pluck" is my favorite and I know I will reread it over and over.
Love this writer. The title totally fits the stories that were presented because each of them highlighted a situation that addressed some sort awkwardness and uncomfortable feeling. "Pluck" was my favorite.
I'd pretty much given up on short story collections. Something about breaking concentration every 10-15 pages and starting again was trying my patience. But I liked the homespun and dare I say "female" quality of these stories - a lighter, less accomplished Carol Shields, a lesbian Laurie Colwin? The main stumble were in the lesbian erotica stories which just seemed awkward and cringe-worthy.
I've read Emma Donoghue's two novels and enjoyed them, so I thought I'd pick up this collection of short stories. I enjoyed them - Donoghue's an excellent writer. But I'll never be a great lover of short stories though - they're good to pick up and dip into, but I never enjoy story collections as much as I do novels.
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Emma is the youngest of eight children of Frances and Denis Donoghue. She attended Catholic convent schools in Dublin, apart from one year in New York at the age of ten. In 1990 she earned a first-class honours BA in English and French from University College Dublin, and in 1997 a PhD (on the concept of friendship between men and women in eighteenth-century English fiction) from the University of...more
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