McSweeney's Enchanted Chamber of Astonishing Stories
by Michael Chabon
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Read in May, 2007
Edited by Michael Chabon, McSweeney's Enchanted Chamber of Astonishing Stories is a collection of stories that twist and surprise. Written by authors such as Margaret Atwood, Jonathan Lethem, Heidi Julavits, Roddy Doyle, Poppy Z. Brite, Ayelet Waldman and others, the 2004 collection reveals the strengths of these writers within the context of short stories, which pull the reader in and then throw her in unexpected directions. McSweeney's is known for publishing such off-kilter stories, stories...more
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recommends it for:
mystery fans, short story enthusiasts, people who fall in love with sea creatures
overall, i liked this one better than the other short story compilation chabon oversaw, ( mcsweeney's mammoth treasury of thrilling tales). margaret atwood is always amazing, one by daniel handler is an old-school mystery/riddle story, but with gorgeous writing, and china mieville's "reports of certain events in london" is...i can't even describe it. for the first couple of pages you have NO IDEA wh...more
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Read in December, 2007
Short stories from top fiction writers, designed to bust the "genre-writer" myth and edited by the best short-literature publication on the market. Writers include Steven King, Margaret Atwood, Poppy Z. Brite and a few others you've probably never heard of, but should have.
Those looking for actually "astonishing" tales might do better to talk to the old drunk on the last barstool of your favorite haunt, but the stories are engaging and entertaining, hyperbole aside.
Those looking for actually "astonishing" tales might do better to talk to the old drunk on the last barstool of your favorite haunt, but the stories are engaging and entertaining, hyperbole aside.
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bookshelves:
alltimefavorite
Read in June, 2006
this book was my bible all summer of 2006. i felt small and incomplete without it. i discovered these people: ayelet waldman, kelly link, jason roberts, and poppy z. brite. the atwood, d'ambrosio, and oates are gorgeous, as well. now, when i look at the book on my shelf, i feel warm.
i think i'm searching for these stories all over the place - the fabulous, the surreal, the ghosty-headed - but still literary. still full of something else entirely.
i think i'm searching for these stories all over the place - the fabulous, the surreal, the ghosty-headed - but still literary. still full of something else entirely.
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bookshelves:
short-stories
loved this one just as much as the otehr thrilling tales book that chabon edited for mcsweeneys. those familiar with the mcsweeneys books may be a little disappointed as many of the stories are a little more mainstream that the typical mcsweeneys offering, but they're still really off-beat and interesting stories.
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recommends it for:
genre nerds
I think I liked this volume better than the first one,which I also enjoyed. I remain annoyed that Chabon didn't deliver the promised second installment of dirigible-centric alternate history promised in the first volume, but his trickster-centric intro with choice Indianopolis disses almost makes up.
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Read in November, 2007
Wacky, genre-bending stories. Not quite horror, not quite comedy, not quite sci-fi, but a blend of all three. For someone who hardly reads those genres, this was interesting. Not my favorite short story collection, but fun just the same because you really have NO idea what might happen.
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bookshelves:
due-for-re-read
Read in March, 2006
I'd taken McSweeney's Enchanted Chamber of Astonishing Stories (Michael Chabon ed.) along when I went to my sleep study - something to read while I was getting wired up. I finished it up over the weekend; I really enjoyed the collection & may be checking out some of the other authors.
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I like Chabon and I appreciate his love of genre fiction. I'm not sure that this collection succeeds in its goal to fuse literary short fiction with your pulp. As could be expected, the stories offered by the Eggers crowd are the weakest.
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Has a copy to sell/swap
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Read in June, 2007
Overall a solid collection of short stories, although too I found many of the stories a bit too depressing for my mood. Daniel Handler's contribution was far and away my favorite.
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Read in January, 2005
recommends it for:
nonscary scary story fans
Most of the stories were either boring or lame or both.
The Poppy Z. Brite story was okay, though. Overall I reccomend skipping this one.
The Poppy Z. Brite story was okay, though. Overall I reccomend skipping this one.
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Read in August, 2006
Good collection, not quite as good as the first. "7C" is one of my all-time favorite short stories, however.
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Making a point of collecting good yarns, not a bunch of fragile, overwritten literary pieces.
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Read in July, 2007
Best story in the bunch is the second one by David Mitchell. Creepy and satisfying.
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bookshelves:
science-fiction,
short-fiction
Some of the stories presented here deserve kisses and hugs because I love them.
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Read in January, 2007
I especially enjoyed the stories by Joyce Carol Oates and Steve Erickson.
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bookshelves:
have-read
Still fabulous, and still short weird stories.
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bookshelves:
fiction
Read in August, 2007
More good stories than bad.
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bookshelves:
fantasy,
horror,
short-stories
Read in March, 2008
cool and creepy.
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