Elaine's review
How We Are Hungry
by Dave Eggers
Elaine's review
How We Are Hungry by Dave Eggers
Elaine's review
rating:
bookshelves:
mainstreamlitfic,
shortstorycollections
This is a zany, offbeat, at times darkly comedic collection of short stories in true Dave Eggers' style. By which I mean, stories with non sequiturs (animals make appearances and are not seen again), lots of random segues, magic realism -- clouds that banter, moon that accuses, etc. There's a story that's just a collection of notes for a short story to come (and hence, there are lots of alternative details, plot twists). There's one that's just a blank number of pages. Most of the characters are off-the-wall and on the move (one in Egypt, one in Costa Rica, another in Isle of Skye, and one climbing Kilimanjaro, among others) and tackling "love" in one form or another (whether running away, being paranoid about, or turning it into hate). They are also infinitely humorous and experimental (one page stories that are not flashes but more like character developments). It's not everyone's cup of tea, but Dave Eggers is a consummate writer, and his prose and continuously surpri...more
