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The Horrid Glory of Its Wings
There's a harpy with bronze wings living in the dumpster behind Desiree's building. She's ugly and she eats garbage, but she has a little kingdom back there. Desiree wants something of her own, too -- something all hers. Can that foul old thing possibly help her?
32 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 8, 2009
3 people are currently reading
926 people want to read
About the author
Elizabeth Bear
316 books2,476 followersWhat Goodreads really needs is a "currently WRITING" option for its default bookshelves...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 108 reviews
March 10, 2019
jess was right, this is an amazing story.
“Mama Alice would say that God never gives us any burdens we can’t carry.”
The harpy says, Does she look you in the eye when she says that?
wow, so i waited too long to write my review for this, and between jess and karly and kat stark, i don't know what is left to say. there will be echoes between their reviews and mine, but i hope i am able to say at least one new thing - one thing that will encourage someone else to read this one, even people who don't usually like dark fantasy/magical realism or short stories. this story does what the best of this genre do - they take a situation that is all too real; the kind of real that is so devastating that you kind of wish it were just fiction, and then it infuses the story with just enough magic that it enhances, instead of distracts from, the heartbreaking real, so the fantastic elements serve a symbolic purpose without cheapening it.
and it's just perfect.
as karly mentions, it opens with a peter. s. beagle quote:
“Speaking of livers,” the unicorn said, “Real magic can never be made by offering up someone else’s liver. You must tear out your own, and not expect to get it back. The true witches know that.”
—Peter S. Beagle, The Last Unicorn
whose aptness will be made clear by the story's end. and it's not just because of this:
this is about 17-year-old desiree, born twisted and disfigured due to severe health problems which require a cornucopia of pills every morning. she loves her foster mom, but in her most bitter moments, she admits to herself the reality that even if she is loved, there is still a financial benefit to mama alice's care. desiree has already lived much longer than anyone had anticipated, and living on this borrowed time is a tremulous situation; the waiting for the other shoe to drop, uncertain if making plans for the future is futile.
I’m dying. Just not fast enough. If it were faster, I’d have nothing to worry about. As it is, I’m going to have to figure out what I’m going to do with my life.
desiree yearns for a normal life - a baby, an education, but she is naturally hesitant, considering the big "what if" of her life. but she is also stubborn, and proud.
she goes most days to visit the harpy living in the nearby alley, feeding her garbage that the harpy will turn into bronze. she feels a kinship - a sisterhood - to the harpy, whose ugliness is aggressive enough to suggest strength and freedom. they form an uneasy friendship, as much as a young dying girl can with an immortal being:
I wonder if the harpy only loves me because I’m garbage. If it only wants me because my blood is poison.
there will come a time to make a decision.
just read the story. it is one of the best tor shorts i have read so far.
read it for yourself here:
http://www.tor.com/stories/2009/12/th...
come to my blog!
“Mama Alice would say that God never gives us any burdens we can’t carry.”
The harpy says, Does she look you in the eye when she says that?
wow, so i waited too long to write my review for this, and between jess and karly and kat stark, i don't know what is left to say. there will be echoes between their reviews and mine, but i hope i am able to say at least one new thing - one thing that will encourage someone else to read this one, even people who don't usually like dark fantasy/magical realism or short stories. this story does what the best of this genre do - they take a situation that is all too real; the kind of real that is so devastating that you kind of wish it were just fiction, and then it infuses the story with just enough magic that it enhances, instead of distracts from, the heartbreaking real, so the fantastic elements serve a symbolic purpose without cheapening it.
and it's just perfect.
as karly mentions, it opens with a peter. s. beagle quote:
“Speaking of livers,” the unicorn said, “Real magic can never be made by offering up someone else’s liver. You must tear out your own, and not expect to get it back. The true witches know that.”
—Peter S. Beagle, The Last Unicorn
whose aptness will be made clear by the story's end. and it's not just because of this:
this is about 17-year-old desiree, born twisted and disfigured due to severe health problems which require a cornucopia of pills every morning. she loves her foster mom, but in her most bitter moments, she admits to herself the reality that even if she is loved, there is still a financial benefit to mama alice's care. desiree has already lived much longer than anyone had anticipated, and living on this borrowed time is a tremulous situation; the waiting for the other shoe to drop, uncertain if making plans for the future is futile.
I’m dying. Just not fast enough. If it were faster, I’d have nothing to worry about. As it is, I’m going to have to figure out what I’m going to do with my life.
desiree yearns for a normal life - a baby, an education, but she is naturally hesitant, considering the big "what if" of her life. but she is also stubborn, and proud.
she goes most days to visit the harpy living in the nearby alley, feeding her garbage that the harpy will turn into bronze. she feels a kinship - a sisterhood - to the harpy, whose ugliness is aggressive enough to suggest strength and freedom. they form an uneasy friendship, as much as a young dying girl can with an immortal being:
I wonder if the harpy only loves me because I’m garbage. If it only wants me because my blood is poison.
there will come a time to make a decision.
just read the story. it is one of the best tor shorts i have read so far.
read it for yourself here:
http://www.tor.com/stories/2009/12/th...
come to my blog!
October 7, 2014
I'm not sure my review of this is really needed. If you're wanting to explore the world of the free Tor short stories, you should just check out karen's reviews, which is where I find all the good ones. But I can't just leave this review space blank either, the story deserves more than that.
“Mama Alice would say that God never gives us any burdens we can’t carry.”
The harpy says, Does she look you in the eye when she says that?
I find it amazing sometimes how I can read a 500-page novel and remain fairly emotionally detached, but some writers are just able to tear my heart open and leave me thinking about their story for hours... with just a few pages of powerful writing.
This story is so raw. The writing has an edgy, gritty, ugly honesty about it that drew me in and had me living inside the narrator's mind. I guess it's some kind of magical realism / dark fantasy if you want to get into genre-specifics but it's also way more than that. It's a portrait of a young girl called Desiree who was born disfigured and sick, a girl who is dying and must take pills every day... but she's not dying - in her own words - "fast enough".
"I’m dying. Just not fast enough. If it were faster, I’d have nothing to worry about. As it is, I’m going to have to figure out what I’m going to do with my life."
If she had a couple of years, she could resign herself to her fate; if she had a full life, she could live it happily. But, instead, she's somewhere in between. Still dying, longing for everything normal people get to have, and having to decide what to do next with her half-life.
Every day, she visits the harpy who lives in an alley near her home; she feeds it garbage and the two form a strange kind of friendship... strange, but possibly the most genuine relationship in Desiree's life. Hell, I feel emotional just trying to write this damn review.
It's a very dark, bleak tale that you probably shouldn't read if you're feeling particularly depressed, but it was an incredibly effective piece of storytelling. I hung on the author's every word.
Read it free here: http://www.tor.com/stories/2009/12/th...
“Mama Alice would say that God never gives us any burdens we can’t carry.”
The harpy says, Does she look you in the eye when she says that?
I find it amazing sometimes how I can read a 500-page novel and remain fairly emotionally detached, but some writers are just able to tear my heart open and leave me thinking about their story for hours... with just a few pages of powerful writing.
This story is so raw. The writing has an edgy, gritty, ugly honesty about it that drew me in and had me living inside the narrator's mind. I guess it's some kind of magical realism / dark fantasy if you want to get into genre-specifics but it's also way more than that. It's a portrait of a young girl called Desiree who was born disfigured and sick, a girl who is dying and must take pills every day... but she's not dying - in her own words - "fast enough".
"I’m dying. Just not fast enough. If it were faster, I’d have nothing to worry about. As it is, I’m going to have to figure out what I’m going to do with my life."
If she had a couple of years, she could resign herself to her fate; if she had a full life, she could live it happily. But, instead, she's somewhere in between. Still dying, longing for everything normal people get to have, and having to decide what to do next with her half-life.
Every day, she visits the harpy who lives in an alley near her home; she feeds it garbage and the two form a strange kind of friendship... strange, but possibly the most genuine relationship in Desiree's life. Hell, I feel emotional just trying to write this damn review.
It's a very dark, bleak tale that you probably shouldn't read if you're feeling particularly depressed, but it was an incredibly effective piece of storytelling. I hung on the author's every word.
Read it free here: http://www.tor.com/stories/2009/12/th...
April 27, 2023
“Mama Alice would say that God never gives us any burdens we can’t carry.”Desiree is a 17-year-old born with HIV controlled now with antiretroviral medications, disfigured by HIV-associated lipodystrophy, cared for by her foster mother, suffering from loneliness and acutely feeling that despite the medications her life to her feels like a prolonged dying process.
The harpy says, Does she look you in the eye when she says that?
"I’m dying. Just not fast enough. If it were faster, I’d have nothing to worry about. As it is, I’m going to have to figure out what I’m going to do with my life."All Desiree has is a strange almost-friendship with a garbage-eating harpy in a dumpster in a back alley, the relationship that she fears is based on her being, perhaps, something like garbage, poison-filled, not wanted by anyone else."I don’t know if I like the harpy. But I like being wanted."
“Nobody would want to live with me. But I don’t have any choice. I’m stuck living with myself.”
The harpy says, There’s always a choice.
This short Tor.com story to which the reviews by karen and Emily May pointed me has made a deep impression on most readers, touched them right down to their hearts.
It's hard reading stories like this one, stories of sick children, of children suffering, of children dying. Unless you're a sociopath, you're programmed by nature and nurture to have a visceral reaction to this, a feeling of heartbreak, the pang of empathy and compassion. It's hard picturing yourself in the middle of such loneliness and despair. Especially when it comes from a child. Especially when the decision they make is the one you can view as that of hope of that of sheer hopelessness - depending how you choose to read it.
It's a well-written and touching, memorable story. I think a huge part of why its so memorable is exactly because it's so short, just a sketch really, just a glimpse of a story of a child's pain not ruined by overwrought exposure that could happen if the story were lengthened. It's written with gentle sadness and a touch of darkness and a bit of magical wistfulness that may or may not be real or the desperate imagination of a lonely child.
Read it. It's good. It's also free.
"And so what if I fall?"
August 10, 2015
Damn. This story was amazing.
This is like 4.75 stars. As close to a 5 as a 4 can get. I am staying tough with my rating and not bumping it up, only because I really wish that this story was a novel. And not because I thought the story was incomplete or unfinished by any means. Its just that, these characters in it were so dynamic and so interesting, that I wanted a whole novel to be devoted to them. This is the second Elizabeth Bear story I've read, and from what I can tell, this lady is a master of characterization. She really knows how to embody a character of her creation, and bring them to life. Desiree is a 17 year old girl who was born into a dark hole in the world. She was born with a major health problem which has crippled and disfigured her. Her mother died when she was a baby, and she has grown up with a foster mother, Mama Alice, who, though loving and caring in her own way, is still just a replacement mama who gets her paycheck from the state every month. From the first pages, I knew that Desiree was going to be a character who would stick with me, and I instantly wanted to learn more about her.
Desiree finds a harpy living in a dumpster behind her house. It is an ugly old thing, with yellow and black crooked teeth, dingy bronze colored feathers, and hooked talons. She visits the harpy every day on her way to school, and though it is an ugly creature, repulsive, and unorthodox, Desiree is mysteriously drawn to it, perhaps because she herself feels like an ugly outsider, but also because the harpy makes her feel special. In these meetings, Desiree reveals some of the darkness that surrounds her heart, and we readers get to watch her heart break in the worst way. I wanted to reach through the screen of my kindle to hug this girl, tell her that she's not ugly, and that the world has to have some kind of window out for her. It's also heartbreaking to see her vulnerable heart manipulated by this demon, though perhaps, the harpy is only trying to set her free.
Our unconscious can play some nasty tricks on us sometimes. When Desiree is just longing for a way out, she is battling her inner demons, one of them being the harpy which turns garbage into bronze. Not gold. Not silver. Bronze. A semi-precious metal, but one that is not nearly as valuable as gold. One that is somewhat dirty looking. Desiree's conflict is between this desire to be something and someone else, to go with the harpy, and be free, and also from this innate will to survive that every living creature has. Because she knows that to go with the harpy is to not survive.
Desiree's narrative voice is my favorite part of this story. She speaks to the reader in a very sad, but strangely poetic tone that really crawled into my mind. I know exactly how she feels about herself, her life, the harpy, and I can identify with her. As more of her backstory is revealed, the more this strange tone begins to make sense. And strewn throughout are some examples of absolutely gorgeous writing.
The thing I really loved about both of this author's stories I've read is the way she tells them. Both are very realistic with only trace elements of the supernatural. But, the supernatural elements, are VERY supernatural. It is a beautiful blend of real and nonreal, conventional, and twisted. Both stories also serve as allegories or symbols of a real, deep, underlying issue. And both endings left off at just the right point, forcing me to use my imagination to finish the story. I just want more. I want to fight for Desiree, for her humdrum life. I want more to her story, and I just want to see her again. Damn. A life written into existence in a mere 7 pages, and I'm already mourning for her. That is good writing.
And again, some beautiful artwork to accompany it:
Do yourselves a favor and read this short story here for free: http://www.tor.com/stories/2009/12/th...
This is like 4.75 stars. As close to a 5 as a 4 can get. I am staying tough with my rating and not bumping it up, only because I really wish that this story was a novel. And not because I thought the story was incomplete or unfinished by any means. Its just that, these characters in it were so dynamic and so interesting, that I wanted a whole novel to be devoted to them. This is the second Elizabeth Bear story I've read, and from what I can tell, this lady is a master of characterization. She really knows how to embody a character of her creation, and bring them to life. Desiree is a 17 year old girl who was born into a dark hole in the world. She was born with a major health problem which has crippled and disfigured her. Her mother died when she was a baby, and she has grown up with a foster mother, Mama Alice, who, though loving and caring in her own way, is still just a replacement mama who gets her paycheck from the state every month. From the first pages, I knew that Desiree was going to be a character who would stick with me, and I instantly wanted to learn more about her.
I’m sallow—Mama Alice says olive—and I have straight black hair and crooked teeth and no real chin, which is okay because I’ve already decided nobody’s ever going to kiss me.
Desiree finds a harpy living in a dumpster behind her house. It is an ugly old thing, with yellow and black crooked teeth, dingy bronze colored feathers, and hooked talons. She visits the harpy every day on her way to school, and though it is an ugly creature, repulsive, and unorthodox, Desiree is mysteriously drawn to it, perhaps because she herself feels like an ugly outsider, but also because the harpy makes her feel special. In these meetings, Desiree reveals some of the darkness that surrounds her heart, and we readers get to watch her heart break in the worst way. I wanted to reach through the screen of my kindle to hug this girl, tell her that she's not ugly, and that the world has to have some kind of window out for her. It's also heartbreaking to see her vulnerable heart manipulated by this demon, though perhaps, the harpy is only trying to set her free.
I say, 'You only want me because my blood is rotten. You only want me because I got thrown away.'
I turn garbage into bronze, the harpy says. I turn rot into strength. If you came with me, you would have to be like me.
Our unconscious can play some nasty tricks on us sometimes. When Desiree is just longing for a way out, she is battling her inner demons, one of them being the harpy which turns garbage into bronze. Not gold. Not silver. Bronze. A semi-precious metal, but one that is not nearly as valuable as gold. One that is somewhat dirty looking. Desiree's conflict is between this desire to be something and someone else, to go with the harpy, and be free, and also from this innate will to survive that every living creature has. Because she knows that to go with the harpy is to not survive.
Desiree's narrative voice is my favorite part of this story. She speaks to the reader in a very sad, but strangely poetic tone that really crawled into my mind. I know exactly how she feels about herself, her life, the harpy, and I can identify with her. As more of her backstory is revealed, the more this strange tone begins to make sense. And strewn throughout are some examples of absolutely gorgeous writing.
I’m dying. Just not fast enough. If it were faster, I’d have nothing to worry about. As it is, I’m going to have to figure out what I’m going to do with my life.
The thing I really loved about both of this author's stories I've read is the way she tells them. Both are very realistic with only trace elements of the supernatural. But, the supernatural elements, are VERY supernatural. It is a beautiful blend of real and nonreal, conventional, and twisted. Both stories also serve as allegories or symbols of a real, deep, underlying issue. And both endings left off at just the right point, forcing me to use my imagination to finish the story. I just want more. I want to fight for Desiree, for her humdrum life. I want more to her story, and I just want to see her again. Damn. A life written into existence in a mere 7 pages, and I'm already mourning for her. That is good writing.
And again, some beautiful artwork to accompany it:
Do yourselves a favor and read this short story here for free: http://www.tor.com/stories/2009/12/th...
July 11, 2018
This was so emotional. Since it's short story it's packed so tightly with dark emotions and bleak pathos that it's bit hard to read but we'll worth the effort.
September 29, 2014
ALL THE STARS
This short started itself off with a The Last Unicorn quote, which for me is a good call. It tells a story through a very unique perspective and I have to respect Bear for that!!
Our MC is a young unattractive girl with an expiration date.... and her only friend in the world is a harpy!
Through the MC and her relationship with the harpy we get a glimpse of what beauty really boils down to and the difference between what exists and what we understand.
A very interesting short story that satisfied me entirely in it's current form BUT would also make a stunning novel!
This short started itself off with a The Last Unicorn quote, which for me is a good call. It tells a story through a very unique perspective and I have to respect Bear for that!!
Our MC is a young unattractive girl with an expiration date.... and her only friend in the world is a harpy!
Through the MC and her relationship with the harpy we get a glimpse of what beauty really boils down to and the difference between what exists and what we understand.
A very interesting short story that satisfied me entirely in it's current form BUT would also make a stunning novel!
November 30, 2014
I just lost my Tor virginity in the best way possible. No candles or rose petals required.
I have straight black hair and crooked teeth and no real chin, which is okay because I've already decided nobody's ever going to kiss me.
Imperfect characters - I dig 'em. So it's no surprise that I love Desiree, a 17-year-old girl with a plethora of health issues and a curious mind. For 15 minutes every day before school, she sneaks past Mama Alice's window and talks to the harpy that lives in the alley behind her building.
This story is laced with just enough magical realism to engage you without putting you off. Elizabeth Bear has written beautifully in the sense that it evokes sadness without pity, which to me is a more devastating emotion to experience than the two combined.
"Mama Alice would say that God never gives us any burdens we can't carry."
The harpy says, Does she look you in the eye when she says that?
Highly recommended!
I have straight black hair and crooked teeth and no real chin, which is okay because I've already decided nobody's ever going to kiss me.
Imperfect characters - I dig 'em. So it's no surprise that I love Desiree, a 17-year-old girl with a plethora of health issues and a curious mind. For 15 minutes every day before school, she sneaks past Mama Alice's window and talks to the harpy that lives in the alley behind her building.
This story is laced with just enough magical realism to engage you without putting you off. Elizabeth Bear has written beautifully in the sense that it evokes sadness without pity, which to me is a more devastating emotion to experience than the two combined.
"Mama Alice would say that God never gives us any burdens we can't carry."
The harpy says, Does she look you in the eye when she says that?
Highly recommended!
February 24, 2018
Another tor.com short story. This was so good.
A harpy lives in the dumpster behind Desiree's house, eating the rubbish left behind by others. What forms is a tentative friendship between girl and beast, and Desiree's desire to be free and be wanted.
There's something very open and emotional about this short story. There's nothing fancy about it, it's not dressed up in pretty words and metaphors, it's just honest and raw. Desiree is very straight and direct when telling her story and talking to the harpy, and that's refreshing to see. I instantly warmed to her and loved the little snippets of conversation between the two. I would have loved this to be longer, but another advantage of a short story like this is that everything is told in such a compact easy that there's no room for meandering plots and unnecessary characters. Everything has a purpose, every word must get straight to the point.
Magical.
A harpy lives in the dumpster behind Desiree's house, eating the rubbish left behind by others. What forms is a tentative friendship between girl and beast, and Desiree's desire to be free and be wanted.
There's something very open and emotional about this short story. There's nothing fancy about it, it's not dressed up in pretty words and metaphors, it's just honest and raw. Desiree is very straight and direct when telling her story and talking to the harpy, and that's refreshing to see. I instantly warmed to her and loved the little snippets of conversation between the two. I would have loved this to be longer, but another advantage of a short story like this is that everything is told in such a compact easy that there's no room for meandering plots and unnecessary characters. Everything has a purpose, every word must get straight to the point.
Magical.
December 22, 2016
#18 short story read this month.
This narrative follows teenager Desiree, who is HIV positive and also has lipodystrophy. She is fostered by Mama Alice, and is responsible and hardworking. And Desiree feels so alone. She also interacts with a harpy who eats garbage from the dumpster behind the building she lives in.
This story has some pretty ugly imagery (the harpy eating!) and an atypical protagonist. The author really helps you feel Desiree's loneliness.
This short, left me thinking about choices one makes, coping with loneliness, caring for/fostering children with a terminal illness.
This narrative follows teenager Desiree, who is HIV positive and also has lipodystrophy. She is fostered by Mama Alice, and is responsible and hardworking. And Desiree feels so alone. She also interacts with a harpy who eats garbage from the dumpster behind the building she lives in.
This story has some pretty ugly imagery (the harpy eating!) and an atypical protagonist. The author really helps you feel Desiree's loneliness.
This short, left me thinking about choices one makes, coping with loneliness, caring for/fostering children with a terminal illness.
March 16, 2020
The only problem with this short read was that it needed more pages!! The story is dark and so real, even with the addition of the mythological creature. The ending was tragic and hopefully not dreadful. The subject that it dealt with is not something you commonly read in books and it was an interesting choice to pick up and the writer served it well, if I may say. Finally, the writing was pretty great.
February 21, 2017
3.5★ Great writing, very much emotion in such a short story.
“Mama Alice would say that God never gives us any burdens we can’t carry.”
The harpy says, “Does she look you in the eye when she says that?”
October 10, 2016
This was a serious Tor short. The usual fantastical setting is there, but oh so serious.
I was lulled in by the presence of a Harpy, the kind who used to roam around ancient Greece in the mythological days of Zeus and his brethren. A Harpy living in a modern urban city! I really liked that, and I don't care if one can say it's a real Harpy or the fevered imagination of the main character. Ferocious beast with wings and claws, works for me.
What didn't work (for me) was the downer of a story, centering on the woe-is-me thoughts of the protagonist. It just didn't work for me. I get it, life is very difficult if you are born with an awful disease, but I lost interest and worse, anticipated the ending. When I, not especially swift in thought, can guess the finish of a story...well, not good.
Hopefully, others will enjoy.
Book Season = Year Round (Harpies in the cubicles)
I was lulled in by the presence of a Harpy, the kind who used to roam around ancient Greece in the mythological days of Zeus and his brethren. A Harpy living in a modern urban city! I really liked that, and I don't care if one can say it's a real Harpy or the fevered imagination of the main character. Ferocious beast with wings and claws, works for me.
What didn't work (for me) was the downer of a story, centering on the woe-is-me thoughts of the protagonist. It just didn't work for me. I get it, life is very difficult if you are born with an awful disease, but I lost interest and worse, anticipated the ending. When I, not especially swift in thought, can guess the finish of a story...well, not good.
Hopefully, others will enjoy.
Book Season = Year Round (Harpies in the cubicles)
July 14, 2015
This was a powerful little story. There was something beautiful about its sadness. I was so not prepared for that ending.
3.5 stars.
3.5 stars.
February 27, 2022
The Horrid Glory of its Wings by author Elizabeth bear is a short story you can read for free on the Tor.com site https://www.tor.com/2009/12/08/the-ho...
Desiree talks to the harpy that lives in the back alley. The harpy never lies.
"I’m dying. Just not fast enough. If it were faster, I’d have nothing to worry about. As it is, I’m going to have to figure out what I’m going to do with my life."
This was a tough one to read. Bear writes it full of beauty and sadness. I choose to believe Desiree can fly.
Themes: foster child, lipodystrophy, scholarship, loneliness.
5 Stars
Desiree talks to the harpy that lives in the back alley. The harpy never lies.
"I’m dying. Just not fast enough. If it were faster, I’d have nothing to worry about. As it is, I’m going to have to figure out what I’m going to do with my life."
This was a tough one to read. Bear writes it full of beauty and sadness. I choose to believe Desiree can fly.
Themes: foster child, lipodystrophy, scholarship, loneliness.
5 Stars
December 4, 2017
Tor.com short stories are my thing. There are some very interesting ideas in must of them. The Horrid Glory of Its Wings is that kind of short story you wish were a complete novel. Storytelling in its best form can make you feel with just a few pages, no characther development needed. For anyone who wants a sad story. If you want to close the year with some light but powerfull reads, just visit Tor.com every day.
October 13, 2014
You know an author is a fantastic story teller when they can make you feel so many emotions, make you use your imagination and leave you pondering for hours in such a few pages. This short story was beautifully sad. The story is only .99 on Amazon or you can read it for free on tor.com. So you have no excuse not to read it.
November 20, 2015
3.5 stars
DAMN IT.
I JUST GOT PUNCHED RIGHT IN THE FEELS.
SHORT STORIES ARE NOT SUPPOSED TO MAKE YOU THIS WAY!!!
“Mama Alice would say that God never gives us any burdens we can’t carry.”
The harpy says, Does she look you in the eye when she says that?
DAMN IT.
I JUST GOT PUNCHED RIGHT IN THE FEELS.
SHORT STORIES ARE NOT SUPPOSED TO MAKE YOU THIS WAY!!!
September 9, 2015
Dark and emotional story. My first story from Tor and i hope to read some more.
September 1, 2019
Excellent. A rollcoaster of emotion in a few pages. My only criticisms: Desiree's voice strikes me as more 12-14 years old vs 17 almost 18. And the paragraph, regarding babies feels incongruous and unnecessary. The story reads better without it.
February 15, 2016
I don't want to be like the harpy. But I don't want to be me any more, either. I'm stuck living with myself.
Half of me loves this and half of me hates it. It's beautifully written; the writing just disappears and it unfolds around the reader. Elizabeth Bear has a talent for writing things that make me very uncomfortable; the decisions her characters make are at times really hard for me to take. (Not hard to believe. Not at all. Just hard to live with.) Possibly her themes just hit too close to home. Clearly I need to read a lot more from this lady.
Half of me loves this and half of me hates it. It's beautifully written; the writing just disappears and it unfolds around the reader. Elizabeth Bear has a talent for writing things that make me very uncomfortable; the decisions her characters make are at times really hard for me to take. (Not hard to believe. Not at all. Just hard to live with.) Possibly her themes just hit too close to home. Clearly I need to read a lot more from this lady.
October 3, 2014
This kept popping up on my feed as being the *most*amazing short story ever, and since its only about 12 pages long and free Read it here! I thought what the hell?
You should read this short story. I mean, it should be studied in classes. Excellent execution! Brilliant idea! I honestly wish it was a novel. I'm really quite floored by how much these twelve pages made me feel . A hard read, and you will feel like the harpy's talons are squeezing your heart.
Will you fly?
You should read this short story. I mean, it should be studied in classes. Excellent execution! Brilliant idea! I honestly wish it was a novel. I'm really quite floored by how much these twelve pages made me feel . A hard read, and you will feel like the harpy's talons are squeezing your heart.
Will you fly?
January 24, 2015
The story of Desiree, a seventeen year old girl suffering from lipodystrophy and borne with HIV.
Life with the disease and suicide are options that Desiree, girl grown up in foster care weighs out almost every day.
Is the choice to become a harpy a metaphor for suicide? Grim, yet hopeful story. Tough subject.
Rating 3.5 stars.
Link here:http://www.tor.com/stories/2009/12/th...
Life with the disease and suicide are options that Desiree, girl grown up in foster care weighs out almost every day.
Is the choice to become a harpy a metaphor for suicide? Grim, yet hopeful story. Tough subject.
Rating 3.5 stars.
Link here:http://www.tor.com/stories/2009/12/th...
January 13, 2016
Such a poignant tale. Very touching in a horrific, behind a stinky dumpster kind of way.
October 2, 2014
A short story where the reader is silently yelling at the main character is a success.
Read
February 3, 2021I loved and was hurt by this story, as one ought to be. It has sharp edges.
Just now reading The Last Unicorn I'm realizing finally where the title comes from. "When she came to the harpy's cage the monster made a sound as shrill as a spear, and spread the horrid glory of its wings."
Just now reading The Last Unicorn I'm realizing finally where the title comes from. "When she came to the harpy's cage the monster made a sound as shrill as a spear, and spread the horrid glory of its wings."
April 21, 2017
This is a Very. Dark. Story. With an ambiguous ending.
August 20, 2017
I wonder exactly how she was transformed at the end...
June 30, 2020
I am pretty sure I already read this
how anyone could forget about an arpy with bronze wings?
Even so, the author is not my favorite, but this a powerful tale.
Disease, image / self-image, death.
how anyone could forget about an arpy with bronze wings?
Even so, the author is not my favorite, but this a powerful tale.
Disease, image / self-image, death.
December 26, 2015
I put a hand on the harpy’s warm wing. I can’t feel it through my glove. The gloves came from the fire department, too. “I have to go to school, Harpy.”
The harpy says, You’re alone there too.
This is kind of a weird one. It's powerful, and there is the slightest hint of hope, but overall it felt very grim to me.
I like that we don't know if there is really a harpy living in the alley, or if it's all Desiree's imagination.
The ending was very deflating and disappointing for me. and the author added in another comment:
I have always felt like you can choose the harpy's life or the mundane life, but you have to pick one--and they are both valid and valuable choices. It's the Peter Pan thing: you can be Pan, or you can be Wendy. There is no middle road. Alas.
read it here: http://www.tor.com/stories/2009/12/th...
December 26, 2014
I never thought about it before. I wonder if the harpy’s stuck in that alley. I wonder if it’s too proud to ask for help.
I wonder if I should ask if it wants some anyway.
There are so many ways to interpret this short story.
On the surface, it is a story about a girl and a harpy who are both trapped in a mundane life - the girl is HIV positive, and doesn't know if she'll be able to afford to continue with her medicine after her health insurance expires when she turns eighteen, while the harpy can't get a headwind to fly away from the dumpster and the alleyway she's stuck in.
Together, they work out a way to help each other find freedom.
And that's when you start wondering.
Is the harpy real? Is it just a figment of the girl's imagination? Is Desiree the harpy? Does she fly? Does she fall?
The beauty of the story (aside from the gorgeous imagery) comes from the various ways it could end. It's a very personal story.
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