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Secrets of a Small Town: The Extraordinary Confessions of Ordinary People
A candid look at the sins and secrets of anonymous residents of an unnamed small American town features the confession of an elderly woman who, years ago, witnessed her mother commit a heinous crime and other secrets concerning murder, incest, and more. Original.
- GenresNonfiction
240 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 1991
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
May 10, 2010
Another laundromat find. I really thought this book would be more interesting but it just isn’t. The author found a random small town where he set up camp and interviewed the locals for their secrets. Some of it’s interesting but a lot of it is just… I dunno. Not that interesting.
The one story that really hit me was about a young boy who participated in a costume contest at school. The kids would put on their costumes and parade around while the nuns tried to guess who each child was. The boy wanted to win very badly and went with his mother to pick out a lion costume. The day of the contest, as the kids were getting ready, the boy’s friend said that the moment the boy took a step, the nuns would know who he was. Turns out he had polio. He said it broke his heart to know all the people in his life had been lying to him and that there was no chance he could ever win the contest. That story will likely stay with me forever.
The one story that really hit me was about a young boy who participated in a costume contest at school. The kids would put on their costumes and parade around while the nuns tried to guess who each child was. The boy wanted to win very badly and went with his mother to pick out a lion costume. The day of the contest, as the kids were getting ready, the boy’s friend said that the moment the boy took a step, the nuns would know who he was. Turns out he had polio. He said it broke his heart to know all the people in his life had been lying to him and that there was no chance he could ever win the contest. That story will likely stay with me forever.
January 26, 2008
I think the secrets of my small town blow these away, but it was an okay book, better than television.
June 13, 2017
100 Mini-Novels in 1 Great Nonfiction. Truth really is stranger than fiction...
This brilliant social experiment called "Secrets of a Small Town" uncovers the true-to-life secrets of ordinary people in a typical, randomly chosen small town. The identity of the town is the book's ultimate secret.
I discovered this book in English class when the professor assigned it as a reading and writing assignment - we were each challenged to find one person's secret and to reveal one of our own.
You cannot read this book without looking at your friends and neighbors ... and family members differently. We all have at least one secret and this book reveals the secrets of our fellow man are not what you might think. It's fascinating what you discover when people open up to a total stranger.
It reads like a hundred mini-novels - each secret tells a story - and the reader cannot help from finding themselves in this one-of-a-kind book.
This brilliant social experiment called "Secrets of a Small Town" uncovers the true-to-life secrets of ordinary people in a typical, randomly chosen small town. The identity of the town is the book's ultimate secret.
I discovered this book in English class when the professor assigned it as a reading and writing assignment - we were each challenged to find one person's secret and to reveal one of our own.
You cannot read this book without looking at your friends and neighbors ... and family members differently. We all have at least one secret and this book reveals the secrets of our fellow man are not what you might think. It's fascinating what you discover when people open up to a total stranger.
It reads like a hundred mini-novels - each secret tells a story - and the reader cannot help from finding themselves in this one-of-a-kind book.
January 23, 2023
The perfect book to be read in small bits of time as each of the secrets are no longer than a page and a half.
It's not a great book, but it is interesting in that it allows one to peek into the minds of other people.
It's not a great book, but it is interesting in that it allows one to peek into the minds of other people.
November 28, 2017
It's unsettling, yet unsurprising how many of these secrets could be tagged #MeToo.
February 6, 2017
2.5 stars
It was a very quick and nice read. Many of the "secrets" were repetitive and even though many of us may share indeed the same secrets, I feel that for the sake of the book there should have been a little bit of variety. Would I recommend it? yes, why not? I finish it in a day, there were funny parts and some very deep topics were touched, so yes...
There wasn't nothing wonderful about the writing style... but as I said before, it was a quick read and nice...at parts.
It was a very quick and nice read. Many of the "secrets" were repetitive and even though many of us may share indeed the same secrets, I feel that for the sake of the book there should have been a little bit of variety. Would I recommend it? yes, why not? I finish it in a day, there were funny parts and some very deep topics were touched, so yes...
There wasn't nothing wonderful about the writing style... but as I said before, it was a quick read and nice...at parts.
March 25, 2015
The author goes to a town and interviews people for their secrets. If you don't expect too much, it's a great read.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews