Bluebirds Used to Croon in the Choir

by Joe Meno

Winner of 2006 The Society of Midland Authors Adult Fiction Award

Children who anesthetize—and dress up—small wild animals in an ill-fated attempt to cheer their grieving mother; childhood friends who ritually return every year to the site of their near-kidnapping; an awkward teen trying to find his place among the cultural ruins of Greek Mythology Camp; brothers brought together, if not by mutual understanding, by a strange need to steal airport these are some of the characters who inhabit—and invariably tell—the stories in Joe Meno's Bluebirds Used to Croon in the Choir . Oddballs and charmers and would-be lovers, they are souls not so much lost as wandering, looking for something better, almost getting laid, trying to explain or, if all else fails, to entertain—and this they unfailingly do. Rarely has fiction so understated produced such hilarity and heartbreak.

Novelist, music journalist, and playwright Meno writes squarely in the American tradition of wringing large effects from small change, revealing the subtlety in the broad stroke, and conveying complexity with seeming simplicity. Celebrated for its "unflinching honesty" ( Entertainment Weekly ) and for its "poetic and visceral style" ( Booklist ), his work resonates with the unmistakable magic and curious mystery of modern life.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction

192 pages, Hardcover

First published November 4, 2005

About the author

Joe Meno is a fiction writer and playwright who lives in Chicago. A winner of the Nelson Algren Literary Award, the Great Lakes Book Award, a Pushcart Prize, the Society of Midland Author's Fiction Prize, and a finalist for the Story Prize, he is the author of seven novels and two short story collections. He is also the editor of Chicago Noir: The Classics. A long-time contributor to the seminal culture magazine, Punk Planet, his other non-fiction has appeared in the New York Times and Chicago magazine. He is a professor in the Department of Creative Writing at Columbia College Chicago.

Reviews

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

This excellent collection was a nice follow-up for me to Stuart Dybek's stories, since they both tell tales of children in Chicago. Meno shares his predecessor's offbeat worldview, but injects more humor (see the one about Greek mythology camp)into the irrational world these authors depict as the young's inheritance. Bluebirds is not all about kids, but those are the most memorable to me, for example the boy who costumes himself from the contents of stolen Midway airport suitcases.

[rené lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this collection of short stories. I like anything that Joe Meno writes. There's always this tinge of sadness that is conveyed in every story he writes. I tend to like that because there's an element of reality that I think a lot of authors avoid. Sometimes the stories are ridiculous, but the reality of the sadness is what makes them seem absolutely normal.

I think the sadness was harder to handle in this context because it was multiple stories where you didn't get to build up a good relationship with the characters. As soon as you started the story, you were thrust into their sad world and, since it was multiple stories, it was entering into multiple sad worlds.

I'm glad to have read it, but I don't know that I'd revisit this collection again.

[Jason Jordan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bluebirds Used to Croon in the Choir (TriQuarterly Books, 2005) is the best that Joe Meno has to offer. His previous novel, Hairstyles of the Damned (Punk Planet Books, 2004), was great. It's been reviewed for this website, and you can peruse the ARCHIVES for proof. Arguably, this collection of short stories upstages everything he's ever thrust into the public arena. For those of you who are financially strapped, though, this is a hardback book, so it follows that it's more expensive than its paperback counterpart. But wait: there isn't a paperback counterpart! Aside from that strange fact, this is quintessential Meno and there's a certain panache here that isn't present in his novels....

Read the rest in the December 2005 issue of decomP .

[Doug · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maybe this is true with most short story collections and I never noticed, but it felt like I was watching tv, going around the world with the remote; or rather, going around the world at the mercy of someone else in control of the remote. I felt like I dropped in on these stories not necessarily at the beginning and then jump to the next one before much in the way of conclusion or resolution. Some were very good, others just seemed to be such a small snapshot of a life or situation that it just seemed pointless. In other words, when is a short story just an unfinished sketch of an idea? But they were all pretty quick to get through, and enough good ones to keep my interest.

[Patrick Pritchard · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of melancholy short stories that seem to be tied together with the common threads of loss and the human condition. Trying to hold onto something that is slipping through ones fingers. Some selections do not feel as sharp as other pieces I have read by Mr.Meno.

“hold onto your hat”, “Midway” and maybe “A strange episode of aqua voyage” were favorites.

[Katharama · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[roseaj · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some stories I quite enjoyed while others didn't hold my interest at all, but what I liked most about Meno's writing is his oddball assortment of characters.

[MH · Rating 5 out of 5]

A collection of absolutely terrific short stories, sad and genuinely funny and often surprisingly hopeful. Meno often deals with ideas of peculiarly American disappointments and childhood sadnesses (and how they linger into adult life) but he does so in a way that's clever but still honest and quirky without being cutesy, and it's the sort of collection I wanted to pass along to friends. Just a world-beater.

[Megan · Rating 2 out of 5]

after reading the boy detective fails, i got on a bit of a joe meno kick.

i didn't like this collection of short stories as much as the other books i've read. they were really hit or miss for me, though the ones that hit really hit.

in the stories that do hit, his writing seems so effortless. so eloquent and breathlessly wonderful.

shorts i'm in love with: the use of medicine, our neck of the woods, a trip to greek mythology camp, be a good citizen, how to say good night.

[Oriana · Rating 3 out of 5]

A few of these stories are stellar, most of them are pretty average, and all of them are way too short. There's poor balance between stories and also a weird overuse of themes: nearly ever story has runaway parents, dysfunctional siblings, people who work in factories, sexy redheaded ladies, and lots and lots of loneliness.

I'm really glad I already love Meno a whole lot, because if this had been the first book of his I read I don't know if I'd have picked up more.

[H R Koelling · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some interesting short stories. Also some that weren't so interesting. I thought some stories were a little self-absorbed and not very accessible to the average reader. Many of the characters in each story had similar hang-ups, thus making distinctions between the stories somewhat difficult.

[Jeff Phillips · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed these stories. The collection feels like a really good rock album (in part because of the book design and Meno's periodic song mentions), some stories standing out more than others, but some subtle gems that grow on you as you think about them.

[Camille · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little hard to rate as short stories often are. Parts of it I really liked and parts of it I thought were okay. I still really like Joe Meno though. His characters are always interesting. I would probably rate this a 3.5/5.

[Therese · Rating 5 out of 5]

the short stories were so good. i got so into them that i was bummed when they ended. heard really good reviews about meno as a writer

[Pete · Rating 2 out of 5]

I proclaim Joe Meno to be one of the best current Chicago writers.

[Jim]

I give this no stars. I didn't like it. I didn't hate it. It had no resonance for me at all. The stories in this book did nothing for me. They didn't make me think or feel; they just lay on the page.

[Jd · Rating 4 out of 5]

The use of medicines is one of my favorite short stories ever.

[Kyle · Rating 4 out of 5]

The stories are mostly good, sometimes not good, and occasionally extraordinary. Joe Meno is a surprising and sometimes sloppy writer.

[Phoebe Kate Foster · Rating 4 out of 5]

Outstanding collection of stories. A must-read for all writers of literary short fiction.

[Courtney · Rating 5 out of 5]

So good.

[Marissa Elera · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The Girls I Have Made Cry" haunts my every pore. As does most everything Joe writes.

[Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really, really liked this. Original, inventive, very strong voice, which I always appreciate. And I loved all the mentions of Chicago, of course.

[allison · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not one of Joe's best, it pains me to say.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

My very favorite was the Astronaut of the Year story. I can recommend the book for that story alone. Most of the stories were a bit too dark for me at this point in my life.

[Ratforce]

Joe Meno is a notable humorous writer, and you might enjoy his collection of short stories titled, Bluebirds Used to Croon in the Choir.

[Raewyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

A set of stories filled with melancholy and regret. Good stories, but sad. I prefer Demons in the Spring.

[rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully written tiny little stories, all of which are equal parts tender and heartbreaking.

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Medicine never cures heartaches...