Literary Fiction by People of Color discussion
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What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours
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Discussion: What is not yours is not yours
I happy to finally be able to talk about this book. I really ready to read this one. it's been staring at me from my shelf for a while.
Mod
Great, Arlene. Just jump right in!
I didn't like Boy, Snow, Bird. It was another book I didn't find very plausible, nor did I buy into the fairy tale angle. However I liked her writing well enough to want to give these short stories a try since I love short stories. I've got my copy from the library and will start it in a day or so.
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Louise, talk about implausible. Do you recall the twist at the end of the book? That was the kicker for me and left me wanting.
Columbus wrote: "Louise, talk about implausible. Do you recall the twist at the end of the book? That was the kicker for me and left me wanting. ..."I chalked it up to a marketing ploy, to get people talking about the shocking ending. (view spoiler)
Mod
I would personally prefer to discuss them in order, as that is how I'll be reading them, but I'm also open to doing it differently.
Columbus wrote: "It's May 1st and the book selected by LFPC members for this month is What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours by Helen Oyeyemi. This book has been called "flawless and a master..."I will admit that based on the mixed reactions on Boy, Snow, Bird I was a little surprised when What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours won and by a good margin!
While I am a fan of speculative fiction, I am not in the camp of being a lover of her work (and it not for the lack of trying).
But decided to give the author - one more try. I tend to say that after each of her books are released and the buzz about the books pump me up. I got What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours from my library (that was a bit of wait). I read one story and scanned another and decided that I will sit out this BOM.
I also seem to find quotable sentences from her books as there are a couple of sentences that will resonate with me but overall her storytelling as whole is just not by cup of tea.
"Every book is not for everyone but every book is for someone."
I will be looking at the discussion from time to time as I am interested in learning from others who are fans/enjoy her work.
Happy Reading!
funny what does and doesn't appeal / speak to us. Read the first two stories - and will admit that I should have finished the first all in one go. I was a little lost when I came back to read the last 10 pages. But really do like her writing and also, because I'm struggling with other things, appreciate having short stories to read. they're probably really difficult to discuss, but I've enjoyed the word pictures she paints and some of the absurdity AND concrete-ness (is that a word) that function alongside one another.
Looking forward to reading again with the group! I did not like Boy, Snow, Bird but I did think Oyeyemi is a talented writer so I wanted to give her another chance. Just started reading the first story. This collection seems to be in the vein of magical realism, which I love.
Beverly wrote: "Columbus wrote: "It's May 1st and the book selected by LFPC members for this month is What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours by Helen Oyeyemi. This book has been called "flaw..."I too was surprised that this book was chosen given the reaction to the Snow Bird selection. I did not read Snow Bird because I had recently read Mr. Fox and found it wanting. I think Oyeyemi is a great writer of literary fiction. And that's the problem for me. It seem like she's writing for the Ivory Towers. She tries too hard. And some of..no most of her fantastical elements fell flat for me. Her references too obscure and situations too completely implausible. But I look forward to reading this book because what didn't work in a long form novel I can see working very well in a short story. And given the authors obvious intelligence I think she can pull it off.
Mod
That's like so perfect and so true. Book critics seem to adore her and practically litter the walkway with rose petals at her feet. There's that semblance of truth in exaggeration again While us minions delivered a what was it a 3.30 stars or something rating. But of course we don't know.
Hi everyone, it is my first Helen Oyeyemi read, just got the book.Looking forward to discussing it with all of you.
Mod
Books and Roses - today thru May 5th
"Sorry" doesn't sweeten her tea - May 6th thru 9th
Is your blood as red as this? - May 10th thru May 12th
Drownings - May 13th thru May 16th
Presence - May 17th thru May 19th
A brief history of.... May 20th thru 23nd
Dornîčka and the st. martin's day goose - May 24th thru 26th
Freddy Barrandov May 27th thru 29th
If a book is locked.... May 30th & 31st
Let's begin....
I want to participate this month. There are two people ahead of me at the library so, fingers crossed...
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Grest, join in when you can Monica.
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Columbus wrote: "Ok, we'll read the stories in order. You may comment or ask questions on any story during the month even after we've moved on to a different story. But, please no commenting on upcoming stories tha..."Perfect!
I gave up on the holds list and ordered a copy, so I do hope to read this one with the group. I was sad to miss reading along with A Little Life, but I will be reading it this month and look forward to reading the discussion.
I read the first story last night and wasn't impressed. It's a flighty story. I prefer something more grounded if that makes any sense.
Mod
Great, looking forward to your thoughts on both, Karen!
I was reading a review where the reviewer said that Oyeyemi was more style than substance. Would you agree?
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Louise, the style quotient is very high in my opinion. Not the constant reliance on the fairytale which I abhor but just her fancy use of dialogue if that makes sense. I've now read the one novel and one short story and overall I'm not exactly bullish on her. For right now I'm in a holding pattern.
I'm not a fan of adult fairy tales, generally. Heather O'Neill recently wrote a book of short stories Daydreams of Angels that relied heavily on fairy tale motifs and that didn't grab my attention much either. The stories themselves were too weird. Angela Carter did a fabulous job putting her feminist spin on fairy tales in her book The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories. Like you, I'm still on the fence with Oyeyemi. I don't want to judge the book on only one story, but it doesn't bode well for me since I believe this is a collection of related themes.If I were to rate the first story, I would give it a 3.
I just finished the forst story and i too would give it a 3.5 star rating. Since this is my first time reading a Helen Oyeyemi book or story, i thought it was written so lightly, if that makes sense. It was a beautiful story, but i think the letter from her mother really made me enjoy the story more as a whole. It really drew me into the story and I couldn't get enough. I enjoy Helen's writing style and I'm ready for the next one.
Mod
As for this story itself I just thought there was too much going on here. It actually got a little confusing after a while. Maybe would have worked better as a novella but not as a really short story. Another reviewer said she will have to read each story again to get the full meaning of these stories. That's not a good sign.
The two letters at the end just brought on more questions for me and not exactly brought closure to the situation. I also wasn't totally enamored with these characters which is not a big issue usually for me. But, with so many sub-characters or minor characters I just got frustrated with the lot of them. Explain the whole thievery to me please?
3.5 rating
I can understand why you might have questions, cause I did/do too. Especially everything about her mother in general. I dont want to go into too much detail until the 5th so others can catch up.
Mod
Arlene, it's ok to discuss anything about the story even the ending. Everything is open beginning day one of the story so you're ok.
And what happened to Safiye? I like a story that makes me think, but Oyeyemi makes us work too hard IMO. Reading should be pleasurable, and engaging, not a grind to figure it all out.
Okay - I am glad it just wasn't me about the first story.At first I had high hopes for the story as I have visited the Santa Maria de Montserrat Abbey and saw the Black Madonna and hoping the storyline would revolve more about the myths of the Black Madonna and the Abbey.
It sits atop a mountain and it a very narrow winding round to the top but the views along the route are breathtaking and is so worth the trip if you visit the Barcelona area.
I agree the language/wording is beautiful but several times I stopped while reading the story because for me it was just reading beautiful words for the sake of beautiful words.
There are certain trigger words for me in book blurbs/reviews that I often fight against so I can try to keep an open mind when reading a book and "fairy tales" are such a word for me.
I would give the first story a 3. Beautiful writing, but felt the piece had many narrative threads that were just dropped. Like Columbus and others, I was confused at the end. The story ended rather abruptly for me. So Isidoro was dead when he asked Aurelie to marry him?
Idk if i'm not seeing the "fairy tale" element, but I am definitely getting the whole "magical realism" which is why I picked up this short story collection in the first place.And I do agree that there are a lot of questions not answered in the ending of this first story, but I'm okay with that. The answer of what the keys open was answered and what the keys meant to each person who got one, was for me, answered:
Lucy's key- a secret garden on the edge of town, Montserrat's key: opens to a library full of new worlds to explore and a new found wealth and even maybe possibly a family?
I did feel that I had to think about the story more than I have most other short stories that I have read, but I liked that, getting me to dig deeper into the meaning of things to get a better understanding. I liked it. I'm still thinking about it and trying to answer the questions myself.
"Fairy tale" seems more of an accurate description than "magical realism" for many of the stories in this collection. There is a lot of "magic" but there's not a lot of "realism" in these tales. Even the more "modern" stories have this timeless, fable-like quality to them.
Mod
Yes, I agree that there's this fairytale motif that flows throughout these tales, similar to her novels and she's obviously fascinated with it. Some love it and others do not. Right now I'm taking up housing in the latter view. I think her supporters might find this line a little reductive and think there's more heft to her stories than that. But then this story collection starts off with, "once upon a time in...." So you know what you're in for.
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Sunita, I took it that Isidoro did asked her to marry him prior to his death but I don't know there's lots of questions left unanswered. Did Fausta Del Olma facilitate the death? I don't know. Anyone else have a view?
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-What's with these story titles? Imaginative?
-So we had a transgendered main character in Boy, Snow, Bird; a lesbian couple in the first story, Books and Roses; and now a gay couple in this story. Oh, Lucy (Helen) you got something you want to tell us? Only read BSB of the novels so wonder if there were others in her earlier novels?
-Keys or locks are not as explicitly used as they were in the first story. In fact, it just appeared to me the keys/locks were an after effect and could've even been added after the story was written to keep with the theme.
-This story was not as ambitious as the first story but I actually liked it a little more.
-All the reviews of the book that singled out this story made no mention or very little of the physical abuse that takes place here. Not certain why but I thought it was well told and I liked the way it was handled by the author.
Rating: story 3.7 writing 3.8
Final rating: 3.8
It reminded me of how much my sister used to really ride for some of her favorite artists and when they do somehting completely out of character, they are forced to seem them just as regular people who mess up. And being torn about still being a fan of of theirs or not and if the "apology" or lack there of is a reason to given them a pass.I liked this story for the realness it gave me, maybe that's due to the connection in my real life.
The lock and key aspect definitely took a backseat in this story but i wasn't upset by that at all.
3.7 stars
I just finished the second story and I'm questioning whether I want to read any more. I have found very little entertainment value so far. And I have a wonderful collection of short stories waiting to be finished: Island: The Collected Stories of Alistair MacLeod that I will get far more pleasure out of. Rich and poignant stories with good old-fashioned great story-telling.
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Louise, I hear you on that. I really agree with Poingu in that you should really read something you may enjoy instead of slogging away at these books that you think you should finish for whatever reason. I liked that "Books don't have feelings." So true.
I'm grading this collection on the high side or better yet a curve. I'm really not expecting much out of it anyway. Furthermore, these short stories are getting me out of my reading rut I've been in all year. It's like a reading malaise or a version of a writers block; A "reading block" can we coin a new phrase?
3.8
One of the wonderful things about a group read is that you get a chance to explore books/authors that you might have tried on your own. Some you might like and some you might not. But either way you get to hear thoughts from group members on what they thought about the book. And for me this usually helps to broader my understanding of the book and my reading tastes.
Reading is such a personal experience and we each bring our own expectations and experiences to each book we pick up to read.
I know my library must thing I am truly eccentric as I will check out a bunch of books if I even have the slightest interest in them. But then a couple of days later I am returning a bunch of books because they were not just for me - some I know I am just not in the mood to read that book now and keep a list to pick up at a later date and others I know just would not like.
Just one of the reasons that I just librarians.
Of course the best time is when I pick up an author that is "new to me" and just fall in love with their writing.
Louise wrote: "I just finished the second story and I'm questioning whether I want to read any more. I have found very little entertainment value so far. And I have a wonderful collection of short stories waiting..."It is so hard to concentrate on a book that is not appealing to you when another book is shouting at you to read them. :)
Beverly wrote: "One of the wonderful things about a group read is that you get a chance to explore books/authors that you might have tried on your own. Some you might like and some you might not. But either way ..."
Absolutely!
That being said, when people are talking about a book, whether in a positive or negative light, I am always curious to read what they are talking about (the reason why I read 50 Shades of Crap although I really could not get past the first book). So I may persevere just to be able to follow the discussion here. I absolutely love book discussions, sometimes more than the actual book. I might be able to handle one short story every 4 days or so.
Columbus wrote: "Louise wrote: "I just finished the second story and I'm questioning whether I want to read any more. I have found very little entertainment value so far. And I have a wonderful collection of short ..."Glad this collection is helping you to get over your "readers block."
I think as avid readers we all experience this at times.
It usually begins for no known clear explainable reason and usually ends with an inexplicable event.
It seems there are times that I spend much time on deciding on what a book rating should be. This can be such a subjective decision that works against my logical side. :)
Mod
You are so right Beverly because nothing has actually changed in my life for this to have happened. Like no big life event occurred. I felt so bad because this was the year I was to read the Toni Morrison collection in chrono order and I got to Sula (2nd book) and never finished it. I've had to re-check that book out from the library now like 3 times (6-week intervals) and still haven't finished it. I'm now resigned to the fact that it's just one of those things and quit beating myself up about it. Five months now though and it feels like forever.
I'm sitting here with a 3 year old sleep in my arms now. I can't wait till he wakes up so I can start the Pete the Cat collection, Dr Seuss and other children books I have prepared to read to him. That's the only reading excitement I get lately. He looks at me strange because I'm acting out the characters while reading. At least I can feel good about completing these. Hey, they count too!
I get in a funk when I'm trying to read a book that just isn't grabbing me. It might not be the book's fault but simply what is in my head or heart at that time. This happened to me when I was reading Ann-Marie MacDonald's Adult Onset. It took me months to get through it and I lost my desire to read anything else. So put the Morrison books aside for now, enjoy Dr. Seuss then pick up something entirely different from Morrison.
I finished the first story a couple of days ago and I guess I wanted to take my time before commenting. It is my first Oyeyemi title so I am going into this with no expectation.Although I had to get used to her style, I did like her writing. For me the oddest thing in this first story, was the dead lady with a rose feeding off of her. I just felt that it was way out there!
Otherwise, it wasn't bad.
I give it a 3
Arlene (Urbrightside) wrote: "Beverly wrote: "One of the wonderful things about a group read is that you get a chance to explore books/authors that you might have tried on your own. Some you might like and some you might not...."
and, another emphatic yes. grateful for this group - don't always read everything but am always glad for people's views. enjoying the stories, but find myself reading one or two and then stepping away for a bit. they're challenging and sometimes annoying, but also sometimes lovely enough to make me want to keep reading.
Literary Fiction by People of Color
Books mentioned in this topic
The Book of Harlan (other topics)The Book of Harlan (other topics)
The Book of Harlan (other topics)
Island: The Collected Stories of Alistair MacLeod (other topics)
Daydreams of Angels (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Heather O'Neill (other topics)Angela Carter (other topics)
Helen Oyeyemi (other topics)
Helen Oyeyemi (other topics)
Helen Oyeyemi (other topics)
Boy, Snow, Bird was previously discussed in this group and received a mixed reaction from this panel of expert readers.
There are nine stories in this collection with "keys", the locking or unlocking of them, being a recurring theme running throughout both literally and figuratively.
Has anyone started the book or plan to read it? Are you in the camp of Oyeyemi enthusiasts who love her work. What do you think of her writing?
Reading schedule to follow...