emma's Reviews > Filthy Animals

for once having the presence of mind to actually review each short story in a collection!

1: potluck
i'm really into this writing so far. immediately i would compare it to sally rooney, which is the highest praise i can give a writing style. a lot of astute observations and cutting turns of phrase to characterize common behaviors in a new way
(i just sent this thought to s.penkevich, who is far smarter and a significantly better writer than me, and he affirmed it and said taylor is an admirer of rooney's. i'm just writing all this because i feel wise.)
still. the ending few pages didn't hit as hard as the rest of it, to the point that i wish i could have magically removed a certain chunk.
rating: 4

2: little beast
kids are spooky and life is hard.
rating: 4

3: flesh
we return to the characters from the first story and, true to form, this felt more like a chapter than a story.
then the end was good, but still. not enough!!!
rating: 3

4: as though that were love
people do be hurting each other.
rating: 3.5

5: proctoring
ok...appearing that every other story returns to the same group of characters. let's try this one on for size!!
i feel like i can't decide whether i want fewer stories from this world or i want a whole novel in it? i think i'm just unhappy regardless. inherently.
rating: 3.5

6: filthy animals
title story title story title story!!!!
holy moley.
"Milton thinks again of all the homes and all their interchangeable lives and wishes it were as simple as stopping at someone else's door, knocking, and switching places with the version of himself who lived there. If only he could enter into another version of his life, one in which things have not gone as horribly awry - if only he could pass from this world into the next or into the next."
and
"What he wants is not to maim himself but rather to pry open the world, bone it, remove the ugly hardness of it all, the way one might take the spine from a deer or a fish or some other animal snared."
when a beautiful theme (the need to escape from being surrounded by violence, but you are imbued with violence) is beautifully written (see above), what more can you ask for.
i love when a title story is a standout.
rating: 4.5

7: mass
aaaaand same world, different characters in it (who were already mentioned). we keep up the every-other pattern. nevertheless we persist. we beat on boats against the current.
et cetera.
a little more obvious than the others, maybe.
rating: 3

8: anne of cleves
this one just feels close to my heart, i think.
and also very good.
rating: 4.5

9: apartment
the relationship between these three recurring characters is à la conversations with friends, but instead of growing more interesting to me over time, it's getting significantly less so.
bummer.
rating: 3

10: what made them made you
this is a book mostly about the ways that men are violent to each other, and grow up and live within that cycle and environment, so this depiction of how that impacts women was needed (and good!).
rating: 4

11: meat
final story, and it's back with our gang of bozos.
not my favorite but that's not so surprising.
rating: 3

overall
the best thing a short story collection can be is greater than the sum of its parts, and this is certainly that.
would recommend for: sally rooney stans, people who like lit fic about terrible women and are willing to see the same theory applied to men.
rating: 4

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currently-reading updates

not sure what i'm in the mood to read so who's to say it isn't short stories

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reading books by Black authors for Black History Month!

book 1: caste
book 2: business not as usual
book 3: the color purple
book 4: the parking lot attendant
book 5: kindred
book 6: wrapped up in you
book 7: the boyfriend project
book 8: a song below water
book 9: filthy animals