The Tenth Audiobook (Unabridged)

" Hard to rate a collection of short stories. Four stars for the first story. Three stars for Escape from Spiderhead. One or two stars for the rest of the bunch. I love how Saunders creates a world just slightly askew. But in all but a couple of cases, I think he doesn't quite show the inner lives of his characters in some of those weird environments. "

" Note: I am not a fan of the short story genre. I like to take more time to get to know my characters. But I made an exception and read this book because of the all the reviews. In my opinion, the wonderful reviews were completely accurate. George Saunders does something very interesting in every one of these short stories - he drops you into the mind of a completely formed character. So, my problem with short stories was void. I didn't love every one of the stories, but most of them. And all of them left me a little startled, or even in stunned silence. Very emotionally charged. Will read more by this very talented author. "

" This is a wonderful book. So creative and surprising. Lots of unexpected juxtapositions that make Saunders a joy to read. I dig this collection of short stories. Some R-rated themes. "

" No one is writing like George Saunders today. Three of the stories, the longer ones, are absolutely incredible. The others merely great. It's not for everyone, but everyone should check it out. "

" For me the entire book as a whole didn't live up to all the hype, however there were a few stories that I really liked and a few I couldn't relate to at all. "

" Wow, just finished this book and it was a knockout. Truly original. I plan to be like Dave Eggers and recommend this book to everyone and everyone. Except for Mom. Too much cursing. That put me off, too, but then I realized I was being a prude about it, that the cursing was not gratuitous. And there was the story where Saunders bleeps out the curses so he's got a reason for all those F-bombs in the other stories. Anyway, though his offbeat style took some getting used to, the humor and the humanity were always there. You have to read this. "

" Who knew that a collection of short stories could be somewhat uplifting? I loved the flow of every story. My favorite bit was the "baby looked up at her like 'come on tell me what all this shit is so i can open up a shop'" "

" This was my first book of short stories, and I just didn't get it. "

" heartbreaking, funny, devastatingly human. george saunders is, more than ever, on point. "

" ugh! Not worth the hype IMHO. "

" Masterful writing - I inhaled this book. "

" Enjoyable and memorable stories if generally depressing. "

" Very powerful, moving, well-written stories, but very dark. Not for light bedtime reading, but still an excellent read. "

" Not as wildly, out of control incredible as In Persuasion Nation, but still excellent. Stories simultaneously make me want to weep from disgust and throw up from happiness. "

" Saunders stories will take your breath away. After reading the first in the collection, "Victory Loop," my immediate thought was, "I have to re-read this. The language is startling original and authentic. His concerns of the dehumanization and isolation are so relevant to our world. "

" Only half way through but so far loving it. It's a bit withdrawn but I find it refreshing in itself - no prescribed emotions milked out of the reader, you get to read and note your own response, at times with surprise. Looking forward to reading the rest. "

" This is so cheesy, but I can't think of any other way to put it: This book made me cry and laugh (sometimes in the space of a page), and it recharged my faith in humanity. "

" This book is gooooood... But it will be over too quickly! "

" Heart-stopping reminder of the beauty and power of the short story as an art form distinct from longer fiction. "

" George Saunders is a beautiful person. I want to personally give him a hug for writing these stories. They combine the fear of failure, and of letting down the ones you love most, with a pure love of humanity, and the inherent goodness of mankind. It's weird feeling like I want to cry on the train. "

" This is an excellent collection of short stories. "

" I stand in awe of George Saunders. "

" I ordered this book after reading "Victory Lap" and being blown away, but then reading this whole collection, the style started feeling very repetitive and not as fun. A bit disappointing. "