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Alan | 2/16/2014
" Great! I really enjoyed these funny, off-beat and touching stories. His eye for the everyday and absurd is hilarious. From Zombies working at Starbucks, trained not to eat cat, adult men pedalling kid's Bmx bikes, their knees up above their ears, to a man who believes one of his kids, "the girl", "little", or "middle" is a thief. "
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Pamela | 2/15/2014
" A collection of short stories (any which could be expanded to an entire book) that deal with people with major challenges - homelessness, drink and drug issues, troubles with the law! An interesting and fast read! "
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Lincoln | 2/10/2014
" It's a sometimes funny sometimes poignant collection of stories. "
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Brittany | 2/6/2014
" Fantastic collection of gritty short stories by the multi-talented Jess Walter. The title story was heartbreaking. Walter is a modern Raymond Carver in this collection. These stories are on the opposite end of the spectrum from his bestselling Beautiful Ruins, but still moving, unsentimental, profound. His male characters (women hardly appear on these pages) are rough and accepting and resigned. They'll tug at you long after you've closed the book (which ends with the stellar Statistical Abstract for My Hometown, Spokane, Washington). "
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John | 2/1/2014
" I started to read this collection of short stories (which begins and ends with excellent writing) because I live in the Pacific Northwest, like Walter, and wanted to read about Spokane, which I did. But along the way I read about an almost insufferable parade of losers: crooks, dealers, molesters, abusers, most of all meth heads. I knew, sort of, that this is what I might encounter east of the Cascades, but this bleak? One handsome or beautiful thing would have gone a long ways. "
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Michelle | 1/6/2014
" Great stories. Most have an understated power, chilling. I think all but two are about dads, so if that's a theme you like, read this book. I liked the idea of Don't Eat Cat, but it seemed somewhat out of place (even though thematically relevant). That's where, for me, the book went from 5 stars to 4. Wheelbarrow Kings was ok, probably the weakest tale. "
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Cindy | 12/20/2013
" Too much swearing! "
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Ross | 12/8/2013
" I love anything Jess Walter writes, though you have to like noir-ish short stories about lowlife losers to enjoy this one. "
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Summer | 11/18/2013
" A great collection of stories both funny & heartbreaking, with a preoccupation for diabetics with missing limbs. "
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Kent | 11/14/2013
" Walters cements himself as an empathetic and thoughtful fiction writer that can access the male pysche like only the very best. The blend of fragile male psyche combined with economic hardship is a definite theme in his writing. "
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Robin | 8/31/2013
" This book is a book of snippets. You are allowed to drop in on various peoples's lives, look around for a bit, and then leave. Some scenes are sad while others are humorous, but all are wonderfully written. "
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Kimmo | 8/21/2013
" Just love the writing of Jess Walter, gripping, surprising, funny and sad "
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Claudine | 7/21/2013
" I am not a big fan of short stories, but this very quick read was masterful. After enjoying his novel, "Beautiful Ruins," I thought I would check out some of his other work, and I was not disappointed. A very talented young author. "
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Zach | 6/16/2013
" I'd read most of these in their original form(s). Walter is on fire. His string of great books goes back further than any other working novelist. Period. "
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Jim | 5/18/2013
" Witty and deep...the title story is especially good. "
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Mike | 5/13/2013
" Another fun set of short stories, each engaging and entertaining. "
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Pia | 5/5/2013
" Really loved this collection of uber-short stories, but they were also uber-sad. I also loved the autobiographical one at the end which tied up all the stories together. It gave me some insight into Jess Walter; I'd never read anything by him before. "
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Julianna | 3/23/2013
" Jess Walter is one of my new favorite authors! "
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Kim | 3/23/2013
" Liked Beautiful Ruins, but loved the short stories more. I'm going out and getting all his books! "
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Beena | 2/18/2013
" Its cool book "
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