Strange Things Happen

I'm afraid there's a sameness to Link's writing. Grotesquerie, quirky refusal of all resolution.

Feb 04, Melanie rated it it was ok. I really wanted to love this, but it's just a tad too cute, light and just very detached. Props for mischief, enjoy some sass and comedy - but otherwise, meh. Just not my cup of milo. Jan 11, Natasha rated it did not like it Shelves: I'm obviously missing something, but Kelly Link stories read like this: A wave bit his finger off.

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He saw a purple cloud. Too absurd for me. Mar 07, Milica rated it really liked it Shelves: Apr 19, Leah rated it really liked it. Within it are eleven exquisitely crafted short stories which range from weird to the truly bizarre. It is difficult to categorize Link's writing, as it seems to straddle science fiction and fantasy, narrative and fiction, real and unreal. It is loosely written as are many of the stories , which - rather than impeding the text - makes it easier to adap "Stranger Things Happen" is Kelly Link's freshman work of fiction.

It is loosely written as are many of the stories , which - rather than impeding the text - makes it easier to adapt. Her writing seems to permeate right into one's head, letting the reader formulate each story by themselves while being gently urged on by Link. She guides, but does not dictate, the reader. As a result, one makes each story one's own: This compounds how generally creepy her writing is. The stories are also punctuated with truly odd characters. In "Water off a Black Dog's Back," the boy's girlfriend's father is a bizarre character.

He is lacking a nose, and therefore replaces it with a prosthesis according to circumstance -- sometimes a wooden one, sometimes a steel one.

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Link again keeps her writing somewhat vague, but defined enough to paint a rather striking - and oddly frightening - picture of rural life under her twisted pen. The fact that this is Link's first book shows, however. While her writing is strong she shows remarkable talent , there are immature aspects to it, as well. Her stories can be somewhat "plotless" - they are more like literary sketches of disturbing scenarios.

Although, this is also what renders her writing so captivating: She makes a story out of some strange event. She does not present a problem to be solved, a climax, a resolution. It's almost as if she leaves that to the reader, choosing instead to lay the groundwork for one's mind to grind away at -- as a reader, we torment ourselves thinking more of what Link has written than what is actually on the page. Kudos to Link for her uncanny ability to turn the familiar into the frightening. Her writing conveys a sense of uneasiness, she manages to make the most normal circumstances into the most disturbing.

She is an excellent, captivating writer. Nov 02, Justine rated it liked it. I picked up this book because Amazon told me I would like it. Being that I trust their algorithm more than I trust most of my family members, I did it.

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Kelly Link's collection of short stories ran the gamut between being successful and kind of pointless. While the concept is interesting: Hijinks and fun imagery ensue.

'Stranger Things Happen': You Must Read These Gleefully Deranged Stories : NPR

The stories I found to be the most successful were those that had a more disti I picked up this book because Amazon told me I would like it. The stories I found to be the most successful were those that had a more distinctive plot or took a quirky point of view toward death and evil boy dates half daughter of Zeus who is persecuted by Hera, ghosts that like to live in cellos, girl who cases ex boyfriend to regain him from snow queen, dictators mummified wife talks about her shoes.

The least successful stories worked too hard to hint at some grander mystery or plot convergence but ended up being incoherent or incomplete. Maybe this is because I'm a lazy reader. Maybe because I was exhausted when I read this. Maybe because I don't equate being vague with being insightful. Ultimately, it's an entertaining read but nothing earth shattering or thought provoking beyond idle curiosity. Oct 21, A. Unabashedly girly, experimental, tender, genius. It took a few stories for me to get into Link but I think I think I love her like I love Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and four day old tres leches cake with black coffee, all things sweet and sneaky and spooky.

Aug 05, Lynn rated it liked it. Good, but I loved Get in Trouble much more. Will try Magic for Beginners next to try to recapture that earlier buzz from great and weird stories. Feb 17, Iluzija O. Istini rated it it was amazing. View all 6 comments. Apr 19, Rohit Sawant rated it it was amazing. This was unlike anything I've read before. Kelly Link is a genre of her own. The stories collected here are more than mere narratives. They're like curious things found in a bottle. Oddities, deranged and delightful, magical and subversive. All woven skilfully with beautiful, direct prose.

Dec 28, Jigar Brahmbhatt rated it liked it. I am still digesting it. There are stories that you can grab with both hands and make yours. Then there are those you cannot touch but admire from a distance. Maybe, I will figure out later that it is an awesome story. For now it was just evocative Alcuni racconti hanno una struttura simile tra loro: Dalla prospettiva del finale, possiamo chiederci se questi personaggi non avessero sempre abitato in quel mondo altro, senza volerlo sapere.

In Italia sono usciti solo due libri di Kelly Link: Per chi volesse leggere il testo originale in inglese di Stranger Things Happen: Oct 20, Kendra Recht rated it liked it. I'm a big fan of Kelly Link. She's beyond imaginative, a unique and very talented writer, and I feel, sometimes, as though the essence of my writing and hers isn't that much different. I absolutely loved her second collection, Magic for Beginners , and although I liked some of the stories in Stranger Things Happen , as a whole it didn't have the same sort of impact that other book had for me.

And even some of the stories I rather enjoyed had some of the same pitfalls I noticed in Link's other stories when I first read Magic. One such pitfall is Link's inability -- or refusal -- to wrap up most of her pieces. Not to say that everything should be neat and tidy with no loose ends, nor should everything work out perfectly and be completely comprehensible, because, as Link is clearly trying to show us, life isn't that way. And if stories are meant to echo life, they can't be that way either. In some of Link's stories -- and in fact in a lot of them, particularly in this collection -- it's very hard to grasp the essence of the plot or of the story she is trying to tell.

And although I don't believe endings should be neat, I do think that the reader should be left with questions -- not gaps in understanding. And sometimes, here, I felt that I simply wasn't able to find the connective tissue or the point hidden underneath all those lovely words and brilliant ideas. I think sometimes, whether or not this is the truth or the way it's conveyed to the reader, Link's ideas are great but not quite complete.

In the best way, possible, of course. I think some of her stories are novels and novellas yearning for expansion, and others are in need of pruning. Some of her stories are delightfully odd, some of them are bafflingly bizarre. But I enjoy them. I get a feel for her characters, except when she deliberately makes things too confusing, like in "Louise's Ghost" or "The Girl Detective. But more often than not, you get the point.

There's a feminist angle, a whole lot of fantastical elements that are meant to be enjoyed as much as they are to inform about some aspect of society or life. And I recommend her to anyone who thinks fantasy is stale. But I don't know if I would recommend this particular collection in whole. Magic is my go-to, and it will remain that way.

Jun 05, Renee rated it liked it Shelves: Kelly Link is a little Well, more than a little bizarre. At the time, I was a bit uncertain as to whether or not I wanted to be on a weird ride, but in the end, things were mostly good. A couple of stories ran on hence three stars rather than four , but on the whole Link has created a great collection. My favorite was probably Most of My Friends are Two-Thirds Water, a title which tells you absolutely nothing about the story itself.

Link is not afraid to say many things She does it very well, there is nothing risque for the sake of shock value, but still some might find this too graphic or disturbing.

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For everyone else, read it and pick out your own favorite. I will be reading another one by this author. Kelly Link is an American author best known for her short stories, which span a wide variety of genres - most notably magic realism, fantasy and horror. She is a graduate of Columbia University. She has won several awards for her short stories, including th Kelly Link is an American author best known for her short stories, which span a wide variety of genres - most notably magic realism, fantasy and horror.

Link also works as an editor, and is the founder of independant publishing company, Small Beer Press, along with her husband, Gavin Grant. Books by Kelly Link. Trivia About Stranger Things H No trivia or quizzes yet. Quotes from Stranger Things H This is one of the things a woman can do when her lover leaves her.

It's hard on the feet perhaps, but staying at home is hard on the heart, and you weren't quite ready to give up on him yet. Horsetail Falls in Yosemite National Park. Happens once a year for just a few moments. A creature perfectly camouflaged that lives on the beach. Rainbow eucalyptus trees in Australia. They look like someone painted them. The Black Sun in Denmark. Millions of starlings make shapes in the sky.

Here Are 25 Very Strange Things Happening On Earth Right Now You Didn’t Know About

Underwater Waterfall in Mauritius is actually sand being sucked into the ocean. Volcanic lighting come from volcanic explosions causing an electrical storm. After three weeks of hard traveling, you came to the city. No, really, think about it. Think about the little mermaid, who traded in her tail for love, got two legs and two feet, and every step was like walking on knives.

You Must Read These Gleefully Deranged Stories

And where did it get her? That's a rhetorical question, of course. Then there's the girl who put on the beautiful red dancing shoes. The woodsman had to chop her feet off with an axe. There are Cinderella's two stepsisters, who cut off their own toes, and Snow White's stepmother, who danced to death in red-hot iron slippers. The Goose Girl's maid got rolled down a hill in a barrel studded with nails. Travel is hard on the single woman.

There was this one woman who walked east of the sun and then west of the moon, looking for her lover, who had left her because she spilled tallow on his nightshirt. She wore out at least one pair of perfectly good iron shoes before she found him. Take our word for it, he wasn't worth it. What do you think happened when she forgot to put the fabric softener in the dryer? Laundry is hard, travel is harder. You deserve a vacation, but of course you're a little wary. You've read the fairy tales. We've been there, we know. That's why we here at Snow Queen Tours have put together a luxurious but affordable package for you, guaranteed to be easy on the feet and on the budget.

See the world by goosedrawn sleigh, experience the archetypal forest, the winter wonderland; chat with real live talking animals please don't feed them. Our accommodations are three-star: Our tour guides are friendly, knowledgeable, well-traveled, trained by the Snow Queen herself. They know first aid, how to live off the land; they speak three languages fluently. Special discount for older sisters, stepsisters, stepmothers, wicked witches, crones, hags, princesses who have kissed frogs without realizing what they were getting into, etc.

Copyright by Kelly Link. Excerpted by permission of Small Beer Press. Your purchase helps support NPR programming. Accessibility links Skip to main content Keyboard shortcuts for audio player. You Must Read These Gleefully Deranged Stories Reading Kelly Link's writing isn't really like reading at all — it's more like experiencing the strangest dream of your life. Writer Karen Russell says the uncanny short stories are genre-bending, mind-blowing masterpieces of the imagination that draw on fable and myth to achieve an unbearably painful realism.

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