Lust and Other Stories

I really enjoyed this collection of simple, soft-punch-packing stories about relationships. Every young woman should read the title story, which excellently describes, debunks, and de-glamourizes the compulsive, sexual self-objectification engaged in by so many young women. A tightly written, solid collection, and the only Susan Minot book I really enjoy a lot.

"Sparks" is probably the closest thing to my life that I've ever read. Really, it's wonderfully written. Her short fiction is great, provocative, intricate, significant, and wholly relatable. It's also very smart without being pretentious.

The book is worth a read for it's title story. It's a story worthy of the full five stars and one that I consider to be a must read for every aspiring fiction writer out there. Even if it doesn't become your favorite, Minot's tricks with point of view and narrative are worth looking at. I read this collection about ten years ago and the fact that the title selection is the only one that stays with me, says a lot about the other stories. I do recommend this, though, if only for "Lust."

ok short stories - kinky

The author of Monkeys and Evening focuses her observant eye and lyrical voice on the delicate emotional negotiations of young New Yorkers. As in a series of deceptively simple watercolors, these stories uncover small moments that yield larger truths--about the ways in which women and men come together and come apart again, about the disappointments and hopes of lovers who know what they want but don't always know how to keep. A deeply poignant meditation on the nature of desire and loss.