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Review
"A major new talent. . . .""How to Breathe Underwater""is a dark and beautiful book." -"The New York Times Book Review
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"These stories are without exception clear-eyed, compassionate and deeply moving. . . . Even her most bitter characters have a gift, the sharp wit of envy. This, Orringer's first book, is breathtakingly good, truly felt and beautifully delivered." -"The Guardian"
"Orringer's engaging wit, her eye for social detail, her ear for patterns of speech and thought, and her insights into human nature proclaim her a writer to be reckoned with." -"Los Angeles Times"
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""Captivating. . . . Orringer limns the ordinary, terrifying time between childhood and maturity so skillfully." -"San Francisco Chronicle
""Pure gems, rollicking along with scintillating prose and surety
"
"These stories are without exception clear-eyed, compassionate and deeply moving. . . . Even her most bitter characters have a gift, the sharp wit of envy. This, Orringer's first book, is breathtakingly good, truly felt and beautifully delivered." -"The Guardian"
"Orringer's engaging wit, her eye for social detail, her ear for patterns of speech and thought, and her insights into human nature proclaim her a writer to be reckoned with." -"Los Angeles Times"
"
""Captivating. . . . Orringer limns the ordinary, terrifying time between childhood and maturity so skillfully." -"San Francisco Chronicle
""Pure gems, rollicking along with scintillating prose and surety
Daily Telegraph
'An amazing debut. Conjures the same exhilaration I felt on reading Melissa Bank’s The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing’
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
It was Thanksgiving Day and hot, because this was New Orleans; they were driving uptown to have dinner with strangers. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
It was Thanksgiving Day and hot, because this was New Orleans; they were driving uptown to have dinner with strangers. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
21 of 21 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I came across this book while browsing in a local bookshop, and later picked it up on 3 for 2, more or less on impulse. I have to say, I'm really glad I did; it's a wonderfully written collection of short stories by a first-time author.
I don't normally read short stories, but each of the ones in this collection is a gem; while there are certain similarities between them (among others: a female narrator/main character, often set against a Jewish background, featuring someone who is somewhat of an outsider), they're far from 'samey'. Each is a distinctive portrait of fundamental human emotions or conditions: grief, loss, jealousy, childhood, adolescence...
I couldn't believe this was written by a first-time published author; the stories are so descriptive, without being heavy-handed. You really feel like you're watching the story unfold naturally; the characters and situations are so lifelike and real, it almost seems like she's reporting rather than making things up.
Lovely stuff.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
What an utterly sweet and completely involving book this is. The kind of book that makes you feel 7 or 10 or 14 years old again. The kind of book that brings your own childhood racing back because that kind of confused innocence is the same whether you're a jewish girl in New Orleans or a catholic boy in Ireland.
The writing is simple but so evocative the stories already feel like actual events rather than someone else's fiction. It's 9 stories you'll want to share with your favourite people, and you'll wish you'd written them because you could have. This kind of stuff happened to everyone. I loved this book, it made me smile and broke my heart and if you've half a soul you're gonna love it too.
The writing is simple but so evocative the stories already feel like actual events rather than someone else's fiction. It's 9 stories you'll want to share with your favourite people, and you'll wish you'd written them because you could have. This kind of stuff happened to everyone. I loved this book, it made me smile and broke my heart and if you've half a soul you're gonna love it too.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Each of the nine stories in this collection is captivating. Orringer has managed to write the most evocative stories with a true voice. The depth of feelings - grief, despair, spite, bitterness and vulnerability (amongst others) and her ability to develop her characters and make them three dimensional so quickly, are what makes these stories so powerful. She has the lightest touch and a great eye for detail. You can't help but get involved with the characters in each story, which for me is unusual in short stories, which often leave me feeling short changed. This book is a gem and I would highly recommend it.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Growing up is hard to do...
Like other reviewers, I was most impressed with the quality of the stories. Orringer perfectly inhabits the minds of the young people whose stories she tells. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Chaucer
Good stories
Well written and good variety - just none of them stick in the memory as opposed to ZZ Packer's - Drinking Coffee Elsewhere or David Constantine's brilliant - Under the Dam. Read more
Published 16 months ago by andrew pullan
brilliant and unsettling
I was amazed by the unsettling power of Orringer's prose. These stories are gripping, the descriptions cats-eye clear. Read more
Published on 24 Feb 2009 by Selina
Childhood Traumas
An extraordinary collection of short stories filled with tragedies and traumas that the book's young characters endure, such as tales of a drowning, a premature baby and a cancer... Read more
Published on 27 Dec 2007 by kehs
Much more than a collection of embarrassing moments....
Whatever you want to call it: teenage rebellion, sibling rivalry, first love, growing pains.... it is a popular source for American literature (films, songs, etc.). Read more
Published on 24 July 2007 by stevieby
So glad it found me!
I probably wouldn't have bought this had I known it was a short story collection but I'm SO glad I did. Read more
Published on 6 April 2007 by maria1971
A real find
I intially chose this book because the cover appealed to me. This novel was dark in places and leaves you wanting to read more to understand the outline of the short stories... Read more
Published on 4 April 2006
beautifully written book
I didn't realise it was a short story collection until I got to what was the end of the first story. Read more
Published on 19 Oct 2005
Enjoyable
These short stories were a really enjoyable read. All the stories focus on childhood and growing up, with issues like illness, friendship and grief. Read more
Published on 4 Sep 2005 by R. K. Harvey
Enchanting and moving
This is such a well written book and one of the best I've read for a while. There are elements in each story that reach out and remind you how funny, sweet, embarrassing and also... Read more
Published on 20 July 2005 by Penny M
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