Summer Days and Summer Nights » Anthology Review

Ah! Summer Days and Summer Nights! I've been waiting for this anthology ever since it was announced as the companion of My True Love Gave To Me. (See my review of the first anthology HERE) Now, having read Summer Days and Summer Nights, I can't say it lived up to all of my expectations.  It's like the authors didn't get the memo that the cover would be bright yellow and happy.  Many of the entries were quite dark, and while this wasn't always a bad thing, it did make for a puzzling collection, one that was starkly contrasted with the subtitle, Twelve Love Stories. 



Head, Scales, Tongue, Tail by Leigh Bardugo [rating stars="two-stars"]

Frankly, I'm disappointed.  Short stories are often chances for authors to get more craft-y than usual, but Bardugo was incoherent in this piece.  I do think there was enormous potential here regarding the subject matter of water deities who love human girls, but the lack of clarity and mismatched elements kept the writing from being great or even likable.



The End of Love by Nina LaCour [rating stars="two-half-stars"]

LaCour's story about a gay geometry pro with divorcing parents had a glum tone, which makes sense because the main character is depressed.  As for the writing, it was decent, although strangely non-compelling.  There was nothing there that made me sit up and take notice, nothing that made me laugh, and there's nothing that will stick with me.



Last Stand at the Cinegore by Libba Bray [rating stars="one-half-stars"]

This piece uses the horror movie genre as a doorway to discuss what we fear the most in our lives.  I think that Libba Bray must be afraid of short story structure.  She had a decent beginning, a horribly drawn-out muddle, and a brief end. There were too many characters, themes, subplots, and lines of wack-a-doo dialogue going on in this story and it all got tangled up in a big, boring mess.  It reminded me quite a bit of Bray's weirdly award-winning novel, Going Bovine, a book that could have benefitted from having 400+ pages removed.



Sick Pleasure by Francesca Lia Block [rating stars="three-stars"]

This story was the second I read. (I read the stories randomly.) I loved how the prose evoked a different, smokier era, yet still managed to seem timeless.  Sure enough, I googled a reference to a band that the main character sees live and it turned out to be The Go-Go's singing We've Got the Beat.  So this story takes place in or around 1980.

The piece follows "I" and her brief romance with the mysterious "A." The story doesn't have the happiest of endings, but I suppose it was very true to life, in a way.



In Ninety Minutes, Turn North by Stephanie Perkins [rating stars="three-half-stars"]

To my great surprise, Perkins revisited her characters from her first anthology, My True Love Gave To Me — Marigold and North.  Remember how cute that first story was?  Well, in this installment, Perkins gets a bit darker.  Marigold and North have broken up.  The story begins when Marigold tracks down North at his new job as a mountain train conductor and tour guide.

A darker, moodier North was present in this piece, and Marigold is more circumspect as well, calculating how she'll keep herself from starving on her tight artist's budget.  It sounds bleak, but this is Perkins we're talking about. She always pulls out a happy ending.



Souvenirs by Tim Federle [rating stars="three-half-stars"]

Yay! It's the M/M romance of the anthology! This story is about Matty, whose summer workplace romance is scheduled to end in a few hours.  Yes, scheduled. Throughout the piece, Matty thinks about Kieth, his boyfriend, and stream-of-consciousness reflects on what their brief relationship meant.  There is an amazing pizza metaphor that I loved.



Inertia by Veronica Roth [rating stars="five-stars"]

So good! This short story reminded me strongly of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, one of my favorite movies of all time. It has a bit of a sci-fi twist, but is really about human connection and poignancy of memory. It was quite beautiful and had me tearing up.  I'll definitely be reading this one over again. I call this story the strongest in the Summer Days and Summer Nights collection.



Love Is the Last Resort by Jon Skovron [rating stars="half-star"]

I don't get it.  I think this piece was supposed to be arty? At my most generous I can say that it was reminiscent of a Wes Anderson creation.  From what I could make out, the story was about a resort owned by a rich man and run by a teenage staff, populated with rich patrons.  They all spoke in a stiff, artificial style and did absolutely nothing. I think that Skovron was so caught up in being literary and different here that he choked himself. This was a dull story and I did not care for it. It is the weakest installment in Summer Days and Summer Nights.



Good Luck and Farewell by Brandy Colbert  [rating stars="three-stars"]

The story is about a young woman whose closest friend in the world, her cousin, is moving away with her girlfriend.  This was an okay work, but with an unfortunately insta-lovey romance. There were some lines that made me cringe with how underdeveloped the feelings being announced were. However, the piece features racially and sexually diverse characters, which was a big bonus.



Brand New Attraction by Cassandra Clare [rating stars="three-half-stars"]

This story by Clare really embraced the spirit of the anthology, keeping with the theme, yet still staying true to the author's signature style. Clare chose to write about a carnival owner's daughter, and, of course, demons.  The details in this piece were highly imaginative and there were some really laugh-out-loud moments that I enjoyed.

My criticism has to do with the ending.  I felt like matters were wrapped up way too quickly and conveniently.  Overall though, this was a strong effort on Clare's part.



A Thousand Ways This Could All Go Wrong by Jennifer E. Smith [rating stars="five-stars"]

Now this is what I'm talking about! A summer story that's as cute as it is deep! This piece is about a girl who has a crush on a very different kind of boy and works up the courage to ask him out. Their first date doesn't go as expected. I seriously loved this story. The characters were distinct and unique and the writing had great flow.



The Map of Tiny Perfect Things by Lev Grossman [rating stars="five-stars"]

What a great closing story! It was a highly unique premise and had great little moments scattered throughout.  The ending was hilarious AND moving. The piece is about a boy who gets stuck in time and relives August 4 over and over again.  The voice of the author reminded me quite strongly of John Green, who's style I do enjoy.

The Overall Score of Summer Days and Summer Nights...

Well, I've read all of the stories.  I've identified all the little characters on the front cover.  I cried a little and I laughed a little.  Overall, I give the anthology 3.5 stars.  There was a moment there when I read several bad pieces in a row and thought the worst, but standouts from Roth, Grossman, and Smith saved the day.

What about you, readers? Does reading anthologies make you feel smarter?

My True Love Gave to Me » Review

I'm on an anthology roll, finishing up the horror collection, Slasher Girls and Monster Boys, and heading into the decidedly more romantic My True Love Gave to Me.  Whenever I was in bookstores last winter, this book was being clutched and cooed over, and I believe it did very well for itself.  Is there any way we can check book profits, like a boxofficemojo.com type site for books? Anyway, Stephanie Perkins, a big, big name in YA publishing, serves as the editor for this collection of romantic, holiday stories.  Let's jump in!

Midnights » Rainbow Rowell » 4 stars

"It was cold out on the patio, under the deck."

The anthology doesn't pull any punches, starting out with the master of "aww,"  Rainbow Rowell.  Rowell doesn't disappoint fans of straight-forward romance with Midnights.  She delivers a cute will-they-won't-they that hops across the years.  Depending on your taste, this story will be a winner or even a little limp, however. There is no edge to this story — it's as blunt as the edges of a sugar cookie, and just as sweet.

The Lady and the Fox » Kelly Link » 3 stars

"Someone is in the garden."

Kelly Link writes a modern day fairy tale, as suggested by the story's fable-ish title.  Miranda's mother is in prison, so she spends every Christmas as part of the crowd at her godmother's Downton Abbey-esque, family estate.  There are plenty of nooks and crannies to explore and a garden that holds a magical captive.  If anything, this story was a tad unfocused, hopping between Miranda's growth into adulthood and a somewhat unfeasible romance.

Angels In the Snow » Matt de la Peña » 4.5 stars

"I didn't tell anyone how dire shit had become."

I was surprised when I enjoyed this story so much, because I've never heard of Matt de la Peña.  This just goes to show that gems lie in wait in anthologies, despite the name recognition factor of the authors.  This story follows Shy, a Mexican-American college freshman at NYU, who's cat sitting during his Christmas break, but can't afford to feed himself.  He's slowly starving when the girl in the apartment upstairs comes to the rescue.  It's a great story.  My only complaint is the ending hits a bit of a bland note, when the beginning and body of the work were full of life.

Polaris Is Where You'll Find Me » Jenny Han » 2 stars

"Elves."

Polaris was, unfortunately, my least favorite story in the anthology.  Told from the perspective of Santa's adopted daughter, readers must endure a vapid, boy-crazy narrator and her substance-less quest for adolescent like.  A definite low-point for the collection.

It's a Yuletide Miracle, Charlie Brown » Stephanie Perkins » 3 stars

"Marigold loved this Christmas tree lot."

I expected quite a bit more from Perkins, one of the queens of contemporary YA, but Yuletide Miracle wasn't a bad installment.  Our two characters meet, spontaneously hang out, exchange a lot of dialogue, and get together all in the space of a few hours.  Maybe it goes to show how effortless Perkins' writing is, but this story felt like it was whipped out quickly.  Maybe that's not the case at all, but I didn't get that slavishly crafted feel that other stories in this anthology gave off.

Your Temporary Santa » David Levithan » 4 stars

"It's hard not to feel just a little bit fat when your boyfriend asks you to be Santa Claus."

With a killer first line, Levithan delivers the laughs in his short story, which, of course, features our only gay couple.  Our narrator is freaking hilarious in his earnest attempts to make his new boyfriend's little sister believe in Santa.  My only complaint is that Connor, the boyfriend, has reduced pagetime to make way for the enormous, nervous introspection of our main character, who is never named.

Krampuslauf » Holly Black » 4.5 stars

"Fairmont's second annual Krampuslauf felt a little bit like a parade and a lot like a zombie crawl, except instead of the undead, we were dressed up like Saint Nick's creepy buddy, the Krampus."

I expected Holly Black's installment to be a little weird, and she didn't let me down.  Her story reminded me quite a bit of The Coldest Girl in Coldtown, with supernaturals crashing a teenage rager.  Although, I don't know whether to give points or take away points for the weirdest line in the entire anthology, which details our protagonist's dream about being erotically flayed by Satan. Yeah, you read that right.

What the Hell Have You Done, Sophie Roth? ’ Gayle Forman » 2.5 stars

"In the fifteen weeks since starting her freshman year at the University of Bumfuckville, Sophie had counted at least a dozen What the Hell Have You Done, Sophie Roth? moments."

Forman, another queen of contemporary YA, makes a bit of a misstep with Sophie Roth.  There's a decidedly negative tone in the story.  I understand that our main character has a cranky personality, but it brought the holiday cheer factor down quite a bit.

Beer Buckets and Baby Jesus » Myra Mcentire » 2 stars

"The whole mess started when I lit the church on fire."

Mcentire's story started out strong, reminding me distinctly of my childhood favorite, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever.  Unfortunately, the dialogue become somewhat stilted and preachy as the minister and minister's daughter deliver speech after speech to the overly receptive town troublemaker.

Welcome to Christmas, CA » Kiersten White » 3 stars

"If you do a search for "US cities named Christmas" (which, get a life, weirdo), you'll get five main results.

White's main character, Maria, is just as crabby as Forman's S0phie Roth, but is counterbalanced by a love interest who practically embodies the spirit of Christmas.  What this story does very well is show how a gloomy situation can turn around when viewed from a different perspective.

Star of  Bethlehem » Ally Carter » 2.5 stars

"As Christmas stories go, this one isn't as sad as it could be."

This story started out with a great hook — two girls switching their plane tickets — but the Disney Channel ending was out of control.  I like stories with a bit more grit to them.

The Girl Who Woke the Dreamer » Laini Taylor » 5 stars

"It is the custom on the Isle of Feathers for young men to leave small gifts for their sweethearts on each of the twenty-four days of Advent."

How totally excellent that the anthology ends on its high note.  Laini Taylor's imagination continues to bust its seams in a story that indirectly touches the holiday theme.  In Taylor's fictitious island, a fire-and-brimstone Christianity has replaced polytheistic, pagan beliefs.  Neve, an impoverished young woman, finds herself in dire straits when targeted as a prospective wife by the island's nasty, evil preacher.  She prays to the island's old gods and receives an unexpected answer. There were so many lines that I loved, in this lyrical, sexy tale, that funnily enough, kind of shits upon traditional Christian Christmas.

Overall, not as strong an anthology as Slasher Girls, but still solidly enjoyable.  Because I'm continuing on my anthology streak, I'll be reading Geektastic next, edited by mah gurl, Holly Black. Tune in next time.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500"] I was trying really hard to match the skaters on the covers with the romantic pairings in each story, but damn if Laini Taylor's god, Wisha, didn't mess up the uniformity of the figures. Credit goes to another source » click on pic to go to there.[/caption]