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A review by jay_sy
Song for the Unraveling of the World: Stories by Brian Evenson
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
3.0
Song for the Unraveling of the World by Brian Evenson is a collection of unsettling short stories.
Thoughts while reading:
-I wish the first story had been longer. The imagery was unsettling but it felt like there could have been more, if only to delve into the emotions of the mother
-I liked “Leaking Out.” Perhaps because it was longer and felt like it had a bit more substance. The theme of something or some place you can’t escape has always been disturbing to me
-“Song for the Unraveling of the World” was intensely unsettling. This one has had the biggest emotional impact so far, and I’m so disgusted with the narrator and how he basically abrogates all responsibility for what happened to his daughter
-I like how in “Sisters,” the point of view of the story is from those who possess people/things rather than the one being possessed. There were moments when they misinterpreted things that made me laugh and the end was also a bit shocking.
- ‘Room Tone’ had an unsettling atmosphere, though it also didn't stand out
- A lot of the other stories have elements of weirdness but ‘A Disappearance’ was mundane in comparison. I feel like the stories would benefit from having more emotional depth. They all feel a little remote, like there isn't much to connect to
-I’ve read other short stories with the same basic concept as ‘Wanderlust’ and I always love the idea (in that it horrifies me)
-I really like ‘Lord of the Vats’ so far. I wish there was more sci-fi horror
- ‘Glasses’ was actually unsettling, though I don't know why the old man would ever sell anyone something like that
-I liked how in ‘Menno,’ you could see the narrator slowly losing his mind and blaming someone (probably) innocent for his troubles until driven to do something insane
- ‘Line of Sight’ was unsettling. I tend to like longer stories since they can feel meatier
- ‘Trigger Warnings’ was pretty amusing
Overall, some of the stories had interesting imagery and while I like horror that deals with the inexplicable, I also like stories that feel a little more grounded (if only to provide contrast to emphasize the weirdness of what's going on). A lot of the stories made me go "hm, okay," but didn't leave a deeper impression than that. Overall, I would give it a 3 out of 5
Thoughts while reading:
-I wish the first story had been longer. The imagery was unsettling but it felt like there could have been more, if only to delve into the emotions of the mother
-I liked “Leaking Out.” Perhaps because it was longer and felt like it had a bit more substance. The theme of something or some place you can’t escape has always been disturbing to me
-“Song for the Unraveling of the World” was intensely unsettling. This one has had the biggest emotional impact so far, and I’m so disgusted with the narrator and how he basically abrogates all responsibility for what happened to his daughter
-I like how in “Sisters,” the point of view of the story is from those who possess people/things rather than the one being possessed. There were moments when they misinterpreted things that made me laugh and the end was also a bit shocking.
- ‘Room Tone’ had an unsettling atmosphere, though it also didn't stand out
- A lot of the other stories have elements of weirdness but ‘A Disappearance’ was mundane in comparison. I feel like the stories would benefit from having more emotional depth. They all feel a little remote, like there isn't much to connect to
-I’ve read other short stories with the same basic concept as ‘Wanderlust’ and I always love the idea (in that it horrifies me)
-I really like ‘Lord of the Vats’ so far. I wish there was more sci-fi horror
- ‘Glasses’ was actually unsettling, though I don't know why the old man would ever sell anyone something like that
-I liked how in ‘Menno,’ you could see the narrator slowly losing his mind and blaming someone (probably) innocent for his troubles until driven to do something insane
- ‘Line of Sight’ was unsettling. I tend to like longer stories since they can feel meatier
- ‘Trigger Warnings’ was pretty amusing
Overall, some of the stories had interesting imagery and while I like horror that deals with the inexplicable, I also like stories that feel a little more grounded (if only to provide contrast to emphasize the weirdness of what's going on). A lot of the stories made me go "hm, okay," but didn't leave a deeper impression than that. Overall, I would give it a 3 out of 5