3.0
Love Is a Four-Letter Word
ByPublisher Description
From Junot Díaz, Lynda Barry, Gary Shteyngart, and Kate Christensen to popular up-and-comers like Dan Kennedy, Wendy McClure, and Brock Clarke, Love Is a Four-Letter Word is a dead-on contemporary collection of true stories of seduction, heartbreak, and regret. Fearlessly revealing their shattered hearts and crushed egos; their indiscretions and indignities; their delusions, desperation, and disappointments, these talented writers capture the dark side of love in prose ranging from comic to poetic, poignant to cringe-inducing. Also featuring three cartoon/ graphic essays as a sixteen-page color insert, this anthology is perfect for anyone who’s ever loved and lost.
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Meet readers like you in the Fable For You feed, designed to build bookish communities5 Reviews
3.0
Caleb_Reads
Created over 3 years agoShare
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“a few stories stood out, but overall it was pretty lackluster and disappointing. bonus points for including gay and trans content, though.”
Crystal
Created over 11 years agoShare
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“Kind of perfect timing to read this book. There were some pieces that left me grateful that none of the break ups in my life have been that crazy. Then there were pieces that were sad and poignant and left me feeling somewhat voyeuristic.
Definitely a mood-specific book. I couldn't have read this if I were in the throes of a new and blooming relationship.”
Space Trash
Created almost 12 years agoShare
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ciaraxyerra
Created about 15 years agoShare
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“while jared & i were in boston for the holidays, we stopped by the harvard bookstore to do some window shopping. my feet were really tired, so i pulled this book off the shelf & sat down on the padded bench by the graphic novels to read & rest. i wound up getting really absorbed. it was pretty smart for the editor to lead off with junot diaz's story about his girlfriend finding out he cheated on her right before they left to travel together in the dominican republic, helping out some volunteer dentists & later attacking a decorative turtle shell mounted on the wall of their motel. that was probably the best story in the book. i also really enjoyed lynda barry's comic (which i choose to believe is about ira glass, the smarmy bastard), but it's also in her book, 100 demons, so it wasn't really a huge selling point. 100 demons is probably better, because it's ALL lynda barry, with no boring stories about ex-fiancees dying of cirrhosis. i didn't come for tales of wow, i came for tales of LOL at other people's expense! there's nothing funny about people dying without allowing their loved ones closure.
but i was psyched about the emily flake comic. that woman is a comedy genius! i love how much expression she gets on her characters with such economical lines. that was probably why i bought the book, & i scarfed it all up on the plane ride back to kansas city. usually anthologies like this are fun for a little while & then they lose their luster because they're padded out with a bunch of filler only tangentially related to the topic at hand (in this case, shitty relationships & bad break-ups--possibly my #1 most favorite topic of conversation, even though it's been years since i've had anything to contribute). you can tell who got the call for submissions & went digging in their files for something already written that they could use as a publishing credit. even though i am sure that happened with this anthology too, i really enjoyed it. folks who don't enjoy relationships-based gallows humor & aren't as amused by other people's emotional pain as i am probably won't love it as much, but it was right up my alley. oh, except for the very weird 9/11-based story. what the hell was that? the writing was good, but...seriously? you dated some dude for three months & had panic attacks about 9/11, even though you live in chicago, & the dude sounded like a total douche & that was your worst break-up? what are you, 23? it gets worse, trust me.”
LiannaMarie83
Created over 15 years agoShare
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