Review: Back Talk by Danielle Lazarin

Back Talk

by Danielle Lazarin

Publisher: Viking Penguin

Pages: 256

Format: book

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  In “Floor Plans,” a woman at the end of her marriage tests her power when she inadvertently befriends the neighbor trying to buy her apartment. In “Appetite,” a sixteen-year old grieving her mother’s death experiences first love and questions how much more heartbreak she and her family can endure. In “Dinosaurs,” a recent widower and a young babysitter help each other navigate how much they have to give—and how much they can take—from the people around them. 

Through stories that are at once empathetic and unexpected, these women and girls defiantly push the boundaries between selfishness and self-possession. Fantastically written with a fresh voice and bold honesty, Back Talk examines the cultural narrowness of what it means to want as a woman.

Kritters Thoughts:  A short story collection that I loved!  I have been trying this year to read more short story collections and so far I haven't enjoyed them that much, but this one I loved!

I feel like most of the stories in the collection took place in New York City and I liked that there was this thread throughout the book.  The stories had characters from all age ranges and all stages in life and they had all sorts of dramas going on and I liked each one in varied degrees.  

I hope that Danielle Lazarin has a few more collections up her sleeve, I liked how she put the stories together.  There were stories of varied length and I liked the order that they were presented.  It was just the right collection from beginning to end.


Rating: definitely a good read, but can't read two in a row

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Viking Penguin.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.