Anthropology

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Summary: Humorous, surreal, cleverly crafted short stories
Review: Anthropology is a collection of humorous, surreal, cleverly crafted short stories with a special twist. Each of the 101 stories by Dan Rhodes is precisely 101 words in length. Each funny, heartbreaking, sweet, and true tale is told economically while capturing the many complex emotions that encompass the notion of love. Here is love in all its aspects, fancies, facets, and guises. Anthropology is one of those anthologies that will be read again and again, clearly establishing Dan Rhodes as a skilled, innovative, and talented writer to be reckoned with and sought out in the future.

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Summary: Short story collection of the year - 2000
Review: Anthropology is the first book by Dan Rhodes. It was published in the UK in early 2000 to little publicity. Seeing a copy in a bookshop I picked it up, read a few of the 101 word stories, purchased; and during the year have been thrusting the book onto friends, and relatives telling them they must read it.

This collection of stories cannot be simply categorised. Their common threads are that each is 101 words long, each deals with an aspect of a relationship (with an increasingly bizarrely named collection of female partners). The stories are very short, dark, cynical, bitter, moving. But, most importantly they are peppered with humour, sometimes gentle, sometimes surreal, sometimes absurd, sometimes harsh. In brief vignettes Rhodes says more about love and masculinity, than is said in far longer works.

It took me one train journey to first read the book through, but this is too indulgent. The stories are as distilled as poetry, should be savoured. Since the first reading I have returned to the book regularly, and will often recall scenarios, brief expressions.

Part Borges, part Calvino, part Brautigan, this short story collection was for me book of the year in 2000.

If you enjoy Calvino's Invisible Cities, Brautigan's Revenge of the Lawn, anything by Borges, or James Meek's Last Orders you will enjoy this book.

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Summary: Oh dear
Review: Chick-lit for would-be intellectual chicks. Sorry, Dan

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Summary: Funny, but should be digested in bits
Review: Dan Rhodes book is peopled by amusing losers, remorseless heartbreakers and the truly clueless. His ability to convey in 101 words what would take many writers several paragraphs is impressive. I laughed out loud to many of the stories and even read a few aloud to a friend. The only drawback is that the stories all focus on dysfunctional relationships often with a cruel and unloving girlfriend as the subject, so the stories began to grate when read together. I figured that out early and decided to only read a few stories before bed. Much better approach and much funnier when taken in small bits.

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Summary: PS
Review: Heck, why SHD I be sorry for you, Dan - you're sitting on a gold mine!

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Summary: Writing
Review: I tried for years to write novels. I had plenty of good ideas, but my writing collapsed after just a few chapters. Thinking I was finished, I stumbled on Anthropology by Dan Rhodes, a brilliant collection of 101 stories, each of 101 words. These transcendental mini-dramas inspired me: why spend months on a novel when I could write several stories in a day? I worked joyously on my Rhodesian gems, and before I knew it I had a book. However, although literary agents loved it, they said it was unpublishable, because it had already been done by Dan Rhodes....

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Summary: a book you'll buy for everyone you know....
Review: This is a book that you will buy for all your friends and they will thank you for doing so every time they see you for the rest of their lives.

Each story is beautifully constructed and, like the finest haiku, none suffer for the imposed word limit. Most are laugh-out-loud funny. Many are thought provoking. All of them make you hate the author for being so bloody talented. And, worryingly, many seem very reminiscent of past relationships of mine!

If you enjoy this, and you will, then you must buy his new collection of stories Don't Tell Me The Truth About Love.

My advice - read this slowly, you'll want it to last forever.

Rating:
Summary: Anthropology
Review: This is an excellent first novel. I made the mistake of reading all 101 stories in one day. It truly is a novel that you want to last forever. Like the other reviewers have stated, read a few stories at a time. It is sad yet, hilariously funny. Even though most of the stories are about bad/dysfunctional relationships I could definitely relate and laugh at the same time. I read a few to a friend over the phone and I heard a few chuckles from him as well. While I was taking a bath, my boyfriend decided to sit next to the tub. I saw that he had MY book in his hands. It goes to tell you that both women AND men will enjoy this book profusely. A must-read.

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Summary: Imaginative triumph
Review: This little book took me about 2 hours to read. Though its small sections do not allow for any sort of plot or character development, the formula works very well. Instead of a story, the reader is treated to little burst from the main character's life. Always focused on his love live(s), they can be funny or tragic, profound or slightly irritating. Their strength is in their simplicity.

Pick this one up you won't be disappointed.