Circling the Drain: Stories

Rating:
Summary: A Vivid, Engrossing Prism -- A Wonderful Fiction Debut
Review: Davis is an eagle-eyed tourguide to the lives and souls of young people who feel 'more stuck than they ever had before' (to paraphrase the author). The stories are by turns melancholy and mordant, exciting and nuanced. Her unblinking gaze and velvety prose makes for an arresting map of 'stuck souls' and the often bizarre routes they take to see clearly or change their lives.

Rating:
Summary: Promising but needs refinement
Review: I found this an interesting debut collection of short stories but was disappointed that some of Davis's writing was spoiled by sloppiness and inattention to detail. In one story, she changes a character's name midway through from Angela to Andrea; in other stories she trips on awkward phrasing and gives us important details too late into the story. Despite these flaws, her work is original and fresh, and many of her characters are compelling, though a bit adolescent at times.

Rating:
Summary: amazing...brilliant...I love this writer
Review: I found this book in a friend's pile, pulled it out, and didn't surface for hours. I can't believe it took me this long to get to it. It's diabolically funny, seeringly honest, and remarkably well-written. This is a must read.