Intriguing and quirky, if sometimes underwhelming, tales.
This collection of short stories explores the bonds between humans and animals.
The tales offered here center on a Polish family and are recounted by Aldek, who, at the opening of the book, is a young boy with conflicting feelings about animals. The volume is divided into four sections. The first, “Poland Stories,” provides a glimpse of the narrator’s younger years growing up under Communism. “Paw, A Zakopane Dog” tells of a cunning family pet who steals a steak from the local cardiologist. Meanwhile, in “Oskar Weasel,” the narrator plans to save a weasel from two boys who pit it against a dog for sport. The book’s second part, “Roxy Stories,” finds Aldek living in America, a husband and father who, in “The Adoption,” surreptitiously acquires a dog called Roxy for the family while his wife is away. The third section, “Marta Stories,” focuses on Aldek’s wife; “Mikimoto Pearls” features the narrator searching for a landmark anniversary gift. The final segment, “Philadelphia Stories,” contains assorted animal-related anecdotes, such as “Sojourner Possum,” in which the unwanted marsupial invades the narrator’s vegetable garden during the Covid-19 pandemic. Roman’s stories are generally lighthearted, with the Polish author displaying a wry wit. When gathering book titles to teach his family about dog ownership, Aldek amusingly includes “Old Yeller…The Incredible Journey, even Stephen King’s Cujo—so they could learn the amazing loyalty and ability of dogs, but also know to stay away from rabid Saint Bernards.” The opening tales demonstrate greater depth, capturing family life intertwined with broader sociopolitical commentary: “The ray of sunshine disappeared in two years as the Party disempowered Solidarity and returned Poland to a Communist gloom.” As the volume progresses, the storylines become increasingly bland and the link to animals more tenuous. In “Mikimoto Pearls,” the author tells readers: “An oyster is definitely an animal….You’ll have to settle for an oyster.” But in “God’s Revelation to Jan the Human,” a laborious story about a contractor with a gambling problem fixing a leaking pipe, Roman concedes: “I am including one human animal in this bestiary.” Despite some humorous moments, this collection veers disappointingly off course as it struggles to hold the audience’s attention.
Intriguing and quirky, if sometimes underwhelming, tales.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: 979-8-9857500-0-3
Page Count: 293
Publisher: Chestnut Hill Press
Review Posted Online: June 14, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.
A lifetime’s worth of letters combine to portray a singular character.
Sybil Van Antwerp, a cantankerous but exceedingly well-mannered septuagenarian, is the titular correspondent in Evans’ debut novel. Sybil has retired from a beloved job as chief clerk to a judge with whom she had previously been in private legal practice. She is the divorced mother of two living adult children and one who died when he was 8. She is a reader of novels, a gardener, and a keen observer of human nature. But the most distinguishing thing about Sybil is her lifelong practice of letter writing. As advancing vision problems threaten Sybil’s carefully constructed way of life—in which letters take the place of personal contact and engagement—she must reckon with unaddressed issues from her past that threaten the house of cards (letters, really) she has built around herself. Sybil’s relationships are gradually revealed in the series of letters sent to and received from, among others, her brother, sister-in-law, children, former work associates, and, intriguingly, literary icons including Joan Didion and Larry McMurtry. Perhaps most affecting is the series of missives Sybil writes but never mails to a shadowy figure from her past. Thoughtful musings on the value and immortal quality of letters and the written word populate one of Sybil’s notes to a young correspondent while other messages are laugh-out-loud funny, tinged with her characteristic blunt tartness. Evans has created a brusque and quirky yet endearing main character with no shortage of opinions and advice for others but who fails to excavate the knotty difficulties of her own life. As Sybil grows into a delayed self-awareness, her letters serve as a chronicle of fitful growth.
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.Pub Date: May 6, 2025
ISBN: 9780593798430
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2025
A dark and twisty look at just how far one woman is willing to go to find inspiration.
A struggling writer finds an unexpected muse when a mysterious man shows up at her cabin.
Petra Rose used to pump out a bestselling book every six months, but then the adaptation happened—that is, the disastrous film adaptation of her most famous book. The movie changed the book’s storyline so egregiously that fans couldn’t forgive her, and the ensuing harassment sent Petra into hiding and gave her a serious case of writer’s block. Petra’s one hope is her solo writing retreat at a remote cabin, where she can escape the distractions of real life and focus on her next book, a story about a woman having an affair with a cop. When officer Nathaniel Saint shows up at her cabin door, inspiration comes flooding back. Much like the character from Petra’s book, Saint is married, and he’s willing to be Petra’s muse, helping her get into her characters’ heads. Petra’s book is practically writing itself, but is the game she’s playing a little too dangerous? Does she know when to stop—and, more importantly, is Saint willing to stop? Hoover is no stranger to controversial movie adaptations and internet backlash, but she clarifies in a note to readers that she’s “just a writer writing about a writer” and that no further connections to her own life are contained in these pages—which is a good thing, because the book takes some horrifying twists and turns. Petra finds herself inexplicably attracted to Saint, even as she describes him as “such an asshole,” and her feelings for him veer between love and hate. The novel serves as a meta commentary on the dark romance genre—as Petra puts it, “Even though, as readers, we wouldn’t want to live out some of the fantasies we read about, it doesn’t mean we don’t enjoy reading those things.”
A dark and twisty look at just how far one woman is willing to go to find inspiration.Pub Date: Jan. 13, 2026
ISBN: 9781662539374
Page Count: -
Publisher: Montlake
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2025
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
