Customer Reviews

California Uncovered: Stories For The 21st Century

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Someone loaned me this book on a backpacking trip and was I surprised to find such rich reading fare. The stories all focus on some aspect of life in California. The authors - a mix of old and new- are well chosen. This book made me remember how entertaining the short story genre can be. It defiinitely has a place in this hurried world we occupy. I think this is a higly worthwhile read.

A collection of short stories, excepts from novels, and a few poems sounded like a nice selection. I thought it would be something I could easily pick up and put down. Each story is about someone living in California - almost all told from the point of view of immigrants and from different time periods. I thought the idea was good, but I found that I missed the feel of short stories. Only one of the excerpts from a novel left me feeling satisfied.

I did find a couple of quotes -
"At some point in your story grief presents itself. Now, for the first time, your room is empty, not merely unoccupied."
- D.J. Waldie, from Holy Land

"There bodies don't work, their minds have wandered off to meet old friends and new horizons, and their own families treat them like they are idiots."
- Laila Halaby, The American Dream

"Money, though, is an illusion with green faces. I think this is so money has a personality - like the way our dieties end up with traits like the rest of us. People create money then they let money create them."
- Luis J. Rodriguez , "My Ride, My Revolution" from The Republic of East L.A.

If nothing else, I think I found a couple new authors. I am curious to read the rest of the story. I look forward to discussing it at book club.