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Barbara the Slut and Other People Hardcover – August 4, 2015

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Lauren Holmes (Author)
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Lauren Holmes (Author)
3.7 out of 5 stars 74 customer reviews
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Product Details

  • Hardcover: 272 pages
  • Publisher: Riverhead Books (August 4, 2015)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1594633789
  • ISBN-13: 978-1594633782
  • Product Dimensions: 5.7 x 0.9 x 8.3 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (74 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #141,986 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Top Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsSpeaking candidly and creatively about sex and growing up
By Bookreporter on August 24, 2015
Format: Hardcover
Television shows like HBO’s “Girls” and Comedy Central’s “Broad City” have gotten a lot of media coverage for their portrayal of young women who are unashamed to talk (often in plainly raunchy terms) about sex. Now debut author Lauren Holmes adds her voice and characters to the zeitgeist with BARBARA THE SLUT AND OTHER PEOPLE, a collection of 10 stories that often touch, implicitly or explicitly, on what young women are thinking and talking about when it comes to sex.

Among the book's strongest entries are the opening story, “How Am I Supposed to Talk to You?” and the title story, which closes the collection. In the first one, a young woman --- who has come out as a lesbian to her dad years earlier --- travels to Mexico on the advice of her girlfriend, hoping to break the news about her sexual orientation to her mostly estranged mother, who fails to see her as the adult woman she is. In “Barbara the Slut,” a Princeton-bound high school girl who has decided never to sleep with the same boy more than once reveals the reasons for her lack of emotional commitment.

Other stories depict young women trying to navigate the rocky waters of the “real world,” including the simultaneously confusing and alluring realm of sexual intimacy. In “Desert Hearts,” a recent law school graduate who has moved to San Francisco with her more ambitious boyfriend poses as a lesbian to get a job at an adult toy store. In “Pearl and the Swiss Guy Fall in Love,” a young woman realizes that she has made a horrible mistake when she lets an international student get too familiar with her domestic life. And in “I Will Crawl to Raleigh if I Have To,” a young lady on a family vacation from hell just wants to escape so she can finally break up with her boyfriend and move on with her life.Read more ›
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5.0 out of 5 starsIt's my favorite new book in a while
By M. Miller on September 20, 2015
Format: Hardcover
Ms. Holmes just knows how to write. I got this book yesterday and downed it in 24 hours. It's my favorite new book in a while. Holmes's characterizations are fabulous, turns of phrases marvelous, and the themes are subtle but clear. I'm twice the age of most of the characters in the book but could completely relate to them. I can't wait for her next collection, or better yet, a novel or three. Oh, and did I mention funny? Especially "My Humans" - animal lovers will adore it.
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3.0 out of 5 starsReally enjoyed a few stories, others less than compelling. Overall an okay read.
By C'est Moi on July 19, 2015
Format: Hardcover Vine Customer Review of Free Product ( What's this? )
I had no preconceived notions about this book; I just knew that is was a collection of short stories and picked it out, so I had no expectations high or low. The stories are mostly centered around college students or recent college graduates, with a couple of exceptions. The theme seems to be that all of these characters are still figuring themselves out and pivotal moments in their young lives are shown. I found a few stories to be funny, some were so-so, and some were just dry, but overall it's an easy read with realistic situations and would make a nice beach read.

My favorites were "Desert Hearts", where a law school graduate ends up working in a sex toy store, much to the chagrin of her overbearing father; "New Humans", which chronicles a young couple's relationship through a wacky dog's eyes; and of course "Barbara the Slut", which is about high school slut-shaming and general bullying. Out of all of the stories, "New Girls" seemed the most out of place in this book of young adults and sex because it's about a 6th grader adjusting a new country. It didn't fit. Most of the stories don't have much in the way of resolution or epiphany. I would say it's a decent read, although not likely to be reread.
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4.0 out of 5 starsthe jacket of this book is amazing. How fun is it to be reading a ...
By caron.elizabeth on December 14, 2015
Format: Hardcover Verified Purchase
First, the jacket of this book is amazing. How fun is it to be reading a book that has a bad word shamelessly as the focal point?! The stories are easy to relate to and have enough diversity to keep the reader entertained. The book covers all ranges of emotions and captures some very raw moments that people face on a daily basis. I would recommend this read as an easy, carefree read for an airplane ride or day on the beach.
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5.0 out of 5 starsWonderful collection
By G. Dawson on June 26, 2015
Format: Hardcover Vine Customer Review of Free Product ( What's this? )
I really enjoyed this collection of stories. Holmes writes with a particular type of acerbic humor that is difficult to pull off, but she does it over and over again. Here’s an example from the opening paragraph of “Desert Hearts,” one of my favorite stories in the collection: “When I moved to San Francisco with my fiancé, he started practicing law and I started selling toys. I was supposed to start practicing law too, but I didn’t have the heart. I almost didn’t even have the heart to take the bar, but I found it when my dad threatened to cut me off. And then he cut me off right afterward anyway, because he said it was time to get a job, and if I didn’t want either of the jobs he had found for me, I was on my g--dd---n own.” You want to keep reading, don’t you? I did, and I raced through this entire collection in about two days. I hope Holmes is working on her debut novel.
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5.0 out of 5 starsSimple, terrific writing
By Writergirl on October 20, 2015
Format: Hardcover
What makes Lauren Holmes' writing so wonderful? After all, she uses few adjectives and adverbs and even fewer polysyllabic words.

It's her directness, her clarity and simplicity that make her sentences so engaging. As far as the stories as a whole, she drops you right into the action and doesn't waste a syllable on anything that doesn't move the story forward. Her characters' desires and habits are noted in simple, clean ways, i.e., "Tina wasn't as pretty as my mom, but she worked much harder at being pretty," or "So Kelly made it clear that her friends were not my friends." These sentences are not fancy but they immediately create meaningful images in the reader's mind.

This kind of writing looks so easy, but it requires a strong sense of perspective regarding human behavior. In "How Am I Supposed to Talk to You," Holmes never has to say that the protagonist's mother is vain, self-involved and lacking in compassion. She shows this with the mother's refusal to speak English with her boyfriend even though it will alienate her own daughter, and her assumption that he daughter will develop an "interest" in boys just because she did. When I finished reading that story, I actually gasped at the self-absorption of the mother even though Holmes never once has to say that she is.

This is easily the best short story collection I've read in a long time.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsthese studies in how girls become young women are AWESOME. Great...

don't let the title scare you (or fool you). these studies in how girls become young women are AWESOME. Great characters and poignant telling.

Published 5 days ago by fred hale
5.0 out of 5 starsWorth the read.

Thought provoking, sharp, funny, refreshing. A very poignant collection of short stories - this stuck with me.

Published 2 months ago by Lauren
2.0 out of 5 starsA Short Story Collection that Thinks Too Highly of Itself

The comparisons to Girls make perfect sense as you read through Barbara the Slut. This is a collection that thinks it's edgy. Read more

Published 3 months ago by Mr. Bey
5.0 out of 5 starsa knockout

Read this book!
Lauren Holmes is a fresh young talent with a gift for words and characters.
There is not a false note in the book. Read more

Published 4 months ago by Jo March
4.0 out of 5 starsexcellent story lines

Engaging characters, excellent story lines. It's the perfect vacation read.

Published 4 months ago by Melissa Young
1.0 out of 5 starsMediocre book on lots of list s

The title was intriguing and it was on lots of book list s. Unfortunately it was a mediocre book of short stories and not well written or plot driven.

Published 5 months ago by Kindle Customer
1.0 out of 5 starsWasn't what I expected

I found the stories somewhat odd. Not what I thought the book would be.

Published 5 months ago by rnh20
1.0 out of 5 starsNot a page turner.

Had a hard time reading this book. Most of it was written in clipped, 4 word sentences, like middle school short stories.

Published 6 months ago by LDR88
2.0 out of 5 starsI don't understand why it was so highly recommended.

I felt these stories were very bland. They started in the middle of the story and nothing was resolved in the telling of it. Read more

Published 6 months ago by HMD
3.0 out of 5 starsInteresting but can be confusing

It was a different book than I'm used to reading. There were a lot of different stories in it that kept confusing me because I wasn't expecting each story to end on a cliffhanger.

Published 6 months ago by Alyssa

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