Kate Doyle’s I Meant It Once comprises sixteen short stories, some very short indeed which was about all I felt up to when I read it, plagued with a sore throat and headache. As ever, I’ll pick out a few favourites to give you a flavour of what’s on offer in this collection which features women often looking back to their early twenties trying to find a place in the world for themselves.
The astrologer, ethereal yet severe in the blurry chat window, explains that Christine’s natal chart shows a complex gathering of planets in her Twelfth House of Self-Undoing.
It opens with the amusing That Is Shocking in which Margaret is still fixated on a college breakup, years after it happened, using listeners’ reactions to the story as a benchmark despite her own bad behaviour. Two Pisces Emote About the Passage of Time sees Christine’s life apparently unravelling despite her new partner when her best friend moves to Texas until one night she has an epiphany. Longer and very much more sober, Moments Earlier is about four college friends who’ve planned a reunion when one of them returns from travelling in Europe, plans interrupted by a devastating incident. In the brief, punchy, richly imaginative You Are with Me, a young woman makes a decision her partner is unable to accept. I Figure We Were Doomed is a short, funny story about a self-centred young woman and her generous partner whose title says it all.
There is no explaining some things, no resolution to certain stories.
These are not easy stories to sum up. Very little happens; it’s more about the inner lives of young women who are often overthinkers, something with which I’m all too well acquainted. These are women either living through or looking back on years of youthful emotional intensity in which they felt uncertain of who they were and what they should be doing, sometimes trying the patience of their kind, supportive friends and family with their self-sabotaging behaviour. There’s a pleasing vein of wry, self-knowing humour running through all but one of the stories I’ve picked out, although several of the others match the more sombre tone of Moments Earlier. Despite being far from its target readership, I enjoyed most of Doyle’s collection very much but felt it would have been all the better for dropping a few of the more oblique inward-looking pieces. That said, I’d be happy to read more of her writing.
Corsair: London 9781472158796 256 pages Paperback (read via NetGalley)
I wonder if I can remember much about my 20s? An over-thinker, certainly. Wry and self-knowing? Probably not. Still, this looks worth more than a glance, even if I don’t put supreme effort into sourcing it.
I assume she was looking back on her own twenties to an extent and liked her tone. I’m a born over-thinker. Not much chance of escaping it now.
Nope. Stuck with it. Such a nuisance, on the whole.
Sometimes I like very short stories or flash fiction. This sounds interesting for sure. I do hope you are feeling better soon x
Thanks, Cathy. I read this one a little while ago so I’m over it now, and I do agree with you about flash fiction. I miss Claire Fuller’s weekly posts but I suspect she doesn’t have time now in a good way! x
I’m an overthinker too, but I wonder if a collection about overthinkers might stretch my patience! Maybe if I dipped into these it would work better for me. Glad to hear you’re feeling better Susan 🙂
Thank you! It’s a pain isn’t it? I sometimes envy impetuous people.
I like short stories but prefer long short stories to short, short stories if that makes sense. Still, several of these stories do sound good.
It does, indeed. I quite like flash fiction so didn’t mind that. I always loved Claire Fuller’s weekly post.
Overthinking is my bane too. I struggle not to do it. This does sound an interesting collection, the astrology story especially piques my interest. I only occasionally look into it, but have a couple of friends (one from school and another from college) who are astrologers now.
I suspect it’s an introvert’s problem. It’s a pain, isn’t it. Definitely stories to enjoy, here.