joycecaroloates

High Lonesome: Stories 1966-2006 | Joyce Carol Oates

Is JC Oates a disaster online? Absolutely. Did she write some of the most unsettling stories of the 20th C? This is also true. The title story is a noir masterpiece.
#bestof2025

Reggie I‘ve only read her Zombie, and it was sooooo dark. Good but real disturbing 4d

55 likes1 comment

vivastory

High Lonesome: Stories 1966-2006 | Joyce Carol Oates

My #ThorsDayRec this week is a 700 page collection that I finished at the end of January this year after starting it the beginning of Dec last year. There are numerous memorable stories collected in this retrospective, the title story itself is one of the greatest pieces of American 20th C noir fiction. When JC Oates is on point, she is right up there with Shirley Jackson & Patricia Highsmith IMO. Absolutely fantastic.

tpixie Intrigued! Great review! 3mo

Ruthiella I recently found out that the movie Smooth Talk with Laura Dern is based on the Oates‘ short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been”. It‘s a good, but uncomfortable, film. 3mo

vivastory @tpixie Thanks! There were so many fantastic stories in here. It would usually take me awhile to get through a retrospective this big, but I have always found Oates short stories very compelling (strangely enough although I have read several books of her short fiction I have yet to read one of her novels). 3mo

See All 11 Comments

vivastory @Ruthiella It's funny you mention that; one of my streaming services is Criterion & while I was reading this CC had a Laura Dern retrospective including that movie. That felt like a cross between Shirley Jackson & Flannery O'Connor (edited) 3mo

tpixie @vivastory despite her being a famous author I never have read her. I need to fix that! 3mo

TheBookHippie Guess I‘ll move this up the list. 3mo

vivastory @tpixie @TheBookHippie I think that this is a good volume to check out from your library if possible. If it is available, I recommend just reading where you want to. I had no intentions whatsoever of reading this beginning-to-end when I checked it out, it just worked out that way! 3mo

tpixie @vivastory thanks for the tip! 3mo

Branwen I feel really guilty for this admission, but JCO is an author that I really WISH I loved! 😭 I have tried to read so many different of her works, and each one has left me feeling disappointed. 😔 Do you have a favorite work by her? Maybe I could try that and see if it changes my mind? 3mo

vivastory @Branwen I've only read her short works. I really liked Evil Eye. Also, her story Doll-Master is worth reading. It's one of the most unsettling things I've ever read. 3mo

Branwen @vivastory Okay, maybe I'll give one of her shorter works a try! 🥰 Thanks, Scott! 3mo

49 likes2 stack adds11 comments

PaperbackPirate

Broke Heart Blues | Joyce Carol Oates

Chipping away at this book, hoping I can review it in time.
Taken secretly by my dh today while waiting for the food to come.

I‘m trying, team #Flerken!

#HauntedShelf

53 likes

MelKelsey

Missing Mom | Joyce Carol Oates

so-so

Book 169

I listened to Missing Mom by Joyce Carol Oates, the story of Nicole discovering her mom, murdered in her home, and grieving the first year of life without her. Oates writes dynamic characters with emotional precision. That being said, Nicole isn't likable and the grieving, though arguably authentic feels protracted. ⭐️⭐️⭐️

26 likes

LisaLovesToRead

Middle Age: A Romance | Joyce Carol Oates

so-so

I enjoyed this book overall, but it had some slow & unbelievable parts. I don‘t think I would recommend this book, but I am glad I stuck with it.

madamtsbookstore

Faithless: Tales of Transgression | Joyce Carol Oates

I just added a new book to the store! Only $23 with free shipping! It‘s a collection of short stories 😃
#joycecaroloates #fiction

https://www.etsy.com/listing/917645918/faithless-tales-of-transgression-fiction?...

2 likes

DoonTheGoon

The Female of the Species: Tales of Mystery and Suspense | Joyce Carol Oates

New acquisitions from the used bookstore.

14 likes

GidgetsTreasures75

The Falls: A Novel | Joyce Carol Oates

5-25-20: My 38th finished book of 2020!⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️#thefalls #joycecaroloates 👍🏼📖#️⃣3️⃣8️⃣

5 likes

gradcat

Carthage | Joyce Carol Oates

pick

I am a Joyce Carol Oates fan, even while not being a fan of everything she writes, for she is one of the most prolific authors ever, imho. This book is straight-up difficult—there were times I had to take a break from the emotional overload—shot through with philosophy, theology and issues of social justice. When a young woman disappears from a northern town in New York, the aftershocks are cataclysmic, ⬇️

#ReadWithMrBook #1wordtitle #Jennyis30

MrBook, jenniferw88

gradcat ⬆️ (Cont) for the one accused of causing her disappearance (death?) is a favorite son of the town, a returning (wounded and very much scarred and broken) Iraq war hero, and the fiancé of the missing woman‘s sister. There‘s a lot of meandering about in the minds of each character in this book, which perhaps makes it overly long; the story (while worth it) wore me out in so many different ways: physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. ♥️ (edited) 5y

gradcat ⬆️ (Cont) #Jennyis30 #Literary @jenniferw88 As you can see, I‘m correcting all of my challenge posts. I‘m so sorry it‘s such a mess, but I realized I hadn‘t done them correctly. I hope this isn‘t a huge pain in the ass, but I will eventually have them all pictured on the bingo card. Again, my apologies! ♥️ (edited) 5y

77 likes2 stack adds2 comments