I think I'm a little too literal for this book. The short stories were not all easy to follow, but were beautiful. Some were a page, some (Cloudland especially) were much longer. I'm a huge reader, but not so literary, if that makes sense, and I'd recommend this more for the poets and english majors than the engineers who love fiction, like myself. I did not know what to expect and was not familiar with Hempel's style before jumping in, so that makes sense. It was a long awaited collection, and hopefully you'll enjoy

Sing to It is a short collection of short stories, many of which are a page or less long. What's amazing to me is that in a few hundred words, Amy Hempel can tell an amazing story--lyrical, gorgeous, and raw. These stories are livewires and they read like poetry to boot. I think The Orphan Lamb, The Doll Tornado, and the opener, Sing to It, are especially strong, but my favorite qas The Correct Grip, which left me awed and reeling.

Of the longer, more traditional short stories, the best by far is A Full-Service Shelter, about a dog shelter volunteer who works mostly with the dogs slated to be killed. It's harrowing and beautiful at the same time, savage and tender.

Sadly, the longest short story in the collection, Cloudland, is the weakest. The writing is still pretty, but it's as if the extra length suffocates all emotion from the story.

As Sing to It is a very slim volume, and the longest story is the weakest, why am I rating it so high? Because short stories, when done right, as most of these are, are always worth checking out, though I would recommend a library copy instead of purchasing. (Though I did preorder this after reading an ARC--the very short stories in this are just that good)

This is a collection of 15 short stories - and some are very short, about a page long. None of the stories seems to be related to each other. My favorite story was A Full Service Shelter about a volunteer at a dog shelter. It was heart-breaking. The other story I liked was the very first one - Sing To It, but it was because I liked the Arab proverb: When danger approaches, sing to it.

I appreciate that Amy Hempel is a great writer and says a great deal in a small amount of space which is the point of a short story I think. Reading these stories I found many social and economic issues touched on without being preachy. These issues are relevant and the ability to make people think about them discretely is a gift. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to relate emotionally to many of these stories - or maybe they are just over my head. I found the writing style detached and aloof and just didn't get warm fuzzies from these stories - they just didn't evoke emotion for me.

Thanks to Amy Hempel and Scribner through Netgalley for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

At the end, I wanted to comfort him. But what I said was, Sing to it. The Arab proverb: When danger approaches, sing to it.

The above quote is taken from the first story in this collection, Sing to It. The first story is not alone in being a very short story. Less than one page short. While it is not the only story in here that is that short, there is one that is probably around half the pages in the entire book, and one early on that is longer than the average length in this collection, but this does have several very short stories. My enjoyment of the stories varied considerably, which had less to do with the length of these stories than only a few of them appealed to me based on various things – subject matter / characters, and in the case of the last and longest story, the feeling that the story felt true to the character, perhaps, but the thoughts of that character seemed to flutter here and there, making it very disjointed – to me.

However, I will say that I found several of the stories beautifully written and moving, and I was impressed how much she manages to pack into some of these short stories.



Pub Date: 26 Mar 2019


Many thanks for the ARC provided by Scribner

I have previously been a moderate fan of Amy Hempel’s, but this collection lacked, for me, something necessary for all short stories: it’s not just a lack of plot or even action on the part of the characters’, but maybe something closer to what I’d call magic; I just wasn’t invested in anyone or anything here. While all the stories were well-written and the one longer story, Cloudland, was a bit more grasping than the rest, I wouldn’t recommend this book. It seems to be comprised of leftover, not well thought out stories that have previously been rejected by other publications (though the “Stories Previously Published” page at the book of the book means this is not true), and I would steer people toward her previous books over this one.

I have been looking at the reviews written by other readers to see what they liked about the book. Saying it was written by Amy Hempel, and thus it is wonderful, was not helpful. The reviewer who said every story was perfect- that also was not helpful. I read these other reviews looking for the magic I somehow missed. (SPOILERS after this point!)

The story about working in a high kill shelter at the beginning of the book would have been the end of my reading the book, had I not been given a copy to read by NetGalley, and had agreed to provide a review. I thought that story was perfectly horrid, especially the description of the dogs walking over to the pile of dogs who had already been killed.

Maybe things will pick up from here, I hoped.

A story about a suicide. Maybe not.

It is not just the topics Hempel chooses to write about. I have read stories that included a suicide that were quite compelling reads. I found that I did not care about the characters in the stories. I did not respect them. I didn't care what happened to them.

In one story the main character films her husband sleeping with someone else. She watches the film and listens to their conversations. Does she kick him out? No. Does she confront him? No. She seems to live her life as if on a heavy dose of sedatives.

The final story, a long one, is about a woman who goes on and on about how she gave up her child at birth. The endless ruminating about that goes nowhere. She neither finds a way to give ruminating, having achieved some resolution... or makes an attempt to find the child. The apparent life on sedatives continues!

Ranging in size from about a page to the length of a small novella, these 15 stories are proof that Amy Hempel's name belongs right up there with the best in short fiction. Some are snippets of observation and opinion, others, possibly semi-autobiography, and apart from knowing she is currently living in Florida, I don't know enough about her life to make that a solid judgment. Still, Cloudland, told in a voice almost of bemusement, seems to reflect thoughts of a careful mind if not the actions of a careful person. Some of the stories, short as they are in length, have taken root in my mind (Moonbow for its grieving, and Greed for its cynicism), and another, A Full-service Shelter, will remain with me endlessly.

Amy Hempel's latest short story collection varies in topic and length. I adore super-short fiction and those pieces, so carefully honed, were my favorites of the collection. However, overall, I felt that the group lacked cohesion and I, personally, liked some, didn't like others. So, mixed bag.

Wonderfully written and smart! Hempel never disappoints and this delivers on every level--plotting, characterization, themes....

I must Admit I adore short story collections. Amy Hemple's "Sing to it" is a collection of some of the best. Many different characters, many different genres , yet they were all complete and totalally enjoyable.

Hempel has a very strong voice. I could read an unmarked short story in a lit magazine and quickly identify whether it was written by her or not. But I didn't find anything tying the stories together; no theme. Why these stories in this collection? It feels more like the author is adding an addendum to her already long list of published works.

Like an abstract painting, I know it's art, I know it's beautiful and impactful, but I'm on the outside. The pure depth and beauty of the piece is at arms distance and I'm not falling in love. Maybe I need to re-read some of the stories or try something else of Hempel's. Let's just say I'm not there yet. One of the stories references Gloria Vanderbilt's painting "Cloud Land". Yes, it's nice, but it's not something I'd remember seeing in a museum or on someone's wall. I don't believe I'll remember Sing to It 6 months from now.

But why the four stars, you ask? It's damn good at what it is, just like that abstract painting. Hemple is blessed with the ability to use words and paint pictures. And for those who like Hemple, I'm sure they'll continue liking her.

Stories: 4 stars
Writing/Prose: 5 stars

I just could not get into this book.. read the first few stories and was just not taken with any of them. o. Theres nothing I enjoy more than a good book, finding a new author and looking forward to their next book. Sorry to say, this did not meet the mark..

Sing to It perfect title for Amy Hempels unique book of short stories some just a snippet Mrs .Greed a woman’s thought jealousy emotional reaction to her husbands mistress.A heart wrenching story of a volunteer in a dog shelter .A book to be treasured, Thanks #netgalley #simon&schuster.

I received an advanced reader’s in exchange for an honest review

These writings are a cross between poetry and short stories, short snippets of a person’s impression of an experience. Beautiful, and it works.