I loved this collection of stories by Curtis Sittenfeld. I've only read one of her novels, but when I received the opportunity to read this ARC, I jumped at it. I normally don't love short stories, but Sittenfeld has a magical way of making even the slimmest of stories come alive through her phenomenal character development and interesting situations. I really enjoyed this collection, and highly recommend it to anyone who's enjoyed Sittenfeld's novels in the past. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC!

Curtis Sittenfeld is such a strong and talented contemporary author, equally able to create full-length novels (such as ROMANTIC COMEDY) as well as complete worlds in the length of a short story (such as YOU THINK IT, I'LL SAY IT).

In SHOW DON'T TELL, Sittenfeld creates dynamic characters in these dozen stories. It's an immersive experience, and readers are pulled into a range of situations: what it is like to have once babysat for a family whose father would become a tech billionaire; whether the Billy Graham/Mike Pence rule has anything to it; considering as an adult the impact of the night in high school when a famous celebrity returns to his old dorm room/your current dorm room one reunion weekend and you spend hours in conversation.

There is a feeling of tragedy in these pages, of the complexity of life and the ability or lack thereof to find meaning or happiness. I can't always agree with her conclusions, but I found myself challenged, entertained, and drawn in.

(Thank you to Random House for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.)

An odd choice for me in that I have never been a fan of short stories-but these are interesting and though-provoking. Every reader will have their favorite(s) but the general theme of nearly all of them revolves around middle aged women dealing with aging, marriage, divorce, friendships-in short the problems of daily life. All of them are very well written. In short a new favorite author for me.

It's a true testament to how much I enjoy an author if I follow them to a short story collection as I've come to realize short stories just aren't my jam. I found myself enjoying these stories more than expected, and I think an entire set of stories that feature women in mid-life who are at times reminiscing but also looking forward and enjoying their present felt oddly poignant and familiar.

I don’t possess the words to articulate how much I loved this book of short stories!

Each story felt as though I was either talking to a version of myself, at various stages in life, in an alternate universe OR that I was catching up with a close friend over a delightful cup of coffee!

That being said, the stories were written with characters who were raw, real, and relatable. While the stories were short, the author masterfully captured the characters succinctly without leaving me feeling like I had unanswered questions about them. What an amazing skill to create characters so wholly in a short story!

I HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend checking this out as soon as possible! Sit back, relax, and be prepared to catch up with yourself or a close friend!

Thank you NetGalley, Curtis Sittenfeld, and Random House for allowing me the opportunity to read the book in exchange for a review. Thoughts and words are my own.

I love Sittenfeld's writing and many of her other books (Romantic Comedy, for one) rank at the top of my list. This is a short story collection that left me wanting more. I wish each vignette could have continued into a full length novel. The last story was a bit slow and boring for me so I am bummed that is where I left the book. I shall remain a Sittenfeld fan and look forward to more novels from her but would only suggest this one for short story lovers. Thank you Netgalley for the the ARC.

Very nice collection, but I think I just prefer novels from this author instead of short stories. The writing is great, but I was left wanting more.

My favorite story was the richest babysitter one. I liked that it was a riff on a current political scene the way that some of Sittenfeld's other novels are. There were only one or two stories that fell flat. The other story I enjoyed was the one with the friends discussing their children together.

Thank you @netgalley for my free preview ebook copy of ‘Show Don’t Tell’ by @csittenfeld — what a perfect early bday gift for me!

I’ve been dying to read this because I already love her writing AND there’s a companion story to ‘Prep’ 🩷🤍💚 that’s set at Lee’s boarding school reunion.

These short stories get into what is like to be of middle age. It’s a fun time but I know for a fact that it sure is weird as well. Topics in the stories range from knowing an online bookstore titan way back when, to MFA program awards drama, to making art from lunch dates, to best friendship, capitalism, politics, white privilege, viral videos, and St. Louis & Minnesota.

I’m so sad that I’m almost finished reading it. It’s on sale this Tuesday, 2/25!

#NetGalley #ShowDontTell #bookstagram

📖: @randomhouse @atrandombooks
#CurtisSittenfeld #CurtisSittenfeldBooks

If Curtis writes it, I’m reading it. This collection was incredible and I look forward to flipping through my print copy.

As someone who does not typically read/enjoy short stories, I absolutely loved this collection. Each one was very “a day in the life” coded and featured relatable and easily perceivable main characters. Most, if not all, of the main characters were middle-aged women, and the topics of each story ranged but each one had me captured and left me engaging/thinking about the character’s perceptions/experiences and my own experiences. Several of the stories discussed life during the pandemic, and even more of them referenced the political climate during that time & even presently. I think this made the stories even more enthralling because it felt like they were accounts from real women, and had me reading as if I were reading their journals almost. Each is expertly observational, and I had to sit with and absorb each one after reading.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading these stories, and will be adding this collection to the list of “Works by Curtis Sittenfeld writes that I love.”

My favorites were: The Hug, White Women LOL, and The Richest Babysitter in the World

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for the digital ARC of this book. I am voluntarily leaving an honest review after reading.

I have enjoyed reading Curtis Sittenfeld, especially her last novel, Romantic Comedy. I may not be the reader for short stories because I did not feel as invested in these as I do her novels. They are well written and I liked that I could relate to some of the women in these stories, but overall I felt like I forgot about them soon after. If you enjoy short stories, I feel like most readers would like these. Thank you Random House for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley.

I’m a big Curtis Sittenfeld fan and now a completist, and after really liking her last short story collection, You Think It, I’ll Say It, I was excited to read Show Don’t Tell — It did not disappoint!

The sign of a great short story is one that feels complete enough as is yet leaves me interested enough to want to continue reading more about the characters or what’s happening.

Show Don’t Tell largely achieved this and I appreciate how Sittenfeld can write so many different stories capturing authentic human behavior well. I recognized one short story I’d previously listened to as an Audible Original a few years ago and long-time Sittenfeld fans are in for a surprise with a brief return to one her past books. This is an interesting, entertaining, contemporary collection

I read the first story in this book, and while I think the author is very talented, the profanity and frank sexual commentary were too much for me. I started the next story, but found the contempt toward people who don't share the author's politics very off-putting and decided not to continue.

Like a good album: No skips.

I’ll be honest: I was a little worried after reading Romantic Comedy about the direction Curtis Sittenfeld’s work was going.

But I needn’t have. What was a singular departure into the kind of women’s fiction that is enjoyable to read but wastes the talent of a writer like Sittenfeld had no bearing on what we got after that in this fantastic collection.

The thoughtful, funny, and beautifully evocative prose that Sittenfeld gives us when she’s at her best dominates this collection. They aren’t all five star reads, but a notable number of the stories are, and the book as a whole is without a doubt a five-star reader experience.

The last story in the collection, Lost but not Forgotten, is the book’s best. There’s not a bad one in the bunch, but here’s the best of the rest: Show Don’t Tell, The Richest Babysitter in the World, The Tomorrow Box, A for Alone, and The Patron Saint of Middle Age.

I'm all over the map with this author.

I didn't care much for Eligible, but I loved Romantic Comedy and Sisterland.

I snapped this one up, not knowing it was a collection of short stories.

Turns out, it was just what my ADHD brain needed in the moment.

I really liked how the stories were so varied, yet all dealt with Crossroad Decisions.

I can't say I loved all the stories, or all the characters (I get second-hand cringe when characters start making Bad Decisions) but on the whole, I really loved this collection.

The author does such a good job of HUMANIZING her characters.

I may not like them, but I UNDERSTAND.

Sittenfeld does it again with this collection of stories that show she knows just how to distill the details of life and love (and divorce) into extremely readable prose. Show Don't Tell is right! I will definitely be encouraging my patrons to try this one. Great for the short-story-reluctant and the lover alike.

This book is a collection of 12 short stories. Each stand by themselves with no connection to each other. The author gives us glimpses into different characters and their stories. The characters are those that may be similar to your friends or relatives. Many of the story’s end, leaving you ,the reader to decide what may come next. There are stories of divorces, college reunions, old friends reuniting, completing projects related to what is known as “the Mike Pence Rule”. (To be honest, I never heard of that rule and had to do some research about it.) While I have not read any previous works of Curtis Sittenfeld, one of her stories in this collection talks more about a character from her book Prep.
Many of the characters in this collection of stories is at a time in their life where decisions may impact their futures. Most of the characters are middle aged women. The stories are warm, funny at times and keep your interest.
My suggestion to new readers it to try to read each story in its entirety. I sometimes lost the train of thought when I had to put my reading away for the day before finishing an individual story. While you may not enjoy all the stories or the main characters, there is something for everyone to enjoy.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for allowing me to read the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review. Published on February 25, 2025.

Wow. Curtis Sittenfeld is talented. Each of these stories had me wishing for a full-length novel dedicated to these characters. I think this book will really resonate with middle-aged women (I'm not suggesting that other readers won't love it but that felt to me like THE demographic for these stories). So many of these stories feature women dealing with divorce or failing marriages. You are truly dropped into their lives and become so attached to these characters in such a short amount of time.

A lot of these stories left me feeling both unsettled and hopeful which is a unique combination. Short stories often don't give the reader the closure that so many of us crave; I'm almost always left wanting more!

As in any collection of short stories, there were some I liked more than others but I think they were all written well and I think the collection was curated beautifully.

I enjoyed reading these and I hope that Sittenfeld considers publishing more short stories in the future.

I wish more authors would put out a collection of short stories like this! It’s nice getting closure in digestible chunks. While not each story had a female narrator, each story focused on the female experience. Each was honest, if painful (White Woman LOL), and some explored the inevitability of disappearing (The Marriage Clock). Sittenfield does an incredible job of making women feel seen and heard through her writing, so an immense thanks to Random House, Sittenfield, and NetGalley for the ARC!