“An Oral History of Atlantis” is a collection of short stories by Ed Park. One of my issues with reviewing works of short stories is that some I really like and others are meh, nearly always resulting in a three star rating. There were different types of writing styles - letters, snippets of daily life, conversations - so I felt like I had a variety of Mr. Park’s writing. Some of the stories were outright bizarre and confusing, while others dealt with friendship, relationships, and literature. I think that if Mr. Park is on your list of authors to read, this might be a great way to be introduced to his work.

A funny, original, and surreal collection of short stories with loose connections that will leave you wanting more.

Ed Park's "An Oral History of Atlantis" is a brilliant, witty collection of stories that slice through the everyday to reveal profound truths. From a college student questioning if he's a robot ("Machine City") to a man remembering his life through passwords ("Slide to Unlock"), Park's characters navigate the absurdities of modern existence with humor and heart.

An Oral History of Atlantis will be a hit for readers that love short stories. Many of the stories follow a different genre, which is nice and offers variety and allows the reader to see the scope of writing abilities in Park. For me, some of the short stories hit more than others, but that is typically in a collection. Do think readers will enjoy Park.

What an interesting collection of stories. I really enjoyed the variety and a few really made me think. Thank you for the opportunity to read this. Well done.b

It’s a good collection of stories. They are all different and give an interesting perspective on the mundane aspects of life. Some are better than others, but there would likely be something to meet a variety of likes.

This was my first experience with Ed Park, and despite the hype suspect it will be my last. I must not be clever enough by half, because these stories felt completely random and out there to me... I did enjoy the way he played with language, but snarky turns of phrase and clever constructs do not, for me, a story make. The writing felt disjointed - random for the sake of being random (and ditto on clever).

Incidentally, I realize I've used the word "clever" many times in this short review, but that was my overwhelming sense while reading: this is a man who is exceedingly clever and wants everyone to know it. That's fine, and I do applaud it because the turns of phrase are, in many instances, exceptionally clever and they made me smile and smirk, but on the whole I found the experience not to my taste.

I'm not a regular reader of short stories, and that may be part of it. I'm also a fan of a more traditional narrative style. I knew these things going in, but even accounting for that, I struggled to find the meaning here - unless the point was that there often is no point...

A collection of immersive short stories - many leaving you ever so slightly on edge as the tales wove across each chapter.

Short story collections are always hit-or-miss for me, but this one was an unexpected delight and one of the best I've ever read. The stories were loosely connected, often very funny, and always deeply weird. I haven't read Park's Pulitzer-nominated novel yet, but I'm adding it to my TBR because I'd love to see where he takes his stories when he has a longer run with the characters. (And I read this while I was on vacation in Paris, so it will always have an extra-fond place in my memory!)

This was my first time reading Ed Park and I enjoyed it! An interesting and, at times, funny, collection of short stories that demonstrate the author's talent through range. All the stories were different - in either themes, length, or topics. You never knew what you were going to get! Though not all the stories landed for me, I enjoyed the time I spent with this book.

I received an ARC of this collection from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

"I have seen things I never wished to see, and every night I hear the ocean."

This is the perfect short story collection to me. Stories range from 2 page missives to 30 page character studies, exploring a plethora of genres throughout. I was thoroughly entertained and wish this collection was longer! The writing is excellent, each story had its own distinct ambiance and I will certainly be picking up more Ed Park in the future.

3.5 stars

This is an intriguing collection of short stories that live up to their name. I really enjoyed how succinct these were. This made the collection particularly readable. The tradeoff is that the reader may be left wanting a little more development at times, but overall, these will keep audiences engaged.

These may run a little "artistic" or "literary" for some, but more experienced readers will appreciate the techniques and choices here.

A really gorgeous collection of short stories. I love short stories and found these ones especially fun to read.

The experience as a whole was immersive and even a bit hallucinatory—characters that you could have dreamt about before in a very strange dream, but written believably enough that they might actually live around the corner from you. My favorites were "The Wife on Ambien", "The Gift", and "Watch Your Step".

Park's writing is witty, experienced and imaginative. I'm confident that certain descriptions will be living rent free in my head for a while.

Thank you to the publisher for the eARC!

I’ve never read any of Ed Park’s other work, but I enjoyed this enough to put his other books on my TBR. The stories in here were all enjoyable, and while there might be similarities in terms of characters, each story stood as its own thing. Weird Menace was a standout, but there weren’t any that felt like a slog. Each story was engaging and breezy, but felt like it had hidden depths. A good book to break out of a slump, and it lends itself to rereads.

An Oral History of Atlantis is a collection of short stories written by one of our time’s greats - Ed Park. His 2023 novel, Same Bed Different Dreams is incredible and is must read lit, if you ask me.

These stories are told from a variety of perspectives and each one is unique. Finishing one story and moving on to the next was like moving on to the next candy in a box of chocolates (insert the Forrest Gump quote here…)

My favorites were:
Machine City. I loved Park’s descriptive story telling here, I really felt like I was there, watching all of it happen. At one point, I felt like part of this story was happening in my freshman year dorm. Having the story overlaid there in my brain was pretty creepy, in a good way.

An Accurate Account. The ending was perfect. This kind of thing is what can make short stories so satisfying.

The Gift. If you ask me, you’re lucky if you have a professor story like this. It also reminded me of my Dad, who was assuredly NOT a professor - but loved a good aphorism

If you enjoyed Same Bed Different Dreams, read this ASAP. If you’re curious about Same Bed Different Dreams don’t hesitate to read this either. These bite-sized servings are set up to be some great summer reading.

Sharp, fast and mostly very funny stories. I can't really discern a common theme, although movies, writing, college years come back a lot. And many of the stories end a little too abruptly, but all of them are original and superbly written.

Already on the first page I was laughing out loud, as an author is angry at his translator for taking too many liberties:

"The novel begins with a hailing of the muse and a quick history of man’s moral awakening, mastery of his surroundings, and subsequent fall from grace. In my version. In your version, a man named Mr. Henry enters a flat in London and discovers that his wife is taking stomach medication."

My favourite was 'Machine City', about a student inadvertently ending up as an actor in a movie.

I am now very curious about Ed Park's novel 'Same Bed Different Dreams'.

Thanks to Random House for the advance copy!

This is my first foray into Ed Park's writing and, in hindsight, a collection of short stories is probably one of the best ways to get introduced to a new writer. In "An Oral History of Atlantis", Park weaves his way through a number of different settings, characters, and themes.

A few stories that stood out to me: In "The Wife on Ambien" , a husband describes his wife on the referenced medication, piecing together a haphazard, eerily unrealistic individual who seemingly does everything and anything. "Bring on the Dancing Horses" where the boyfriend to a science fiction writer describes his daily life with his girlfriend and muses on the complicated relationship he has with his siblings and parents. In "Watch Your Step", two friends in South Korea meet to frequently discuss and decode the cryptic messages one receives until the one of them eventually disappears.

The stories are set in realistic, tangible places - but never quite feel quite right; there's a subliminal off-kilter wrench (or two) thrown in. They're set in a number of different places with a broad variety of characters, but many center on the themes of education, art and literature, and the complex and ever-changing relationships between people. I appreciated as well that some stories were loosely interconnected and characters made appearances in more than just one. Park is clearly a talented writer, but I found that many stories were hit-or-miss for me - some felt truly bizarre and confusing.

I give the book 3.5 stars. I like short stories. I hadn't read anything from the author before. I read that he had won numerous literary awards I was excited to read his book.

The book has numerous short stories. Some of the short stories were really good. However, the next story did not keep my attention. The stories were not related. It was hard for me to go from story to story. Some of the stories I wanted more from.

The writing was good. I can see why he has won literary awards. He uses mainly good vocabulary ( except for the word midget and laugh). Sometimes the writing was good but I had to stop and think about what he was writing. It was so eloquent but maybe I had to stop and think about what he was writing about.

The book isn't too long. The stories are not long. It might be the perfect book for someone else.

I am grateful to the author and Netgalley for the opportunity to read these short stories. I would like to read a book from the author in the future.

An eclectic collection of short stories .Some will have you laughing while others will make you think.
Different types of storytelling methods and genres. Beautiful prose.
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