Creative Types - Tom Bissell

A young and ingratiating assistant to a movie star makes a blunder that puts his boss and a major studio at grave risk. A couple hires a partner for a threesome to rejuvenate their relationship after the birth of their child. An assistant at a prestigious literary journal reconnects with a middle school frenemy and finds his carefully constructed world of refinement cannot protect him from his past.

In these and other stories, Tom Bissell vividly renders the complex worlds of characters on the brink of artistic and personal crisis--writers, actors, and other creative types who see things slightly differently from the rest of us. Surreal, poignant, squirmingly awkward--and always just a little bit off--this collection is a brilliant new offering from one of the most versatile and talented writers in America today.

Blurb taken from Goodreads.

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Rating: ✫✫

I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I thought this sounded like a really interesting read; the accolades in the blurb were really promising, and I was glad to find something a little bit different. I don't often read collections of short stories as I prefer longer novels, but I was excited to get my teeth into this one.

Unfortunately, I've just finished it and I'm feeling disappointed. Although I was expecting it to be a collection of unconventional and perhaps random stories, I feel as though I'm left not knowing what the point of the collection is.

The stories are all unrelated, have their own focuses, and I think are designed to be different, or even controversial. I did like that they were unpredictable, as it kept me on my toes throughout. I never knew what would be coming next. 

However, if the aim was to be controversial, then I do think the author had succeeded, as certain parts of stories made me feel a little bit uncomfortable. Moreover, the stories just left me feeling wholly dissatisfied. Just as a story was getting interesting, it would come to an end, and often in the most random and bizarre of places.

I just finished this book feeling disappointed and dissatisfied. Not for me at all.