FINALIST FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD WINNER OF THE STORY PRIZEONE OF NPR’S BEST BOOKS OF THE YEARThe universally acclaimed return of the New York Times bestselling author of Fates and Furies and MatrixFlorida is a “superlative” book (Boston Globe), “frequently funny” (San Francisco Chronicle), “brooding, inventive and often moving” (NPR Fresh Air) –as Groff is recognized as “Florida’s unofficial … “brooding, inventive and often moving” (NPR Fresh Air) –as Groff is recognized as “Florida’s unofficial poet laureate, as Joan Didion was for California.” (Washington Post)
In her thrilling new book, Lauren Groff brings the reader into a physical world that is at once domestic and wild—a place where the hazards of the natural world lie waiting to pounce, yet the greatest threats and mysteries are still of an emotional, psychological nature. A family retreat can be derailed by a prowling panther, or by a sexual secret. Among those navigating this place are a resourceful pair of abandoned sisters; a lonely boy, grown up; a restless, childless couple, a searching, homeless woman; and an unforgettable, recurring character—a steely and conflicted wife and mother.
The stories in this collection span characters, towns, decades, even centuries, but Florida—its landscape, climate, history, and state of mind—becomes its gravitational center: an energy, a mood, as much as a place of residence. Groff transports the reader, then jolts us alert with a crackle of wit, a wave of sadness, a flash of cruelty, as she writes about loneliness, rage, family, and the passage of time. With shocking accuracy and effect, she pinpoints the moments and decisions and connections behind human pleasure and pain, hope and despair, love and fury—the moments that make us alive. Startling, precise, and affecting, Florida is a magnificent achievement.
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Collections of short stories can make a wonderful escape from the world, especially on audio, and this audiobook (read by the author herself) is great for sampling in short bites. There’s a little bit of sameness to these stories, partly because very few of the protagonists have names, which makes them best for listening one at a time instead of all in a row. Throughout, Groff’s talent for evocative, spare language truly shines.
I’ve been a fan of the writing of Lauren Groff ever since I read Arcadia. She weaves words into tapestries that make this writer smile. So, I finally got around to reading her latest work, Florida, a collection of stories connected to the sunshine state. The writing did not disappoint. Here is an example from the first story: “Jude couldn’t look at his father. The space in the air where he existed was too heavy and dark.” Further on in the same story, “Something shifted between them, and they fell asleep to a silence that was softer at its edges.”
Beautiful.
A common theme throughout the stories: Florida is hot. It’s often said in different ways. The stories are as somber as the humidity. The first story, the one mentioned above, is about the only male lead in the story, save for two little children, one of which is a boy, abandoned on an island to fend for themselves. That cheery little tale is followed by a woman descending from a solid middle-class life into homelessness. The descent is gradual, and you see it all from her eyes. There are no external forces at play, no drug addiction, no abuse, just an internal collapse.
The last story takes a woman from Florida to a subsistence vacation in a small town in Brazil. The woman has let her best years pass by as she takes care of her mother. It is the antithesis of a How Stella Got Her Groove Back story.
The book maintains the excellent prose I expected from Groff, but with moribund circumstances that left me wanting. Yet, there’s the writing. I recommend the book for that alone.
I read Florida with one of my book groups. We’re all writers/ poets/actors and we read short story collections to get to grips with the process of some masters of the craft. Over the past three years we’ve read collections by most of the best known writers of short stories – Lauren Groff’s Florida was one of our favourites for her precise and original use of language and how she excavates the psyches of her (unnamed) female protagonists. She lays bare the terrifying and often hostile environment of her home state of Florida in all its plastic, environmental unfriendliness. There’s an undertone of dread and well-founded fear for the future of the planet.
Always sad. Well written.
A gorgeously written collection.
She understands intimately north Florida’s wild steamy back roads and unseen corners. This is not South Beach. Her depiction of a woman’s descent into homelessness is heartbreaking and the best I’ve read.
I don’t normally like short stories, but I really enjoyed these. All the stories have a base in Florida even if they occur elsewhere. The writing is hypnotic and quite beautiful. Here is a person thinking. This is a skilled crafts person at work!
Everything about this collection of short stories makes it a perfect summer read. Groff’s writing style pulls you in and clutches you tight, guiding you through a familiar world filled with the unusual and unexpected. Every single short story feels like a novel because Groff is such a master of language and prose. Whether she’s writing about snakes and panthers or husbands and wives, Groff weaves stories as heavy and mesmerizing as Florida itself.
Wow, I figured out the first day, not to read this at night. It was dark and mostly terrifying. Lauren Griffin has a way with words and paints very scary portraits of evil people, animals, rodents and especially the snakes. Two small children abandoned, without food and water. Scrounging for food in the woods and foul ponds. I was thankful that they knew to boil the water. A small dog that they try to rescue, that snarls and would surely harm these girls, while they wait for their mother to come for them.
The other short stories reflected these same terrifying themes. I’m not a fan of horror, although I recognize and applaud her talent. If you love horror, I’m sure that this is a must read for you.