Title: Slow moving. Not the best stories of the year.
Product review: As a novel reader, I always look forward to this series because these are the some of the only short stories I invest in all year. This collection was a disappointment. As some reviewers have noted, there is a mixture of mediocre writers with brilliant ones, an up and down ride at best. There are few surprises or stretches of imagination, esp. from the B writers who tend to sound like grad students with contrived, workshopped pieces. Also, I am very tired of first person narratives, another tendancy of beginning writers. Maybe next year we'll see clear, distinct voices and risky writing throughout, not just from the handful of expert storytellers featured here.
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