Reading this book really drove home for me Gay’s impressive range. I’ve read Bad Feminist, Hunger, and An Untamed State, and this 2017 short story collection was so unlike any of them. As the title suggests, these stories gather around a theme of women who are “difficult”, or perhaps only believe themselves to be so. The stories move between suggesting dark fairy tales and depicting cruel realities. Multiple stories explore experiences of rape, losing a child, women coping with violence or tragedy through seeking out abusive lovers, and myriad reasons to have an affair. This is a tough, effective collection, although by the end I felt some of the stories became less impactful for how they continued to circle the same themes. As a lifelong Michigander I loved the recurring use of a Northern Michigan setting, especially in Allison’s favorite story, “North Country”, which lived up to her high praise.⁣
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Cw for kidnapping, rape, violence and domestic abuse, death of a child, miscarriage.