“You Think It, I’ll Say it”

by Curtis Sittenfeld

Nightstands and Coffee Tables | BayouPages

REVIEW BY MEREDITH MCKINNIE

“When I finished, I walked along Walter St, not entirely sure what to do. I had no idea, of course, that all of my feelings of my youth that would pass, it was this one, of an abundance of time so great as to routinely be unfillable, that would vanish with the least ceremony.”

This collection of short stories by Curtis Sittenfeld explores human interactions, the everyday moments stripped of ceremony or exaggerated significance. The topics range from misunderstandings between genders, unexplored sexual and emotional impulses, adolescent reflection, marital strife and triumph, and the compromises we make as human beings to coexist. Over the course of ten short stories, readers are introduced to flawed narrators, battling some inner turmoil that has lay dormant for years. In “The World Has Many Butterflies,” Julie is enamored with this little game she plays with someone else’s husband at social gatherings. She mistakes her enjoyment with true connection to the man and begins fantasizing about being truly understood by someone else. In “Bad Latch,” a woman compares herself to a supposed supermom in her breastfeeding class, obsessing over her insecurities and unwillingness to conform to society’s definition of modern motherhood. In “Plausible Deniability,” William listens to his brother’s marital frustrations during morning jogs and battles the repercussions of his own divorce a decade prior. 

Sittenfeld creates endearing characters while exposing their idiosyncrasies. They wear their weirdness in full view, diving into social judgment as opposed to shying away from full disclosure. The dialogue is often unexpected, making the plots unpredictable and the characters stimulating. Sittenfeld refuses to tie her stories in a bow, instead leaving many open-ended plot points and relying on readers to form their own conclusions. Her stories are written with the responsibility of interpretation resting on the reader’s shoulders. In “A Regular Couple,” newlyweds Maggie and Jason encounter another couple from Maggie’s high school days. The honeymooners inevitably compare their relationships, seeing themselves through the lens of familiar strangers. In “The Prairie Wife,” Kirsten obsessively follows Lucy via social media, as her online persona appears completely hypocritical to the woman who served alongside her at summer camp. When Lucy makes a bold announcement on a daytime talk show, Kirsten examines the impact of her twenty-something decisions on her life as a committed wife with twin boys. 

Sittenfeld is the New York Times best-selling author of Prep, American Wife, and Eligible. She writes honestly and unabashedly about life in the current era, with characters providing subtle commentary on the state of the world and the common absurdities we engage and ignore daily. Short story collections are often a welcome break from a novel’s requirement of repeated interruptions before the book’s conclusion. I read each story in one sitting, and while I had to bid farewell to some characters sooner than I wanted, a newer intriguing one was waiting on the very next page. This book does include some sexually explicit descriptions and some instances of offensive language.