There Once Lived a Woman Who Tried to Kill Her Neighbor's Baby

Okay, on to the next one! This book was There Once Lived a Woman Who Tried to Kill her Neighbor's Baby: Scary Fairy Tales by Ludmilla Petrushevskaya. Yes, it's exactly what the title says.

So, the best way for me to explain this book is with another book (go figure). When I was a kid, I would read this series of ghost stories called Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark. The sequel was cleverly titled More Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, and there were more with equally riveting titles. The series was by Alan Schwartz and the drawings were terrifying, but I remember one story being about a hairless dog that actually turned out to be a rat with a deadly disease *coughcoughchihuahuascoughcough*, and I remember thinking, "Really? This is scary?" Some of the stories were, indeed, scary, and those were the ones I loved. But every other story, it seemed, might have been a little scary, but it was mostly just weird. This book was like a grown up version of that.

The author is an old Russian woman that's fascinating- she had had all of her work banned in Russia so she snuck into Lithuania just to get published back in the 50s and 60s. I really, really wanted to love the stories.

The good news is, I did like some of the stories. She definitely has her own style of writing that was easy and fun to read. Some of the stories are mildly haunting in a somewhat juvenile way. She has a keen sense of irony that isn't overinflated, but rather subtle and very... lifelike. I also revisited a part of my childhood that I had long since left behind, and it was fun to enjoy once more. The writing is unique and interesting, my favorite blend on macabre and witty.

Unfortunately, much like the rat-dog story, a lot of times I started thinking, "Really?" I just... never fully got on board.

So the verdict is: I recommend the book, but selectively. For those of you that like scary stories and the macabre, go for it! It's one-of-a-kind writing. But if you don't... pass. I enjoyed myself 75% of the time!

Have any of you read her work? Any opinions? No?

Alright, on to the next...