Jenny Offill
Author of Dept. of Speculation
About the Author
Series
Works by Jenny Offill
The Friend Who Got Away: Twenty Women's True Life Tales of Friendships that Blew Up, Burned Out or Faded Away (2005) — Editor; Foreword & contributor — 203 copies
Money Changes Everything: Twenty-Two Writers Tackle the Last Taboo with Tales of Sudden Windfalls, Staggering Debts,… (2007) — Editor — 51 copies
Las cosas del fin del mundo 1 copy
Associated Works
Significant Objects: 100 Extraordinary Stories about Ordinary Things (2012) — Contributor — 57 copies
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Birthdate
- 1968
- Gender
- female
- Nationality
- USA
- Birthplace
- Massachusetts, USA
- Places of residence
- Brooklyn, New York, USA
- Education
- University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
- Occupations
- author
- Organizations
- Brooklyn College
Queens University of Charlotte - Short biography
- Jennie Offill teaches in the M.F.A. writing program at Brooklyn College. [adapted from The Friend Who Got Away (2005)]
Members
Reviews
Dept. of Speculation by Jenny Offill
made me cry. “But Lia is only twenty-four. She is beautiful and brilliant. There are so many more years when people will come.”
I read for the writing and this is my book. As someone has written "each paragraph is a polished gem and each sentence" a perfect facet of that gem. I thought [b:Dept. of Speculation|17402288|Dept. of Speculation|Jenny Offill|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1367929545l/17402288._SX50_.jpg|24237023] was one of my favorites and this funny, quirky, anxious tale joins the bandwagon.
[b:Weather|37506228|Weather|Jenny Offill|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1566942482l/37506228._SY75_.jpg|59116540] is comforting even though the main character, Lizzie, is worried about environmental collapse and her brother is hovering at breakdown and her marriage is going through a rough bit, she is comforted by the survival techniques she reads about at the library where she works as a feral librarian (meanng not degreed). She relates hilariious moments with patrons. I looked forward to the style and tidbitty factoids offered and liked Lizzie, identified with her concerns even if I'm not a youngish mother working fulltime and trying to help a disintegrating brother in the midst of a divorce.… (more)
[b:Weather|37506228|Weather|Jenny Offill|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1566942482l/37506228._SY75_.jpg|59116540] is comforting even though the main character, Lizzie, is worried about environmental collapse and her brother is hovering at breakdown and her marriage is going through a rough bit, she is comforted by the survival techniques she reads about at the library where she works as a feral librarian (meanng not degreed). She relates hilariious moments with patrons. I looked forward to the style and tidbitty factoids offered and liked Lizzie, identified with her concerns even if I'm not a youngish mother working fulltime and trying to help a disintegrating brother in the midst of a divorce.… (more)
I don’t know how to feel about this book.
Each sentence is beautifully written, but disjointed from the others. It’s almost stream-of-consciousness, but then there is a plot twisted into it. It rambles, yet somehow no words are wasted.
The storytelling is not my style, I’ve concluded, but I can’t discredit the author’s way with words. Give it a shot. It’s so short that if you don’t like it, it’s still a book read and didn’t eat up too much of your time.
Each sentence is beautifully written, but disjointed from the others. It’s almost stream-of-consciousness, but then there is a plot twisted into it. It rambles, yet somehow no words are wasted.
The storytelling is not my style, I’ve concluded, but I can’t discredit the author’s way with words. Give it a shot. It’s so short that if you don’t like it, it’s still a book read and didn’t eat up too much of your time.
The first few chapters wowed me. Offill's writing was crisp and she had a talent for observing and writing about people. For example, who could forget the wife's experience of hiding something she dislikes at a restaurant and then find out that the restaurant's staff didn't care? However, I feel that the tone of the book somehow changed after the first few chapters, which affected my enjoyment of the book.
Lists
Overdue Podcast (1)
Awards
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Associated Authors
Statistics
- Works
- 12
- Also by
- 2
- Members
- 4,918
- Popularity
- #5,105
- Rating
- 3.7
- Reviews
- 349
- ISBNs
- 111
- Languages
- 12
- Favorited
- 3