DIS MEM BER and Other Stories of Mystery and Suspense

Title: DIS MEM BER and Other Stories of Mystery and Suspense
Author: Joyce Carol Oates
First Published: June 6, 2017
Publisher: Mysterious Press
Pages: 256
Genre: Horror, Mystery, Short Stories, Suspense
Format: Hardcover
Source: Library
Rating:


Synopsis:

In the title story, a precocious eleven-year-old named Jill is in thrall to an older male relative, the mysterious, attractive black sheep of the family. Without telling her parents Jill climbs into his sky-blue Chevy to be driven to an uncertain, and unforgettable, fate. In “The Drowned Girl,” a university transfer student becomes increasingly obsessed with the drowning/murder of another female student, as her own sense of self begins to deteriorate. In “Great Blue Heron,” a recent widow grieves inside the confines of her lakefront home and fantasizes about transforming into that great flying predator—unerring and pitiless in the hunt. And in the final story, “Welcome to Friendly Skies,” a trusting group of bird-watchers is borne to a remote part of the globe, to a harrowing fate.

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Review

Joyce Carol Oates really knows how to write deeply uncomfortable fiction, she is a master of psychological horror. DIS MEM BER and Other Stories is a collection of disturbing short stories, with many of the stories exploring the way that women acquiesce to the abuses of men, whether out of self-preservation or fear. Oates’ writing remains ever sharp and a range of characters teetering on the edge of self-destruction. The stories were overflowing with characters’ feelings of insecurity, fear, bitter jealousy and the often stream of consciousness narratives can feel overwhelming.

My favorite was easily the titular DIS MEM BER followed by Great Blue Heron, they are both strong stories that made me fly through the pages. In all this is a good collection, with the exception of the last story, they all felt fairly cohesive. Perhaps not the authors’ strongest, but it solidifies my interest in Oates’ writing.

Individual Story Notes:

♥ DIS MEM BER: The titular story sets the tone early for the dark themes of moral decay in this book. It was reminiscent of Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? This story was brutal in its portrayal of gaslighting and grooming, as an 11-year old becomes the target of an older male relative.

♥ The Crawl Space: This story was claustrophobic and overwhelming. It follows the story of a widow, longing for the house she used to live in for twenty years with her husband. The confines of her marriage are made terrifyingly literal, a smart character study.

♥ Heartbreak: It was an interesting family drama, focusing on two sisters who twist and become different people, bitterly jealous over the attentions of a boy. The character work in this story was good, but I didn’t care so much for the ending.

♥ The Drowned Girl: Follows a struggling older university student that becomes obsessed over the mysterious death of another university student she had never met. The incident takes heavy inspiration from the unsettling Elisa Lam case from 2013, which was unsatisfyingly ruled an accident. The main character’s spiral into madness, brought on by unexpected debt and the pressures of higher education, begins to liken herself to the drowned “victim.” I liked the ideas in this story, but I couldn’t stand the main character, and this made the story feel like it dragged a bit.

♥ The Situations: This story was really three tiny shorts in one, about boys and fathers that exert violent control, these stories are short but felt like a hard slap.

♥ Great Blue Heron: Honestly this was one of the best stories out of the bunch, following a grieving widow and the mounting pressure placed upon her, particularly from a gold-digging relative. She is unsettled but drawn to the predatory Great Blue Heron that hunts in the lake by her house. This story was wickedly vicious and I adored it.

♥ Welcome to Friendly Skies!: A satire about airline flights, it had its amusing parts but did not leave much of an impression on me.

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