Witty, peculiar and oddly heartbreaking. Its a book that is quite odd at times but surprisingly will catch your heart in ways that you did't expected it too.

There is something so strange and unusual in this book but yet it captivates you from the stories and Atwood's writing. It has a strange uniqueness that compels you to finish the stories till the very end, not knowing what you will find in the next story. Will it be an ode to your dead cat? Or having a conversation with George Orwell through a spiritual medium? Or well, you know, the occurence of a human with the soul of a snail trapped inside them? Yes - you'd never know what you'll find through the pages which makes this book has its own character.

Personal Ratings : 4🌟

The book is a collection of 15 short stories that has been divided into Three Parts .
Part I and Part III are of the same characters - but with different timelines. Its the story of two old couples Nell and Tig and their occurence. Part I focuses more on the experiences of the couple together - and Part III is more of coping through life of them as their own.

Part II of the book takes us to a wide variety of stories. Some were written in the pandemic and is experimental to a fault. Some can take you to talking with spirits and going through the notions of known leaders.

But through all of the parts, the recurring themes are of loneliness, after effects of the war, and mostly of death and grief , in ways to cope with them.

I won't write out all of my thoughts for the short stories, as I feel that it will spoil the experience of reading it, but here are some of my top stories from each parts.

Part I: Tig & Nell
There are three short stories in here which focuses more on the weird occurences that both of this couple had encountered together. My fav story would be the last story.

Morte De Smudgie - 4.5🌟
Its a story of an ode to their dead cat, where its witty but also very heartbreaking. It shows how people cope through grief in multiple ways and that there are no right ways to cope with grief - rather its best to do whatever we think suits us best. This ode to their dead cat made my heart ached as there are no greater pain in losing the pet that is also a part of your own soul.

Part II: The Evil Mother
Most of the stories in Part II are peculiar and mostly weird but gosh they were so , so intriguing. The title of Part II is taken from one of the famous short stories that Atwood has written and I had enjoyed it as well. Out of the 8 short stories in this section, I will talk about the Top 3 stories that caught my heart :

1) Metempsychosis: or The journey of The Soul - 5 Brilliant 🌟

This is one of the most peculiar stories I've read and the ending somewhat reminded me of The Vegetarian written by Han Kang. The story of the soul of a snail that has been trapped into a woman's body and how it transgresses from questioning its existence altogether. Its a story that is set in the borderlines of psychosis and fantasy, in which may or may not be true. Atwood's writing for me shone in here where the story is so peculiar and yet, it got me invested in which she ended in a very depressed tone at the end. Its the epitome of loneliness and how people try to cope with them. (And side note - I found out some very interesting facts about snails haha)

2) The Dead Interview - 4.75🌟

This is another very interesting short story that caught my heart. Its a conversation of Atwood herself with the late George Orwell, through a spiritual medium. Not only is this story interesting, it also showed a side of Orwell that made me want to pick up 1984 really fast. Atwood had highlighted the after effects of the post-war until the modern world and I find that the conversation is very endearing. Its like seeing Atwood being a fangirl herself writing to her favourite author , and true to the words that she wrote; there are different ways of being alive.

Orwell, even if being dead for a long time already; his works are still relevant until today. The fact that he had predicted a lot of things back during the time of World War II that is relevant in our future now showed how much alive he still is even if he's not physically here. I kind of understood the message that Atwood had tried to bring forward with this story and is one that had made me a bit teary at the end.

3) Death by Clamshell - 4.75🌟

A story from the POV of Hypatia from Alexandria, and one that is heartbreaking. Atwood higlighted on the violence of war, especially on women at the time and how it had made one of the most intelligent scholars at the time dead in the hands of men - scorned due to her intelligence and beauty. Atwood wrote the POV of Hypatia beautifully, on her loneliness but also her regrets of not being able to do more. Its one of the shortest stories in the book and yet it was one of the most impactful ones. It contemplates on the existence of a person and whether or not the prints that you have left in your life are significant or not and it made the story one that I will remember for a very long time.

Part III: Nell & Tig
Part III consisted of the same couple from Part I, but focuses more on a different topic, on moving on and of grief. All 4 stories for me is like walking through a memory lane and it left me with a bit of heartache after each of the ending.

Overall, this book consisted of a collection of short stories that is wide and showed the variety of Atwood's writing. Its filled with life, peculiar at times and definitely has a deeper message that it led on.
My advice going into the book :-
1) Don't skip the parts - as they are somewhat interconnected with each other
2) Some stories does not make sense but just enjoy the ride.

Recommended. Biggest thank you to @definitelybooks for this copy!