Tava Testing Signs

by Anna Catman

The book contains two short novels. 'Coffee and Margaret' is a book about past migrant experiences, which combines a retrospective gaze with the feeling that much of what happened then and there matters here and now. At the same time the author is trying to capture and describe change as it happens within us as well as outside. 'Tava testing signs' looks at how the human fate may be shaped and the way we perceive it all.

154 pages, Hardcover

Published August 22, 2022

Reviews

[Dorinela · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can honestly say these are the most original short stories I've read in a long time ! The two stories have a few recurring themes and elements, like the fact that the main characters are both Russian immigrants living in Australia. The first story focuses on a somewhat dystopian scenario where the main character is accused of assaulting an AI store product scanning machine and suffers dumbfounding consequences, while the latter is about some mysterious murders witnessed by cats.
The author's literary style felt like a tribute to absurdist fiction classics and the most enjoyable part for me was the play on words and their meanings, which piqued my interest as a linguist and polyglot.
The narrative was a bit hard to follow at times and clogged with too many details which failed to have any relevance further on, but I believe the author's goal was not a linear realistic story anyway, so I was not expecting a neat end to any of the two stories.

*many thanks to BookTasters for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Blackrose · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.3 ⭐️

First things first, shoutout to Booktasters for the hookup with "Tava Testing Signs" by Anna Cayman. Now, let's dive into it.

So, I tried, I really did, but finding the thrill of reading in this book was like trying to find a needle in a haystack with a blindfold on. I pushed through, determined to unlock the mysteries, but alas, the plot eluded me like a cat avoiding a bath.

Now, the murder mystery arc – intriguing, right? There were moments of potential excitement, like a spark in the dark, but it struggled to ignite the reading fireworks I was hoping for. The author had this cool idea of probing life, secrets, and deep reflections on thought, but it's like the questioning got a little too wild, when it should've stuck to the foxtrot. It dragged the story down a rabbit hole, and I'm not sure if Alice ever found her way back. I'm a little loss truth to be told.

Honestly, it felt like trying to fit a square peg into a round hole. I couldn't quite relate, and there were these missing context pieces that left me squinting at the pages. The second part tried to smooth things over, like putting a Band-Aid on a literary boo-boo, but the confusion lingered.

In a nutshell, this book left me feeling like I just survived a wild maze but didn't quite nab the treasure at the end. Maybe it's an acquired taste, and sadly, my taste buds didn't quite sync up with this one.

[Flor PL · Rating 2 out of 5]

The general feeling is: incomplete, something is missing.

Of the first part I can say that I understand the intention but it lacks connection and context, I can highlight certain phrases:
Anyway, I like the fact that life has never changed me so much. I talk, think and look different. What I am is now, not before. Or do I still want both? Both, of course. Is it possible?

As for the second part, it seems more dynamic and fluid, a lot of rambling and metaphors when suddenly what is he doing solving a crime?

"Understanding the present starts with the past and so on."


I think both are either too long to shock you or too short to be deep stories.


In collaboration with Booktaster for an honest review

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I started reading this, the first thing I noticed was that it felt like I was reading someone's diary or journal, and they were telling me all about their daily life, and their thoughts. That interested me, and I liked the informal tone. In some ways, it felt as though I was having a casual conversation with a friend.

After a while, I started to wonder what this narrator was trying to tell me, and while I appreciated this narrator talking to me, and sharing their thoughts and their story, somewhere down the line, I started to feel as though I'd missed their point, or hadn't fully understood what they were trying to say. I was still interested, but at some point in the story, I lost my way.

[Kathryn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Booktasters provided me with a copy of this book for an honest review.

Tava Testing Signs is a story of musings that turned into a confusing murder mystery. The short stories were a series of ramblings about life and its secrets. As much as I tried, I couldn't understand the story's overall plot. As such, I'm giving it two stars.

[Yolisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Every reader has that something that they are looking for in every book they read. I didn't find mine in this book, I noticed that here we find 2 stories but depicted in short interesting musings
I believe the author understands what they were trying to portray, unfortunately I missed it somewhere. I appreciate the opportunity to have read the book.

[Asmaa · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book is not very catchy, it felt more like a person's diary than a story.
I think the author should try to change the writing style and work on clarifying the story baseline which took me quite a long time to find.

[Manal Jamaleddine · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book can be considered as author's reflections and personal thoughts rather than a novel or short stories. Too many questions in every page made it less joyful to read and more distracting.