Rage & Other Cages

by Aimee LaBrie

Joyce Carol Oates calls LaBrie's writing "Mordantly funny, eerily discomforting, & unexpectedly wise — an audacious gathering of stories mirroring our contemporary world."  In her award-winning collection of short stories, Rage and Other Cages , LaBrie offers lessons on grief, loneliness, and relationships that examine what it means to be female in today's America.  The characters range from a former child actress turned real estate agent who yearns for her past, to a nurse who must convince a murderer to donate his girlfriend's organs, to a bartender at Ray's Happy Birthday Bar who is kidnapped by a customer searching for a mysterious key. Bad dates, bad jobs, and bad situations force these characters to use their wits and wiles to survive. In a voice akin to Lorrie Moore meets Mary Gaitskill, LaBrie has her readers laughing on one page and raging on another. Her voice is memorable, raw, and undeniably skillful.

Genres: Short Stories

234 pages, Paperback

Published June 11, 2024

Reviews

[George · Rating 5 out of 5]

Why don't I read more short stories?  This collection "Rage & Other Cages" motivates me to do so.  If Stephen King's latest "Dark" was dark, this collection is dark x10 (and just as good as King's, maybe better).  

I'm not sure my review can exceed the Joyce Carol Oates quote on the front of the book "Mordantly funny, eerily discomforting, & unexpectedly wise - an audacious gathering of stories mirroring our contemporary world."

It's great storytelling.  I was entertained from beginning to end! The writing is rich and her voice is relatable. I enjoyed all the smart and well-written surprises like "When I was lying in bed with him, I felt like one should with another person - a deep, gnawing loneliness." Instant classic line and these stories are full of them.  Favorite stories for me were:  "Whistling in the Dark," "Rage," "Dirty" and "Feral."

I recently saw a live performance by comedienne Nikki Glasser and realize this book is a literary version of that, where nothing is off-limits and even the most shocking and taboo topic is fair game for some sharp, unique, dark perspective in "Rage & Other Cages."

[Marcus C · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow this was awesome, I miss Rutgers, the last story touched a nerve with me & my relationship nihilism (in a good way)

[Carla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely delightful. This was the sardonic balm I needed to keep me off the ledge these last two weeks. I devoured it.

[Emily E · Rating 5 out of 5]

Several times my stomach turned, or I had tears in my eyes. Several times I also laughed out loud.

LaBrie has written a collection of stories that show very strongly what it is to be a woman in America. “Rage” and “Our Boys” are particularly excellent.

[Brendan · Rating 5 out of 5]

These stories are absolutely compelling- darkly funny and completely potent in both long and short form. I will definitely return to this one.

[Lindsay Haber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Aimee is a true literary talent. Every one of these stories is filled with humor, rage, honesty, poignancy, and a world view that is nuanced and sharp yet highly relatable. LaBrie has a way of capturing womens' deepest fears and harshest realities through brash, analytical, hilariously hyperbolic narrators. This book is so wonderful, so compelling, so spot on that you will think about it for days and days and weeks and weeks after you put it down. READ THIS BOOK! You won't regret it.