A Vacation on the Island of Ex-Boyfriends

by Stacy Bierlein

Quirks of fate highlight this debut short story collection whose characters are women of dazzling ironies and introspections, always in motion and trusting in love—even when it remains out of reach. Two friends plan a visit to Nantucket, but find themselves on a different island completely, where the men they have loved are lined up on the beach in chronological order; a grieving mother and daughter encounter naked strangers in unexpected places en route to the Dordogne River; a restless New York artist travels to Madrid to find a European lover, only to fall for another persnickety New Yorker. From the mysterious island in the Atlantic to the crowded highways of Los Angeles and  from the Charles Bridge in Prague to the temples of Luxor and the most remote regions of the Myanmar peninsula, the worlds invented here are inspiring and unique, original in the manner through which the physical landscape never fails to inform the emotional one.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Chick Lit

168 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

STACY BIERLEIN is the author of the forthcoming story collection, A Vacation on the Island of Ex-Boyfriends (March 2012), and the editor of the award-winning fiction anthology A Stranger Among Us: Stories of Cross Cultural Collision and Connection. She is a coeditor of the new anthology Men Undressed: Women Writers and the Male Sexual Experience (October 2011). Bierlein is a founding editor of Other Voices Books, and co-creator of the Morgan Street International Novel Series. She contributes essays about writing and publishing to TheNervousBeakdown.com. Originally from Michigan, she now makes her home in Southern California.

Reviews

[Gabriela Galescu · Rating 2 out of 5]

A lot can be said about women (and men, of course) through their sexuality. That is, if one has a lot to say and that does not seem the case of this author. I found every single story well written and carrying a quite interesting message; however, as a collection of stories the book falls flat. The title story is particularly weak, in my opinion.

[Erin Clark · Rating 3 out of 5]

I must admit Stacy Bierlin is a wonderful writer, unfortunately for me she doesn't write about anything I care about. This collection of short stories revolves around women and love in a most unromantic way. Most of the characters came off as shallow, spoiled, over educated and selfish. I can't say I enjoyed it very much and will not be recommending it to anyone else. Not my cup of tea at all. It gets three stars for the writing, not the stories themselves.

[mad mags · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoy it: poolside with a glass of wine and your BFF.

(Full disclosure: I received a free copy of this book for review through Library Thing's Early Reviewer program.)

I don’t always read fiction – but when I do, I almost always read science fiction and horror. (Think: Margaret Atwood, Maureen F. McHugh, Philip Pullman, and Stephen King.) Stacy Bierlein’s A Vacation on the Island of Ex-Boyfriends, then, is well outside my comfort zone. I requested it through Library Thing’s Early Reviewer program, thinking it would make for light, entertaining summer reading. Spoiler alert! I won it, and it did.

The common thread linking the fourteen essays in this anthology is, ostensibly, sex and relationships. However, these also function as a jumping-off points from which to explore a variety of other topics, such as loss, grief, friendship, and self-expression. (As elucidated by the author in the Reader’s Guide, which is primarily comprised of an interview with Bierlein.) With the sole exception of “Ten Reasons Not to Sleep with a Poet,” I found all the stories enjoyable. “Three Naked Men,” “Linguistics,” and “Where it Starts” in particular are standouts. (I quite liked the reverse timeline in “Where it Starts,” even if it proved confusing at first. Bierlein describes herself as someone who “write[s] and think[s] in fragments” – and the nonlinear quality these stories is part of their charm, I think.)

Even so, I had trouble relating to many of Bierlein’s characters, all of whom tend to be heterosexual, cissexual, middle- to upper-class (many with seemingly unlimited disposable income, and residing in large cities on the East or West coast), and (apparently) white. This lack of diversity will no doubt turn some readers off.

Bonus points because: Bierlein self-identifies as a feminist.

http://www.easyvegan.info/2012/04/04/...

[Angela · Rating 2 out of 5]

In this collection of short stories, Stacy Bierlein examines women's relationships to their men, their children, their parents, each other, and the world at large. Her tales are sexually graphic, funny, philosophical, poignant, and -- to me -- somewhat annoying.

Maybe it's modern short fiction that bothers me. A piece in which a character muses about the things he sees while waiting at the bus stop, and then ends when the character gets on the bus is a writing exercise, not a short story. Not that this particular collection contains that exact scenario, but it's a "for instance". Where's the growth of the character in such a piece? Ms. Bierlein's collection contains several such writing exercises -- beautifully done, with lovely words and startling imagery, but not meeting my idea of what a short story should be: something with a beginning, a middle, an end; situation, conflict, resolution.

This is what happens when one is raised on Edgar Allan Poe, Shirley Jackson, and Ray Bradbury: expectation of a certain rigidity of form. Maybe one day I will let go of those expectations and be a little more flexible. Until then, I think I'll stick with novel length fiction. Or short stories by the above-mentioned authors.

Many thanks to LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program for the opportunity to read this collection.

[Jackie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The subject matter isn't one I usually pick up but it was nice to see how the "other half" live - the girly girls, the promiscuous, those girls I (as a girl) call "silly females", wrapped up in little else besides men, clothes, and shopping. There is so much more to life than that, so I don't really relate to a lot of this, but it was decently written and I was able to finish the book. The stories I most enjoyed were the travel ones - she describes exotic locales quite nicely. I thought it a little ridiculous that there was a reading guide included, as if this was literature. I can see the author could possibly reach higher if she's willing to delve into deeper subject matter. Her writing has a dreamy quality that I enjoyed but I agree w/another reviewer a few of the stories just ended without a real ending and that was a little jarring.

[Sydney · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book through LibraryThing's early bird reader program.

It had been awhile since I read a collection of short stories. I had forgotten how much I enjoy this format of storytelling. Bierlein weaves intricate short stories and her language borders on poetic. These stories explore love, lust, sex, loss and friendship. I think my favorite of the stories is about four friends who meet in New Orleans as one of them is planning her wedding. The imagery of New Orleans mixed with each of the friends' descriptions of where they now live (Seattle, Chicago, LA) gave the story such texture. I would love to read a full-length novel by this author. I hope she considers writing one.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Stacy Bierlein is a great writer - she displays amazing skill at flushing out complete characters and life moments plots in every short story. There is a huge array of characters and locations in this book and she deals with all so well. Should I see another book by her, I will definitely pick it up and see what she's up to.
So why only three stars, that's just my personal reflection. This was a collection of stories that were almost all about what seemed to me a characters lowest life moments but few of them seemed to realize it. They were all sad moments lived in some sort of feminist bravado and they lacked a moment where the character learns or grows. The book made me sad for women in a way that makes it impossible to recommend it.

[Holly · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won this book through A LibraryThing giveaway and was really excited to check it out. I received it in the mail yesterday and finished it this afternoon.

This Book contains a collection of stories from different women about their encounters with their lovers,exs, one night stands.

I really enjoyed this book, I think the author did a great job. From the start it pulls you in and keeps you interested. The author does a very good job with description. The flow of The stories was great, I never lost my interest.I think this could be a book I would read a second time.

so, overall I would recommend this for a read. I gave it a 4 out of 5 : )

[Akeiisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting stories about female friendship, love, and grief. The characters are a mix of introspective and promiscuous, with some a combination of the two. The first and last stories nicely bookend this collection of short stories.

I will admit to being distracted in a few of the stories by sentences that didn't make sense due to an unnecessary word or the wrong word being used. Given that most of these stories were written before 2004 and published together in 2012, a good copy editor should have caught these.

[Christy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just when I thought I disliked short stories…
I was reading a DIFFERENT collection & found that the stories lacked closure - they felt like beginnings of stories. But this collection showed me what a good short story can do. They were pithy, provocative, unique, interesting. And yes, they each held their ground as a complete, resolved story. The common threads in the collection were love, sexuality, and loss. and there's a good dose of travel and friendship. Well done Stacey!

[Ricki · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very interesting collection of short stories. Every story dealt with relationships, but some in a healthier way than others. My two favorites would probably be the first and last ones, “A Vacation on the Island of Ex-Boyfriends” and “An Interrogation at the Prison of Ex-Girlfriends”—fitting bookends as the titles imply—which had a sort of fantasy feel to them. I also liked “The Challenge of Acting Normal” which was perhaps the happiest of these rather somber tales.

[Alyssa · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title/cover art for this book really does the writing inside a disservice! Makes it seem like chick-lit/beach book, when it's really an incredibly well-written short story collection. I really enjoyed the majority of the stories in this collection--beautiful, dark, raw writing that really resonated. I'm glad I picked it up looking for a mindless read, when I really came away with something so much more complex.

[Cassie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderfully dreamy, fun (but also sad...fun-sad) collection of stories about the ways women relate to other women, and the ways women relate to men. (But it's also about travel, loss, communication, family, and sex.) Best read under warm blankets with a glass of wine.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written and surprisingly touching.

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great collection of short stories, and a quick read. The whole collection is well written and enjoyable. The story about the photographer in Egypt was my favorite.

[Jodi Paloni · Rating 5 out of 5]

I reviewed this book for Contrary Magazine...

http://blog.contrarymagazine.com/2012...