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The Plucker: From the World of Spilt Milk
D.K. Cassidy, USA Today best-selling author of Spilt A Collection of Stories, continues the story of some of the characters that first appeared in Spilt Milk, in this second book of the series.
Pria is a young woman obsessed with two plucking anything and everything in her path, and George, her childhood friend.
As a young girl, Pria stood out for her otherness. The only brown child in her school, she withdrew into her own world. Now as an adult she tries to normalize her life by coming to terms with her differences. To do this, she must find George. He was her first living obsession, and now she needs to find him to understand why she can’t stop thinking about him.
Plagued by her need to pluck continuously, Pria feels trapped in a world of the compulsion to follow her rigid daily schedule, the need to collect the miraculous strings growing out of her thin arms, and the love of visiting her avian friends every Wednesday. Will finding George give Pria the peace she seeks?
Or will she retreat further into the depths of her obsession with plucking?
Pria is a young woman obsessed with two plucking anything and everything in her path, and George, her childhood friend.
As a young girl, Pria stood out for her otherness. The only brown child in her school, she withdrew into her own world. Now as an adult she tries to normalize her life by coming to terms with her differences. To do this, she must find George. He was her first living obsession, and now she needs to find him to understand why she can’t stop thinking about him.
Plagued by her need to pluck continuously, Pria feels trapped in a world of the compulsion to follow her rigid daily schedule, the need to collect the miraculous strings growing out of her thin arms, and the love of visiting her avian friends every Wednesday. Will finding George give Pria the peace she seeks?
Or will she retreat further into the depths of her obsession with plucking?
- GenresWeird Fiction
135 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 8, 2016
1 person is currently reading
90 people want to read
About the author
D.K. Cassidy
19 books120 followersD.K. Cassidy has been scribbling stories since she was a child and loves to write in various genres including Magical Realism, Urban Gothic, Science Fiction, and Literary Fiction. She has a B.A. in English Literature from the University of Washington.
D.K. Cassidy lives in the Pacific Northwest with her greatest fans: her husband Mark, twin sons Aidan and Jared, and three cats. When not writing, she loves to travel, run, knit, use the Oxford comma, and of course read!
D.K. Cassidy lives in the Pacific Northwest with her greatest fans: her husband Mark, twin sons Aidan and Jared, and three cats. When not writing, she loves to travel, run, knit, use the Oxford comma, and of course read!
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
September 20, 2016
Plucker pulls you in from the first page. The narrative is simple and elegant and you start empathizing with Pria from the beginning. The author has created an upbeat story and not made it a sad and dreary book though it could have turned out that way given the concept. Instead, it gives one the feeling of interaction with Pria, and the issues she has to deal with, or prefers not to deal with.
It brings about various issues that a young person faces at home, at school and in life. I like the shifting from young to old which is done neatly and which keeps the suspense alive while you try to figure out where it’s headed. The older Pria finds it difficult the shake off the shadow of her younger self and I’m sure most people can relate to that.
The story takes a surprise twist and keeps you riveted. I’ve read Spilt Milk by this author which is a collection of short stories and she is just getting better. I look forward to many more exciting stories from this talented author.
It brings about various issues that a young person faces at home, at school and in life. I like the shifting from young to old which is done neatly and which keeps the suspense alive while you try to figure out where it’s headed. The older Pria finds it difficult the shake off the shadow of her younger self and I’m sure most people can relate to that.
The story takes a surprise twist and keeps you riveted. I’ve read Spilt Milk by this author which is a collection of short stories and she is just getting better. I look forward to many more exciting stories from this talented author.
August 15, 2016
The Plucker is yet another journey into the seemingly insane world of social outcasts. D.K. Cassidy has given us doses of such people in her previous books, Spilt Milk and Curious Reality - both aptly titled. In this book, we are introduced to a lovely girl by the name of Pria and her crazy OCD world - a world most don't understand. To some it's repulsive and offensive. D.K. has an innate way of bringing beauty to flawed people so that you see them from a totally different perspective. It's refreshing and I so enjoyed reading Pria's story.
December 9, 2016
This book is enchanting. Though it deals with a difficult and interesting personality, the compassion and beauty in the writing carries you through the problematic nature of some of the issues tackled here. Well worth picking up!
August 25, 2016
A Unique Story
Pria is a lonely girl who has a hard time fitting in and has very unusual compulsions—plucking everything, rigid time management, and an obsession over finding George, who she believes was her only friend in school. Now her only friends are the pigeons she feeds in the park. Pria thinks finding George will be her first step in becoming cured of her need to pluck. Because of her obsessions, she has a hard time keeping jobs, but whenever she gets fired, she’s always very optimistic that it won’t take her long to find another job. Pria has acquired a strange, uncontrollable power whenever she does get upset. The story takes a very unexpected twist when Pria discovers what has happened to George and why.
This is a very well crafted story about a troubled girl who battles against controlling her compulsion to pluck. The author has done an exceptional job in bringing readers into Pria’s self-imposed solitude that Pria is trying to escape. I felt for Pria’s blight in life, and kept hoping she could break out of her invisible prison. A good read!
Pria is a lonely girl who has a hard time fitting in and has very unusual compulsions—plucking everything, rigid time management, and an obsession over finding George, who she believes was her only friend in school. Now her only friends are the pigeons she feeds in the park. Pria thinks finding George will be her first step in becoming cured of her need to pluck. Because of her obsessions, she has a hard time keeping jobs, but whenever she gets fired, she’s always very optimistic that it won’t take her long to find another job. Pria has acquired a strange, uncontrollable power whenever she does get upset. The story takes a very unexpected twist when Pria discovers what has happened to George and why.
This is a very well crafted story about a troubled girl who battles against controlling her compulsion to pluck. The author has done an exceptional job in bringing readers into Pria’s self-imposed solitude that Pria is trying to escape. I felt for Pria’s blight in life, and kept hoping she could break out of her invisible prison. A good read!
December 12, 2016
OCD on Steroids
This book is a primer on the world of OCD. I never realized how OCD shaped its victims' entire lives until I read this book. Pria, the main character, plucks but not haphazardly. She has a controlled schedule for her plucking. She has to have one because she has a job, an apartment, and a life that she doesn’t want to lose should someone find out about her issues. Then, one day, Pria becomes obsessed with reuniting with a childhood acquaintance, George. Pria calls George a friend but everyone seems to think she is delusional for thinking so. There’s just one problem, he is in a psychiatric hospital. Pria starts on a quest to help George. I won’t spoil the plot or ending, but let’s just leave it that this book ends the only way it could.
This book is a primer on the world of OCD. I never realized how OCD shaped its victims' entire lives until I read this book. Pria, the main character, plucks but not haphazardly. She has a controlled schedule for her plucking. She has to have one because she has a job, an apartment, and a life that she doesn’t want to lose should someone find out about her issues. Then, one day, Pria becomes obsessed with reuniting with a childhood acquaintance, George. Pria calls George a friend but everyone seems to think she is delusional for thinking so. There’s just one problem, he is in a psychiatric hospital. Pria starts on a quest to help George. I won’t spoil the plot or ending, but let’s just leave it that this book ends the only way it could.
September 17, 2016
Cassidy has a talent for creating surreal and thought provoking characters. Pria has a compulsion need to pluck everything, her hair and feathers off pigeons. She even landed a position where her job was to pluck. Pria develops a power that manifests when she gets upset. Can her childhood friend, George, help her compulsion?
The Plucker is a great addition to Cassidy’s truly amazing and unique world of magical realism. This a well-crafted and evocative story.
The Plucker is a great addition to Cassidy’s truly amazing and unique world of magical realism. This a well-crafted and evocative story.
September 20, 2016
A story that teeters on the edge of sanity, playing with the darker side of life - a glimpse of the lost, sad, depressed, and paranoid people with more than human powers that really do them no good...a good read for one of those dark and stormy evenings when the brain begs for something that goes bump in the night and makes one wonder what in all truth is sanity....good work...
January 16, 2017
Review: The Plucker By D K Cassidy
This is another of Cassidy’s delightfully strange stories in the Spilled Milk series. The Plucker focuses on Pia, an anxious young woman whose parents immigrated from India. She wants to be like every body else, but her anxieties tell her that her brown skin and dark hair are too different.
The story has walk-on appearances from some of Cassidy’s earlier works, but The Plucker stands alone.
What amazed me is how Cassidy can make the reader fall in love with a young woman who has obvious mental health issues. She lets us get inside Pia’s head in such a manner that we not only love Pia but can see the humor and warmth inside the world of a girl whose only friends are the pigeons she feeds on Wednesdays. The reader feels the security of living inside Pia’s rituals.
I highly recommend Cassidy’s books for their twisted perspective on reality and for richness of her characters as they fumble through life looking for love. I look forward to more books from Cassidy
This is another of Cassidy’s delightfully strange stories in the Spilled Milk series. The Plucker focuses on Pia, an anxious young woman whose parents immigrated from India. She wants to be like every body else, but her anxieties tell her that her brown skin and dark hair are too different.
The story has walk-on appearances from some of Cassidy’s earlier works, but The Plucker stands alone.
What amazed me is how Cassidy can make the reader fall in love with a young woman who has obvious mental health issues. She lets us get inside Pia’s head in such a manner that we not only love Pia but can see the humor and warmth inside the world of a girl whose only friends are the pigeons she feeds on Wednesdays. The reader feels the security of living inside Pia’s rituals.
I highly recommend Cassidy’s books for their twisted perspective on reality and for richness of her characters as they fumble through life looking for love. I look forward to more books from Cassidy
March 8, 2017
The Plucker, is a refreshingly unusual read. Pria is a fascinating character with her OCD and other eccentricities. The lives of the other characters and peculiar personalities are equally intriguing. There are many interesting issues explored in this book all wrapped up in a compelling story. I would highly recommend this book for anyone looking for something different. I was left wanting to know more and will be reading the other related books.
August 21, 2016
Very interesting, well-written story
I liked this story. Even though it keeps you guessing on where it is going and encourages you to learn more about these characters in the authors other books, it is short enough to be well worth the time invested. Unforgettable.
I liked this story. Even though it keeps you guessing on where it is going and encourages you to learn more about these characters in the authors other books, it is short enough to be well worth the time invested. Unforgettable.
October 31, 2016
This book has characters from Spilt Milk: A Collection of Stories. I enjoyed reading more about Pria and George.
Pria is featured in this book and is a young woman suffering from several compulsions. The way she handles these is an amazing journey.
This book can be read as a standalone.
Pria is featured in this book and is a young woman suffering from several compulsions. The way she handles these is an amazing journey.
This book can be read as a standalone.
November 27, 2016
Finished in one sitting! Loved it! I want to know more about Pria, George, and Caleb. Does George see her again?? Totally bizarre and captivating!
January 11, 2017
The Plucker is an inside view into a young woman's life with OCD. She is obsessed with plucking but also has to keep it hidden in order to continue with her life. The author does a great job in showing the real aspects of living with mental illness while still keeping the book upbeat. It is not a sad and depressing story but a book filled with truths and magic.
July 24, 2017
Very very strange and meant for the aficionado of the devilishly macabre and mystifying. As well written as all of her others that I highly recommend.
February 9, 2017
Curiouser and curiouser; plucky author, plucky book!
I think we’ve all heard the phrase that there’s no such thing as a normal family, only those you haven’t met yet. Or: Normal? It’s a cycle on a washing machine, isn’t it?
I couldn’t resist reviewing this book in order that I might use those two lines. Because nothing exemplifies the idea – that we’re all kind of weird, in our own way – than the books I’ve read to date by D K Cassidy. That being said, she’s difficult to review without giving anything away – which I will not do, and state as much in all my reviews.
But let me tell you about the book’s disturbingly hilarious qualities, because, for black comedy, this is a true gem.
Firstly, I found myself cringing for most of the characters concerned, thanks to the author’s wonderfully adept method of drawing the reader to centre-stage, by way of her pithy and at times repetitive phraseology – repetitive use of proper nouns, for example; again, we have one of those books, written in 3rd person, and yet which leaves you feeling as though you’ve read it in 1st. But then do we? Because we’re able to discern how the protagonist must come across to those other characters – I must point out here, too, that I didn’t cringe for those reasons alone, but for a personal, more physical one. But like I said, I’m giving nothing away…
Then let’s think about the ‘alien’ the author’s provided us with. An intelligent alien, an astute alien, particularly with regard to her own ‘failings’ – or what society recognises as failings, and so she must too. Call her Pria – that’s P R I A, in case you’re wondering, an unusual name, but then it matches her different shade of skin. And what are we left with? A page turner, whereby we turn each page with only the one eye open; Pria’s essence so being that, while she may differ from the rest of us, we can’t help finding a little bit of ourselves in her at the same time.
Thought provoking, I guess the description is, whereby the author presents us with no more than what some might view as mundane – sorry, no vampires, no bare-chested cowboys, no time travelling knights. Just someone a little different… who, I might add, IS capable of bringing about the ‘paranormal’. Or is that just in her head?
Whatever the case, we’re all supposed to be on the ‘…’ spectrum somewhere. Aren’t we?
Bravo, D K Cassidy, I’ve not only learned two new words describing skin conditions, but these truly are the kinds of books I like to read!
I think we’ve all heard the phrase that there’s no such thing as a normal family, only those you haven’t met yet. Or: Normal? It’s a cycle on a washing machine, isn’t it?
I couldn’t resist reviewing this book in order that I might use those two lines. Because nothing exemplifies the idea – that we’re all kind of weird, in our own way – than the books I’ve read to date by D K Cassidy. That being said, she’s difficult to review without giving anything away – which I will not do, and state as much in all my reviews.
But let me tell you about the book’s disturbingly hilarious qualities, because, for black comedy, this is a true gem.
Firstly, I found myself cringing for most of the characters concerned, thanks to the author’s wonderfully adept method of drawing the reader to centre-stage, by way of her pithy and at times repetitive phraseology – repetitive use of proper nouns, for example; again, we have one of those books, written in 3rd person, and yet which leaves you feeling as though you’ve read it in 1st. But then do we? Because we’re able to discern how the protagonist must come across to those other characters – I must point out here, too, that I didn’t cringe for those reasons alone, but for a personal, more physical one. But like I said, I’m giving nothing away…
Then let’s think about the ‘alien’ the author’s provided us with. An intelligent alien, an astute alien, particularly with regard to her own ‘failings’ – or what society recognises as failings, and so she must too. Call her Pria – that’s P R I A, in case you’re wondering, an unusual name, but then it matches her different shade of skin. And what are we left with? A page turner, whereby we turn each page with only the one eye open; Pria’s essence so being that, while she may differ from the rest of us, we can’t help finding a little bit of ourselves in her at the same time.
Thought provoking, I guess the description is, whereby the author presents us with no more than what some might view as mundane – sorry, no vampires, no bare-chested cowboys, no time travelling knights. Just someone a little different… who, I might add, IS capable of bringing about the ‘paranormal’. Or is that just in her head?
Whatever the case, we’re all supposed to be on the ‘…’ spectrum somewhere. Aren’t we?
Bravo, D K Cassidy, I’ve not only learned two new words describing skin conditions, but these truly are the kinds of books I like to read!
January 28, 2017
The Plucker
From the World of Spilt Milk
by D. K. Cassidy
In The Plucker, we meet Pria, an Indian girl living with her family in the USA. She has several issues, which seem to stem from her parents' ethnic origin, which they still adhere to. Pria finds things such as saris and curry embarrassing as she tries to blend in with the white American majority around her. She is particularly conscious of the colour of her skin and fantasises about being a white-skinned, blond-haired, blue-eyed princess.
These tensions and internal conflicts lead to her developing several Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders, which also bother her, while providing comfort at the same time.
Pria's obsessive compulsive disorders and her Indian heritage result in her leading a solitary life, although she does feel an affinity for a neighbour and classmate, George, not that they ever play together or even talk. In her early twenties, Pria learns that he is in a mental home, and she decides to try to help him. However, after just one visit, she comes to the conclusion that he is happy as he is, and the reader is given a glimmer of hope that Pria will start her recovery too.
The Plucker is a thought-provoking story, which offers an insight into how difficult it can be for some people to fit into the culture of a society, which is not originally their own.
Miss Cassidy does a particularly good job of describing Pria's thoughts and consequent reasons for doing what she does, but the other characters are well drawn too.
The Plucker is part of a collection of novels called The World of Spilt Milk, which I gather can be read in any order. I really enjoyed The Plucker and will be looking at its companion novels.
Full marks
From the World of Spilt Milk
by D. K. Cassidy
In The Plucker, we meet Pria, an Indian girl living with her family in the USA. She has several issues, which seem to stem from her parents' ethnic origin, which they still adhere to. Pria finds things such as saris and curry embarrassing as she tries to blend in with the white American majority around her. She is particularly conscious of the colour of her skin and fantasises about being a white-skinned, blond-haired, blue-eyed princess.
These tensions and internal conflicts lead to her developing several Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders, which also bother her, while providing comfort at the same time.
Pria's obsessive compulsive disorders and her Indian heritage result in her leading a solitary life, although she does feel an affinity for a neighbour and classmate, George, not that they ever play together or even talk. In her early twenties, Pria learns that he is in a mental home, and she decides to try to help him. However, after just one visit, she comes to the conclusion that he is happy as he is, and the reader is given a glimmer of hope that Pria will start her recovery too.
The Plucker is a thought-provoking story, which offers an insight into how difficult it can be for some people to fit into the culture of a society, which is not originally their own.
Miss Cassidy does a particularly good job of describing Pria's thoughts and consequent reasons for doing what she does, but the other characters are well drawn too.
The Plucker is part of a collection of novels called The World of Spilt Milk, which I gather can be read in any order. I really enjoyed The Plucker and will be looking at its companion novels.
Full marks
October 19, 2016
An impressive, compelling and at times unnerving piece of writing. Pria, of Indian extraction, has been prone to nervous, obsessive mannerisms and ticks since childhood, including eating disorders. Now, as a friendless adult, she is a mass of psychological disorders and delusions, centred around forms of self-abuse. Then she runs into her childhood crush... Ostensibly a bunch of oddball characters are portrayed in this novel, but in essence, as with D.K. Cassidy's other work, we are immediately gripped by the objectified, unemotional, almost casual examination and recording of deeply flawed characters immersed within worlds of psychological disorders and trauma. Unnervingly authentic and powerful, yet tinged with sadness at the human condition and the savage tricks it can play on any of us. There is a beautiful, yet chilling phrase in the book describing this condition where a fear of growing up and developing evolves into a self-creation of a personal world of psychotic 'otherness'. It is described as "not wanting to let the world in..." Wonderful, insightful writing.
October 23, 2016
Spilt Milk and Curious Reality, two of my favourite reads in the last couple of years. D K Cassidy is a masterful writer, top notch with a fantastic, brisk and engaging style.
Her "out of the box" topics and characters work because she makes you believe in her story and more importantly in the reasons why her characters behave as they do and why they are as they are.
Ms Cassidy has won awards for her books and I'm not surprised. Her superb writing style is unique and unequaled.
Her "out of the box" topics and characters work because she makes you believe in her story and more importantly in the reasons why her characters behave as they do and why they are as they are.
Ms Cassidy has won awards for her books and I'm not surprised. Her superb writing style is unique and unequaled.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews