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They Belong Only to Themselves
In They Belong Only to Themselves, two strangers become entwined in each other’s lives during a potluck dinner and struggle with the consequences.
21 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 22, 2018
3 people are currently reading
836 people want to read
About the author
Brandon Taylor
21 books1,681 followersThere is more than one author with this name
Brandon Taylor is the senior editor of Electric Literature's Recommended Reading and a staff writer at Literary Hub. His writing has received fellowships from Lambda Literary Foundation, Kimbilio Fiction, and the Tin House Summer Writer's Workshop. He holds graduate degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the University of Iowa, where he was an Iowa Arts Fellow at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop in fiction.
Brandon Taylor is the senior editor of Electric Literature's Recommended Reading and a staff writer at Literary Hub. His writing has received fellowships from Lambda Literary Foundation, Kimbilio Fiction, and the Tin House Summer Writer's Workshop. He holds graduate degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the University of Iowa, where he was an Iowa Arts Fellow at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop in fiction.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
April 22, 2022
They Belong Only to Themselves begins with a gay virgin attending a dinner party, what happens to him there and after. Though the writing is more pedestrian than I prefer it flows well. In just a few pages the author has imbued his main character with some substance, and the story is not boring or predicable. This is a cut above the first two in this group of twelve stories sold separately or in groups of six; I pondered giving those one star. This is a solid three. I don't know whether I'll read Brandon Taylor's work again but I might, and that possibility has, a quarter of the way in to the dozen, assuaged my buyer's remorse.
February 4, 2021
A light-hearted yet thoughtful read. The author’s writing is flawless, which certainly is a plus for this one.
★★★★☆
3.8 stars rounded up!
★★★★☆
3.8 stars rounded up!
June 25, 2018
It captures a very specific kind of loneliness that seems tied to youth and it depicts it with lyricism and kindness.
September 4, 2023
I' rather be choosing a safe side and say,
It was a book of reality, than prefer to explain why.
Because god damn you can read 20 pages!! And know yourself. It's definitely, my favourite reads I swear. I swear.
It was a book of reality, than prefer to explain why.
Because god damn you can read 20 pages!! And know yourself. It's definitely, my favourite reads I swear. I swear.
April 2, 2018
Short and perfect.
April 27, 2018
Poignant and Beautiful
Such a lovely story, beautifully written. I look forward to reading other works by Brandon Taylor. His mastery of the short story is evident in this piece.
Such a lovely story, beautifully written. I look forward to reading other works by Brandon Taylor. His mastery of the short story is evident in this piece.
May 11, 2022
Okay, sucks that it's SO SHORT!
I'm not really into this genre of books. I find them too bland these days or just too "unrealistic" and maybe that's the point, but it's so hard that I've felt something while reading a non fiction in a while you know?
But this one is fluff. This one holds you and cradles you in its arms and lulls you to sleep on a bad day. Especially on a bad day.
I really loved the little inner monologues of one the main characters (whose name I've already forgotten). It's cringe at certain places and I can definitely cut a star or half for that, but you know what?
It's short and it's fluff so that makes up.
This isn't a story it's a small incident. It's a novella.
Go for it on a bad day you feel you need to read something and complete it to feel more YOU.
4.5 stars for sure!
P.S. No I'm not being generous because this is my genre of book (it really isn't) but i don't know what about THIS book is so special to me you know?
I'm not really into this genre of books. I find them too bland these days or just too "unrealistic" and maybe that's the point, but it's so hard that I've felt something while reading a non fiction in a while you know?
But this one is fluff. This one holds you and cradles you in its arms and lulls you to sleep on a bad day. Especially on a bad day.
I really loved the little inner monologues of one the main characters (whose name I've already forgotten). It's cringe at certain places and I can definitely cut a star or half for that, but you know what?
It's short and it's fluff so that makes up.
This isn't a story it's a small incident. It's a novella.
Go for it on a bad day you feel you need to read something and complete it to feel more YOU.
4.5 stars for sure!
P.S. No I'm not being generous because this is my genre of book (it really isn't) but i don't know what about THIS book is so special to me you know?
May 11, 2018
Every story I read by Brandon Taylor is so well-crafted and beautifully written. I so look forward to his two novels in the coming years.
Read
December 22, 2021
Trigger & Content Warnings
Cheating
Depression
Attempted suicide recounted
Animal cruelty mentioned
Cheating
Depression
Attempted suicide recounted
Animal cruelty mentioned
January 7, 2023
Absolutely love Brandon Taylor so I’m trying to make my way through his works before his new release comes out. I just don’t care for short stories but Taylor’s writing always impresses.
May 9, 2022
came at a perfect time. beautiful and a little lonely and left me wanting more.
March 31, 2023
3.5
"On he went. He felt a pulsating loneliness inside as he walked. It wasn’t that he was usually surrounded by people or anything like that. Solitude was his normal state. But he never felt more alone than in groups of other people and never more aware of how alone he felt than after he had left the group"
"There had been a time, yes, when Lionel did more than proctor exams. There had been a time when he didn’t spend his hours preparing to drive to the campus and sit in brightly lit rooms to hand out test papers. But that time belonged to before. It was hazy, beyond him, out there somewhere, fluttering like a gray slip of paper out of his grasp"
•This book came at the right time, specially with its length and my ever shrinking attention span.
•This book talks about loneliness that feels real, in a way not many authors have done, and that too in such a short span of words. It also hints at the protagonist's past and how he's still trying to deal with it.
•Everything seemed to play a part in the story - from the snow to the bird.
•The flow was consistent and plot unpredictable, although I would've liked a more conclusive ending to the story.
•A perfect book to read with a cup of coffee.
"On he went. He felt a pulsating loneliness inside as he walked. It wasn’t that he was usually surrounded by people or anything like that. Solitude was his normal state. But he never felt more alone than in groups of other people and never more aware of how alone he felt than after he had left the group"
"There had been a time, yes, when Lionel did more than proctor exams. There had been a time when he didn’t spend his hours preparing to drive to the campus and sit in brightly lit rooms to hand out test papers. But that time belonged to before. It was hazy, beyond him, out there somewhere, fluttering like a gray slip of paper out of his grasp"
•This book came at the right time, specially with its length and my ever shrinking attention span.
•This book talks about loneliness that feels real, in a way not many authors have done, and that too in such a short span of words. It also hints at the protagonist's past and how he's still trying to deal with it.
•Everything seemed to play a part in the story - from the snow to the bird.
•The flow was consistent and plot unpredictable, although I would've liked a more conclusive ending to the story.
•A perfect book to read with a cup of coffee.
March 29, 2020
Just, wow.
February 9, 2021
this short was filled a sense of tenderness and intimacy, coupled with an aching loneliness that loomed quietly in the background - really beautifully written!
March 18, 2021
this was so similar to 'real life' in the depictions of loneliness and the general atmosphere, this is by no means a complaint though because i love that book and this story is no exception
December 25, 2022
la ensalada es comida queer
December 31, 2022
So beautiful, so explicably tender
June 23, 2023
3.5
could've been 4 if it were longer
could've been 4 if it were longer
June 2, 2024
Nicely written short covering loneliness. Not a lot to it.
November 5, 2024
Brandon Taylor is the only author who can write about angst, longing and loneliness is this melancholic way. I love how he potrays the flaws of his characters and the bleakness of the atmosphere.
did-not-finish
March 26, 2018Yeah, no.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews