Something Better Than This

by Mary Gaitskill

Genres: Short Stories

Unknown Binding

About the author

Mary Gaitskill is an American author of essays, short stories and novels. Her work has appeared in The New Yorker, Harper's Magazine, Esquire, The Best American Short Stories (1993 and 2006), and The O. Henry Prize Stories (1998). She married writer Peter Trachtenberg in 2001. As of 2005, she lived in New York City; Gaitskill has previously lived in Toronto, San Francisco, and Marin County, CA, as well as attending the University of Michigan where she earned her B.A. and won a Hopwood Award. Gaitskill has recounted (in her essay "Revelation") becoming a born-again Christian at age 21 but lapsing after six months.

Reviews

[syd]

nothing personal to writer or anything do not look at this review since it’s the only other one for the book this is for my friends to read for entertainment only :
not even gonna rate this cuz idk wtf just happened- first off this short story is for my english class… and it’s so fucking weird like it drops fuck bombs and c words and random ass shit (that would be added for a class reading) wtf did i just read

[Anatoly · Rating 3 out of 5]

The title of the story “Something Better Than This” by Mary Gaitskill covers the plot. The story starts with a long introduction. Before the reader is introduced to the main character, Susan, the story gives a description of a city street and people there. It seems that Yonge Street in Toronto is quite a dreadful place to be on Saturday morning.

Susan is a young woman who sells the trinkets for a wage. There is a certain disconnection between her inner monologue and Susan's outward persona. She has been waiting for something better than this.

Here is the link to the text of the story:
http://fictionaut.com/stories/mary-ga...