Alex McCullough’s Reviews > The Best American Short Stories 2020 > Status Update

(the special world - 3.5) didn’t really come together for me, but i liked the concept and the ending

(kennedy - 5) so i was under the impression kevin wilson was the preeminent “feel good” writer. i was lied to. this story did not make me feel good.

(Enlightenment - 2.5) Just. Icky.

(the hands of dirty children - 3.75) ☹️☹️☹️☹️

(the nine-tailed fox explains - 3.5) the fragmented structure, like a bad soup, didn’t agree with me. but the concept is so good that i can’t give this less than 3 stars. i would’ve benefited from some contextual familiarity with chinese mythology before going in methinks

(howl palace - 4.5) romanticizing alaska again. send aid in the form of caribou burgers

(liberté - 1.5) this story was so dully written that i went an entire page and realized i was reading the words but in my head i was watching veep and i hadn’t processed a single word i’d read. and then i turned the page

(it’s not you - 5) this is one of those stories that reignites my love for reading and writing and everything else for which my love needs the occasional reignition. probably my favorite of the collection so far

(rubberdust - 3.5) went to the noor naga school for mfa metafiction and passed with… walking colors

(the children - 1.5) so straightforward and sterile as to be borderline unreadable. what was the point even