goodreads | The Last Girlfriend on Earth

Title: The Last Girlfriend on Earth
Author: Simon Rich
Genre: Short stories
Rating: 4/5
# pages: 215 pages
Date read: August, 2015

Love can be messy, painful, and even tragic. When seen through the eyes of Simon Rich it can also be hilarious.

In these ingenious stories, Rich conjures up some unforgettable romances: an unused prophylactic describes life inside a teenage boy's wallet; God juggles the demands of his needy girlfriend with the looming deadline for earth's creation; and a lovestruck Sherlock Holmes ignores all the clues that his girlfriend's been cheating on him.

As enchanting, sweet, and absurd as love itself, these stories are an irresistible collection of delights.

The first stories were awesome - I loved "Unprotected" (cute story with an unusual narrator) and laughed out loud at "Dog Missed Connections", but as the book went on, many of the stories fell flat, and after a strong beginning, the rest were pretty hit-or-miss. It ended on a strong note though, and the last one made me laugh.

Some of them made it obvious that I was supposed to find them funny (like "Set Up"), but they just didn't work for me. Others made for an interesting but chilling commentary on today's society (like "Occupy Jen's Street"). And a few just ended before they'd even started (like "Is It Just Me?").

There were very few I decidedly disliked though, and the good ones were very, very good, so I'm glad I've read them. I'm usually not that into short stories, but these were so short that they seemed more like vignettes, which appeals more to me.