Review by markodim721 -- Tales of the 70's by D.Done

[markodim721]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Tales of the 70's" by D.Done.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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The book Tales of the 70’s is an interesting combination of a collection of stories and a novella. As can be deduced from the title, all the stories are set in the seventies of the 20th century. The plot of most of the stories is set in San Francisco, and the specific aroma of the famous '70s is even more pronounced. As befits the decade in question, the themes of the stories deal with the current problems of ordinary people, everyday life, and life on the streets.

Through the written stories, the gradation of social alienation and deviation in interpersonal relations seems to grow. The topics of violence, shady street deals, the problem of homelessness, crime, urban legends, hypocrisy, sexual freedoms, and homosexuality, as well as drug abuse, line up page after page.

What I liked about Tales of the 70’s is the impressiveness of the main characters. The author paid great attention to the construction of the characters, from their appearance and speech to their habits. The closeness of reality is further enhanced by the fact that topics from everyday life are covered. The dynamics of the plot in the stories are also very good and the author holds the reader's attention well. None of the stories and novella were subsequently adjusted, and this lack of smoothness of the work is noticeable. However, that is exactly what sets this book apart from many similar ones and which, in my humble opinion, gives this work the status of a rough literary diamond. It is also commendable that the author D. Done avoided obscene words and expressions as much as possible. Having in mind the themes of the work, this author's literary skill gained even more importance.

The objections I have regarding the book are primarily related to the uneven quality of the parts of the book. Some stories greatly exceed the quality of other stories. Also, the second half of the book, the one that contains the novella, lags behind the stories in terms of its quality, both individually and as a whole. For the selected topic of urban stories, a certain narrow-mindedness in the domain of general culture is noticeable. There seems to be no place in this book for the musical, sports, political, economic events of the first half of the '70s. In my humble opinion, the influence of film art is also noticeable on the author's style of writing, which itself doesn’t have to be exclusively a disadvantage, but this influence is obvious.

Due to all the listed features of the book, the decision on how to evaluate Tales of the 70’s was complex. In the end, my final judgment is to rate the book with three out of four stars. Very well-developed characters, both main and secondary, harmonious descriptions of places, and cleverly written dialogues represent the main value of this work and largely overcome small mistakes and uneven quality of its parts.

Fans of urban stories, admirers of the liberal spirit of San Francisco, and unadorned, realistic works, will certainly want to see this book on their bookshelf. However, people unaccustomed to street vocabulary, freer content, and vulgarity, as well as adolescents, should think twice about whether this book is the right choice for them.

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Tales of the 70's
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[Precious Naiti]

Your rating for the book seems justified and i am genuinely interested in reading this book. I have some reservations but i think i will enjoy this book. Thanks for the review.

[markodim721]

Your rating for the book seems justified and i am genuinely interested in reading this book. I have some reservations but i think i will enjoy this book. Thanks for the review.

Some parts of the book have a dose of macism. Thanks for stopping by.

[Holly Fleming]

It's encouraging to hear that this book had great character development. Thank you for this insightful review.

[markodim721]

It's encouraging to hear that this book had great character development. Thank you for this insightful review.

I'm glad you liked the review. Thanks for stopping by.

[TheMazeRunner]

Short stories are not my cup of tea, but this book sounds interesting. I love your review!

[markodim721]

Short stories are not my cup of tea, but this book sounds interesting. I love your review!

I'm glad you liked the review. I hope I have had at least a little influence to change your attitude about short stories.

[Wildflowertheorist]

I find myself appreciating your review more than the book.

[Dimi1]

It's always tricky when a mix of stories can be found in a single book since comparison takes place. Thanks for a great insight!

[markodim721]

I find myself appreciating your review more than the book.

Thank you very much!

[markodim721]

It's always tricky when a mix of stories can be found in a single book since comparison takes place. Thanks for a great insight!

That's right, and always one part of the book seems better than the other, although we may like a story only because of our inclinations towards the topic. Thanks for stopping by.

[Sou Hi]

Thanks for your informative review. I've just finished this book, too, and I agree with your opinion. The novella is quite obscure. I guess we can see it as a series of hallucinations the main character has under the effect of drugs, but it's pretty meaningless and incoherent.

[Mwatu]

The author seems to pack a lot in this book. Glad to read that the characters are well-developed making the book engaging. Thank you for this review!

[markodim721]

Thanks for your informative review. I've just finished this book, too, and I agree with your opinion. The novella is quite obscure. I guess we can see it as a series of hallucinations the main character has under the effect of drugs, but it's pretty meaningless and incoherent.

I couldn't say better myself. The novella is perhaps the weakest part of the book.

[markodim721]

The author seems to pack a lot in this book. Glad to read that the characters are well-developed making the book engaging. Thank you for this review!

Thanks for your interest and be sure to read the book, there are a lot of good parts.