Straw House, Wood House, Brick House, Blow

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Straw House, Wood House, Brick House, Blow

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Author(s)

Daniel Nayeri

Publisher

Candlewick

Genre(s)

Age Range

14+

Release Date

September 27, 2022

ISBN

978-0763663438

Buy This Book

Written entirely on an iPhone, this quartet of YA novellas by Another Pan and Another Faust author Daniel Nayeri showcases four different genres.

This bold collection of novellas by Another series author Daniel Nayeri features four riveting tales. These modern riffs on classic genres will introduce young adult readers to a broad range of writing styles that explore universally compelling themes such as identity and belonging, betrayal and friendship, love and mortality.

Straw House: A Western sizzling with suspense, set in a land where a rancher grows soulless humans and a farmer grows living toys.

Wood House: This science-fiction tale plunges the reader into a future where reality and technology blend imperceptibly, and a teenage girl must race to save the world from a nano-revolution that a corporation calls “ReCreation Day.”

Brick House: This detective story set in modern NYC features a squad of “wish police” and a team of unlikely detectives.

Blow: A comedic love story told by none other than Death himself, portrayed here as a handsome and charismatic hero who may steal your heart in more ways than one. With humor, suspense, and relatable prose, this hip and cutting-edge collection dazzles.

Editor review

1 review

Novellas New and Fresh

November 11, 2022

Overall rating

4.3

Plot

4.0

Characters

5.0

Writing Style

4.0

Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)

N/A

To put it honestly, this book is complicated. In a very weird and enigmatic way. As it is a quartet of novellas, that were originally written on an iPhone.

Straw House, Wood House, Brick House, Blow by Daniel Nayeri is a collection of four novellas. Which include stories of retelling and remixes of classics, a very wide range of writing styles, and themes that tend to question mortality and identity. Following the sequence of the title, the book features a twisted western, a dystopian science fiction, a detective story with "wish police," and a romance from the perspective of death. All are unique in their own unique way.

Given the range of genres that Nayeri presented, I was a little skeptical as to how the novellas would read. They were each enigmatic to be both similar enough to fit together while still being their own pieces. Honestly my favorite had to be the rom-com from death. With the science fiction a close second. Nayeri expertly wove each story to their own tune and didn't dare miss a beat in bringing them all together.

From reading this, I have high hopes for reading Nayeri's other (and much longer) works. I mainly have my eyes on Everything Sad is Untrue as I've heard nothing but positive reviews for it. If Nayeri were to ever make another amazing collection such as this, I'll be the first in the checkout line to get my hands on it.