Florida

De: Lauren Groff

Narrado por: Lauren Groff

The universally-acclaimed return of the New York Times bestselling author of Fates and Furies, Matrix, and the highly-anticipated The Vaster Wilds

In Lauren Groff’s Florida, the hot sun shines, but a wild darkness lurks. Florida is a "superlative" book (Boston Globe), "gorgeously weird and limber" (New Yorker), "frequently funny" (San Francisco Chronicle), "brooding, inventive and often moving" (NPR Fresh Air)–as Groff is recognized as "Florida's unofficial poet laureate, as Joan Didion was for California." (Washington Post)

"Groff's gifts as a writer just keep soaring higher and higher.”–NPR’s Fresh Air

In her thrilling new book, Lauren Groff brings the audience into a physical world that is at once domestic and wild—a place where the hazards of the natural world lie waiting to pounce, yet the greatest threats and mysteries are still of an emotional, psychological nature. A family retreat can be derailed by a prowling panther, or by a sexual secret. Among those navigating this place are a resourceful pair of abandoned sisters; a lonely boy, grown up; a restless, childless couple, a searching, homeless woman; and an unforgettable, recurring character—a steely and conflicted wife and mother.

The stories in this collection span characters, towns, decades, even centuries, but Florida—its landscape, climate, history, and state of mind—becomes its gravitational center: an energy, a mood, as much as a place of residence. Groff transports the audience, then jolts us alert with a crackle of wit, a wave of sadness, a flash of cruelty, as she writes about loneliness, rage, family, and the passage of time. With shocking accuracy and effect, she pinpoints the moments and decisions and connections behind human pleasure and pain, hope and despair, love and fury—the moments that make us alive. Startling, precise, and affecting, Florida is a magnificent achievement.

©2018 Lauren Groff (P)2018 Penguin Audio

Reseñas de la Crítica

"Lauren Groff is a great storyteller . . . Florida is restorative fiction for these urgent times. Its final gestures, even the most ominous . . . lean toward love and the promise of good people, in not just this state but the world."–New York Times

"Something untameable lurks restlessly beneath the surface of this book. Groff’s incomparable prose pulsates with peril; its beauty, like that of the titular state itself, lies in a certain wild lushness."–Financial Times

"These new stories are tight and contained, and they pulse with menace and feral energy."–Wall Street Journal

Beautiful

simple stories with heavy undertones. Lauren has captured Florida as a state and people I'm their natural state. loved it... once again

not what I expected but I loved it

this was a wonderful collection of characters that makes me selfish I could get to know them on a deeper level.

Experience Groff's vignettes w/ her narration

I'm a big Groff fan and have been since I was captivated by her lyrical, rich prose when reading Fates & Furies. I saw her speak on her book tour for Florida, and she mentioned that she felt it was her responsibility to write something very much in and of this world. And through this series, we see characters grapple with climate change, politics, gentrification, sexual violence, but it is often just a piece of the narrative. She's subtle in writing stories about the people, but illuminating the context in which they live while exploring their lives. I can be particular about what types of books I prefer to read vs. listen to, but I think the shorter vignette style works well in audio form and there is something intimate about hearing it in Groff's voice. But the prose is superb, so I've also picked up a physical copy so I can read and appreciate the particularly good bits of writing.

SEXUAL EQUALITY

“Florida” is a series of well written short stories. The binding theme of the author’s stories is her view of life. As Lauren Groff makes clear in her former book, “Fates and Furies”, there is little difference between the sexes. Women may give birth, but children are children who need care. The truth is men, more often than women, physically leave their children. Most women stay. Groff suggests it is not necessarily because women want to stay but they have fewer alternatives.

Groff infers women most often stay, but not because of a maternal instinct. A woman can choose to abandon their children just like men, but they may have grown to love their children. On the other hand, they may fear the social recrimination if they leave like fathers. Emotional human attachment is important in every story Groff writes. She is not suggesting either men or women are incapable of real love of each other and their children. She is arguing there are no intellectual, or emotional differences between the sexes.

Amazing

Brilliant storytelling and perfectly told. I loved listening to this audiobook at night as I was winding down for the day. It made my heart at times resonate with the story and I found it hard to stop listening.

Lush Florida storytelling

Ms. Geoff writes beautifully. This series of short stories winds together nicely. I enjoyed experiencing the perspective of young, educated, sometimes work-at-home, mothers.

Listening to this again

I don't always like it when the author narrates but in Florida, Lauren Groff is perfect. I'm listening to this book a second time which I've never done before.

Couldn't get enough

She is one of my favorite authors now that I've listened to this book. I will certainly read more of her works. The stories were so amazing and creative and unpredictable and unique.

Very interesting

This audiobook was very intriguing as I didn't know much about the book. It centers around a few character who have relation to Florida (duh). It shows their lives in FL and out. While the story at times didn't make sense, I still enjoyed it at the end. The performance by the author did the book justice although a little slow.

Mix of gorgeous, essay-ish short stories

Full disclosure: I have a serious writer crush on Lauren Groff. I have been binge reading her books in preparation for hearing her speak at the Napa Writers' Conference (which I did and which was wonderful), but I didn't get to Florida until after seeing her speak. Florida, unlike her other works, is author narrated, and it contains a number of first person POV stories with significant character similarities to her life. All of which culminates into the short story collection that feels intermixed with personal essays. This isn't a bad thing, and I enjoyed the entire collection immensely, but not as much as I enjoyed "Delicate Edible Birds", an earlier short story collection that knocked my socks off. Basically, IMHO you can't go wrong with a Lauren Groff story. Regardless of length, her writing is gorgeous and her storytelling complex and satisfying. Florida just wasn't my absolute favorite of her sumptuous options. I can't wait to read whatever she offers up next.