Curtis Sittenfeld is back! This collection of short stories is a delightful blend of wit, intelligence, and emotion, exploring themes of marriage, friendship, fame, and artistic ambition.

One standout story, "Lost but Not Forgotten," offers fans of Sittenfeld's novel "Prep" a fascinating glimpse into the life of the beloved character Lee Fiora, years after the events of the novel. Sittenfeld masterfully crafts a reunion scene that is both awkward and tender, providing readers with a deeper understanding of Lee's growth and journey.

Overall, "Show Don't Tell" is a wonderful showcase of Curtis Sittenfeld's talents as a writer, offering readers a compelling and thought-provoking collection of stories that will stay with them long after the final page.

I've enjoyed the four books by Curtis Sittenfeld that I've read, so I looked forward to reading this collection of short stories when it was offered to me. Show Don't Tell is a witty and insightful collection of short stories that delve into the intricacies of human relationships, self-perception, and the complexities of everyday life. Known for her sharp observations and emotionally resonant writing, Sittenfeld brings her signature style to this collection, exploring themes of love, loss, identity, and the human condition.

The title itself is a nod to one of the key principles of writing, and throughout these stories, the author masterfully shows rather than tells, allowing readers to experience the characters' emotions and struggles in a deeply visceral way. Her prose is clear yet nuanced, often leaving room for interpretation and reflection long after the stories have ended.

One of the collection's strengths is its diversity in both character and setting. From the perspective of a teacher navigating a complicated relationship with a student to a woman reckoning with her past during a reunion, Sittenfeld explores the complexities of individual experiences with remarkable empathy. Each story feels like a small window into a larger world, showing the quiet moments that shape people’s lives in subtle but profound ways.

While some stories are more reflective and contemplative, others are charged with a certain tension or urgency that keeps the reader engaged. The characters are flawed and relatable, and their journeys feel honest, poignant, and relatable.

Like most short story collections, several of these stories left me wanting more depth or a clearer resolution. There were one or two stories that ended so abruptly I wondered if I had missed the last page. But the last story, "Lost But Not Forgotten" was so good that I could overlook the few with sudden endings. In this story, we get to revisit Lee Fiora when she attends a reunion decades later at the boarding school Sittenfeld wrote about in Prep. I remembered that I liked Prep but didn't recall any details about why so I'm re-reading it now, decades later.

Overall, Show Don’t Tell is a beautifully crafted collection that will resonate with fans of literary fiction. The author's sharp eye for detail and her ability to weave complex emotional truths into every story makes this a highly recommended read for those who appreciate thoughtful, character-driven narratives.

Thank you to Random House publishing Group and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book. It will be published on February 25, 2025.

I really enjoyed this collection of short stories - each felt complete and i was pulled into that stories world. There were none that I didn't find engaging and interesting. I also appreciated the length of each story - I could read a story in one sitting but it was long enough that the characters were well rounded to me.

This is a hard one to rate as the book is a collection of 12 short stories. Some I loved, some were just ok. But across the board, Curtis Sittenfeld’s relatable writing style shines through. Each story felt like a realistic tale being told by a middle aged peer. It was nice to revisit Lee from Prep, though that was my least favorite of the short stories in this collection.

Basically if you like Curtis Sittenfeld’s books, you will absolutely like this one too.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced readers copy!

What an absolute treat to read another collection of Cutis Sittenfeld's short stories. She really excels in this form. Many good things about Sittenfeld's work have already been said in the reviews posted by her innumerable fans. I've decided here to confine my remarks to a quality her writing has that is under-appreciated but, to me, absolutely shines.
It's her implicit nonjudgmental acceptance of her complicated characters and narrators just as they are. It's hard to convey in words the feeling I have when I read her stories other than to say I feel safe as a reader. Not "cozy," but delighted to be in this company she's created because I know there will be no "moral injury" to the reader. This is a difficult concept for me to describe here. Allow me a counterexample: I dare say that the currently popular novel The Silent Patient inflicts moral injury on the reader. Certainly not on the scale that real life events do. But I feel that there is, or should be, an implied contract between an author and a reader that respects that the reader has a certain amount of intelligence and believes the reader possesses a moral conscience that should not be degraded. Sittenfeld has a moral compass that shines through without any moralizing. In more than one story, her narrator makes a questionable choice and then wonders if she can still believe herself to be a good person.
It's so difficult for me to convey this quality in words here. I'm not a literature professor. I hope her publisher and Sittenfeld herself understand what I'm talking about, and how uniquely brilliant her work is in this regard. I could not be more appreciative of this author for this quality and for all the other qualities mentioned by other reviewers that she brings to her work. Thank you for the opportunity here to offer my appreciation for this collection.

As always, Sittenfeld is always a sure thing. I am so glad she continues to write short stories, they really showcase her writing in a way her novels don't. I've liked other collections better, but this is still a winner.

This was a collection of 12 short stories. I have never read this author before and I don't usually read short stories, so I thought I'd give it a shot.

Overall, the collection was okay. I found my ratings per story ranged from 2 stars to 4 stars. The writing overall was good and I would pick up another book by this author. I found the sentence structure challenging to follow at the beginning but I got used to it by the end and actually enjoyed the way the stories were told. There were a lot of difficult political topics and relationships addressed with relatable characters so that really drew me in.

I think I might just not be cut out for short stories as everytime there was an abrupt ending, it left me feeling disappointed I couldn't read more about the story and ultimately I would lower the rating for the story.

The stories that stood out to me most were The Marriage Clock, White Women LOL, A for Alone and The Hug.

Additionally I feel like the cover didn't really connect with the stories inside and maybe something different could have been chosen, although it did draw me in.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing group for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to Netgalley & Random House Publishing Group for the E-ARC! This was ok. Not a fan of short story collections. The pacing was a little too slow for me. Would give this author another chance.

In Sittenfeld's 2nd collection of stories, after YOU THINK IT, I'LL SAY IT (2018), characters experience stale marriages, secret yearnings, annoying neighbors, cancer scares, and second chances at love and happiness. Through much of it, they struggle to make sense of things, wondering: “What’s the story here?” That’s also the challenge presented to readers here as Sittenfeld often gives us unexpected situations (in the story “A is for Alone,” a woman asks a variety of men in her life to respond to the “Mike Pence rule” which questions whether it’s appropriate for a married man to spend time alone with a woman not his wife, or in “The Richest Babysitter in the World,” a woman discovers she once took care of the child of a man who becomes a Bezos-esque billionaire) that turn out to be wildly significant turning points in a character’s understanding of their own (mis)perceptions. In the exceptionally strong title story, a graduate student frets about the intense competition within her creative writing program but years later, observes that another student writer who never made a splash in school is the most successful of them all. This kind of epiphany — the realization that our perceptive realities are not fixed but ephemeral—seems to strike so many in these stories, one character realizing that “[t]he circumstances that emotionally overwhelm you and the the circumstances that emotionally overwhelm someone else might not overlap in the slightest.” Added bonus: the collection’s last story, “Gone But Not Forgotten,” reconnects readers with Lee Fiora, the protagonist of SIttenfeld’s debut smash PREP (2005), three decades after her tumultuous experiences at the Ault School.

When I found out that we get some follow up to Lee Fiora's story from Prep, I automatically requested Curtis Sittenfeld's short story collection. I was not disappointed! I typically don't go for short stories but each one of Sittenfeld's captured my interest with witty, intelligent, mostly female characters that I just wanted to enjoy further. The best compliment to a short story collection, when you don't want the stories to end. Fans of Sittenfeld's work will enjoy!

This was fun! I always love spending time in Curtis Sittenfeld's brain. I love the way she writes her complex, interesting female characters, and it's been a treat, esp after the fluffiness of "Romantic Comedy," to watch her characters grapple with midlife and consider the choices they've made and why and how they made them. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed "Romantic Comedy," but I also love a healthy dose of disappointed hopes and reckoning with one's choices.

There are the New Yorker short stories, which are great, and I love her ability to make a subject--the infighting in an MFA, for instance--new. But the highlight for me came in the last story. I was especially excited to spend some time in Lee Fiora's brain again, as "Prep" is an all time fave of mine, and maybe my first boarding school novel--the one after which all others have been measured. What a lovely thing, to spend time with Lee, and to see the ways that growing up has changed her, emboldened her, given her more of a sense of her desires and strengths. Her complexity, her self-knowledge, and her willingness to risk vulnerability--in short, her growing up--is rewarded with a happy ending. May it be so for all of us complex women.

I'm usually not a fan of short stories because I don't like moving from one story to another...but this WORKED for me! I think if any other readers are having issues with anxiety and attention spans, short stories might be a great idea. The stories were all top tier. It felt like a treat every night getting to read a new story, and I think I will mourn this reading experience. A+++ highly recommend!

The fact that this is a collection of short stories allows Sittenfeld to create a wide cast of characters--some you will admire and others you will not. They are always relatable and real, and I feel as if I could actually know these people. Some of them do things that will make you cringe and some of them you will want to pull aside and ask them to think before they speak or act. And, others will make you wish that they existed in your world. I love that so many of these characters are writers and artists and musicians and creative types; many of them struggling in a world that does not always appreciate their ideas. Sittenfeld's writing is always straightforward and honest and I appreciate this--and her sense of humor shines through beautifully in many of these tales. I enjoyed all of these stories; the fact that many were quite short helped me read and digest them a few at a time, without feeling obligated to push through the whole book. Plus, I know that I am not alone in loving the update on Lee, the protagonist of Prep! Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the ARC and the opportunity to provide an honest review.

I have loved almost all of Sittenfeld's books and enjoyed almost all of the short stories in this collection. She brought her signature wit and talent for character building to all of them. The only real fault is that almost all of these are from the perspective of a mid-life white woman with ties to the mid-west, who is either reflecting on an earlier time in life or reflecting on things happening in her present. At a certain point, all of these characters started to blend together for me. But this book is a treat for those who love her writing, and will probably appeal especially to mid-life white women who connect to her work.
Many thanks to Netgalley for the ARC!

I love Curtis sittenfeld’s voice. This group of short stories tell of society, emotions, relationships and personal journeys. Written well and easy to connect to the characters even in the short stories. You are brought in immediately into each story. Not the fun, lightheartedness in some of her books but well written, thought provoking and leaves you wanting more.

Curtis Sittenfeld shines in short stories! Her writing is sharp and she brings all these women to life. The return to Ault was a special treat for this huge fan of her debut novel, Prep.

I usually don’t overly enjoy short stories, but Sittenfeld’s compilation of stories were both humorous, touching and thought-provoking. Her light touch kept you thinking about people and their actions long after the last page was turned.

This collection of twelve short stories by Curtis Sittenfeld was relevant and thought provoking. From middle-age to marriage to politics and parenthood, she covers it all very genuinely with a wit that is signature to her style. Anyone looking for relatable little ramblings will enjoy their time with this book.

I will absolutely never pass up an opportunity to read one of Curtis Sittenfeld’s books. These stories are as beautiful, humorous and thoughtful as I expected them to be. Her ability to write about relationships and art is truly unmatched. Readers of Prep will greatly appreciate “Lost but Not Forgotten.” This collection is such a treat.

I was delayed in reading this ARC because I kept telling myself I wasn’t in a short story mood but oh my gosh, this compilation was perfect. I’ve read all Sittenfeld’s work and enjoyed them but something about these short stories was just delightful. This will be a perfect February read with a cup of tea on a cold snowy day. Thanks to net galley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.