OPEN UP is a hard collection to wrap your mind around, despite a strong level of thematic coherence among the stories. Throughout, Morris plays with realism in a way that English-language writers seldom do. It never quite crosses the divide into magical realism, but dances along that boundary: a young boy thinking that he has magical powers, a twenty-something becoming a vampire, a seahorse that is both anthropomorphized and not. The stories sometimes open up into strange psychological spaces where the narrators confront themselves, and at times, Morris ruptures the storytelling by darting into the second-person point of view. Taken together, these techniques add depth to pared down prose, reminiscent of Sally Rooney's. They also make the emotional texture of the stories more complicated and interesting. Real pain ripples through the stories: parental abandonment, sexual violation, economic dispossession. But the stories aren't painful to read. They confront that pain in surprising ways and will linger on the reader's mind far more than one would expect a short story capable of.

*Open Up* by Thomas Morris is a collection of short stories set in Wales. Each story, while distinct, explores themes such as the quest for identity, the search for meaning in life, the journey to manhood/adulthood, the experience of finding and accepting love, the examination of familial connections, and the impact of trauma.

One standout tale, "Aberkariad," features a single father seahorse, making it a funny yet sincere read. The collection is enhanced by other stories that really complement this one. I wholeheartedly recommend this collection for its captivating storytelling. Thank you to Unnamed Press and NetGalley for providing me with an advance reader's copy (ARC).