Liberation Day: Stories
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- Create Date：2022-12-07 09:51:41
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：George Saunders
- ISBN：0593594932
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Summary
"The 'best short story writer in English' （Time） is back with a masterful collection that explores ideas of power， ethics， and justice， and cuts to the very heart of what it means to live in community with our fellow humans。 With his trademark prose--wickedly funny， unsentimental， and perfectly tuned--Saunders continues to challenge and surprise: here is a collection of prismatic， deeply resonant stories that encompass joy and despair， oppression and revolution， bizarre fantasy and brutal reality。 'Love Letter' is a tender missive from grandfather to grandson， in the midst of a dystopian political situation in the not-too-distant future， that reminds us of our obligations to our ideals， ourselves， and each other。 'Ghoul' is set in a Hell-themed section of an underground amusement park in Colorado， and follows the exploits of a lonely， morally complex character named Brian， who comes to question everything he takes for granted about his 'reality。' In 'Mother's Day，' two women who loved the same man come to an existential reckoning in the middle of a hailstorm。 And in 'Elliott Spencer，' our eighty-nine-year-old protagonist finds himself brainwashed--his memory 'scraped'--a victim of a scheme in which poor， vulnerable people are reprogrammed and deployed as political protesters。 Together， these nine subversive， profound， and essential stories coalesce into a case for viewing the world with the same generosity and clear-eyed attention as Saunders does， even in the most absurd of circumstances"
Reviews
Tyler Shaw
，
This book is a collection of 9 short stories， but I found them to be pretty hit or miss。I thought Ghoul and Elliott Spencer were two standouts， the latter is something I could see being flushed out more into a much longer story。The title story， Liberation Day， was the longest of the bunch （about 60 pages） and it was。。。 ok。A few of the stories - Sparrow and Mother's Day - were duds。 Sparrow didn't seem to fit with the theme of the collection at all。It's not a bad read， and it would be easy enough This book is a collection of 9 short stories， but I found them to be pretty hit or miss。I thought Ghoul and Elliott Spencer were two standouts， the latter is something I could see being flushed out more into a much longer story。The title story， Liberation Day， was the longest of the bunch （about 60 pages） and it was。。。 ok。A few of the stories - Sparrow and Mother's Day - were duds。 Sparrow didn't seem to fit with the theme of the collection at all。It's not a bad read， and it would be easy enough to skip a story you don't like （or just plow through it， which is what I did， most of them are only ~30 or so pages）。 。。。more
Lghamilton
，
This guy walks on water IMO。 The audiobook is read by a number of excellent voices and I’m sure is the preferred medium for digesting/ingesting these morsels。 Liberation Day， in particular， slayed me。
Chris
，
Saunders writes beautifully about dystopian scenarios and the brutal reality of human nature。Lincoln in the Bardo is a masterpiece and this further exploration of his work does not disappoint。
Trevor Incogneato
，
a huge step backwards。 Saunders said in multiple interviews that a criticism he received affected his work: “he writes better out of affection than anger。” It certainly fucked with him。 Saunders treats his characters like old family dogs。 one calls them fat， smelly， stupid， and yet lovable， knowing the canine can’t sniff out the sarcasm。 this book is full of dogs。 If there’s genuine empathy intended for these dumb shits， it reads as condescension story after story。 you dumbass， you think Capital a huge step backwards。 Saunders said in multiple interviews that a criticism he received affected his work: “he writes better out of affection than anger。” It certainly fucked with him。 Saunders treats his characters like old family dogs。 one calls them fat， smelly， stupid， and yet lovable， knowing the canine can’t sniff out the sarcasm。 this book is full of dogs。 If there’s genuine empathy intended for these dumb shits， it reads as condescension story after story。 you dumbass， you think Capitalized Half Baked Concept Is Good？ It’s actually not。 But you have a heart and were raised by a hardworking single mother。 It’s not your fault。 escape from spiderhead （or w/e） and semplica girl diaries were nice forays and now we’re getting the same ideas over and over。 dang。 。。。more
Jeff Vande
，
Just yes。 I sometimes wonder if his characters appear formed in his head， with all their speech differences？
Luke
，
Thoroughly grim and unredemptive， there are some beautifully evoked unpleasant truths in people's minds here， but I can't recommend reading them。 The audiobook made wonderful casting choices。 Thoroughly grim and unredemptive， there are some beautifully evoked unpleasant truths in people's minds here， but I can't recommend reading them。 The audiobook made wonderful casting choices。 。。。more
Jake
，
Worth reading if you're a Saunders fan， not his best though。 Worth reading if you're a Saunders fan， not his best though。 。。。more
Marge
，
I wish that I could have my memory of this book erased as did the characters in Liberation Day。
Kelly
，
I don’t feel terribly qualified to review this book。 It is a masterfully written collection of modern short stories。 Some very Black Mirror esque stories。 Others less fantasy， and more insight into our humanity。
Oliver Nolan
，
Rich with wit and pathos， and as immensely entertaining as ever。 Of the Saunders collections I’ve read， probably the most consistent thematically。 Across 9 stories， almost all of the characters are trapped within fixed mindsets and circumstances， ascribed language and history that contains them but also has the capacity to set them free。 Some rail against these strictures， others embrace them， while others remain oblivious， blissfully or otherwise。
Andrea
，
I love George Saunders， and I probably would have loved this book if it had been the first of his I'd read。 But I reread Tenth of December right before this and Liberation Day is very much in the same vein。 Too much in the same vein。 He has certain tropes that he is repeating and they start to lose impact。 No one story really stands out for me in this collection。 I love George Saunders， and I probably would have loved this book if it had been the first of his I'd read。 But I reread Tenth of December right before this and Liberation Day is very much in the same vein。 Too much in the same vein。 He has certain tropes that he is repeating and they start to lose impact。 No one story really stands out for me in this collection。 。。。more
Stacy
，
Rantings of a madman。 I read Lincoln in the Bardo and thought it was genius。 I kept with Liberation in hopes of finding a hidden gem…。I got nothing。 It’s pretentious and anyone who wants to claim it’s esoteric value， they’re liars。
Nan
，
This feels like an uneven collection。 "Love Letter" and "My House" were stellar。 The "Mom of Bold Action" was good。 "Liberation Day"， "Ghoul"， and "Elliot Spencer" seemed too similar， another riff on the same brutal theme。 This feels like an uneven collection。 "Love Letter" and "My House" were stellar。 The "Mom of Bold Action" was good。 "Liberation Day"， "Ghoul"， and "Elliot Spencer" seemed too similar， another riff on the same brutal theme。 。。。more
Matthew
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George Saunders is one of the very best short story writers， full stop。 His novel， Lincoln In The Bardo， was good but didn’t resonate with me so much。 This feels like vintage Saunders and I liked it quite a bit。
thewanderingjew
，
Liberation Day: Stories， George Saunders， author; Tina Fey， Michael McKean， Edi Patterson， Jenny Slate， Jack McBrayer， Melora Hardin， Stephen Root， narrators。All of these stories seem to be variations of these same themes: loss， disappointment， grief， sadness， disillusionment， vengeance， pettiness， cruelty， hopelessness， and perhaps， just momentarily， a bit of hopefulness， gratitude， and the milk of human kindness。 In the first story， the longest one， the one that gives the book its title， we wi Liberation Day: Stories， George Saunders， author; Tina Fey， Michael McKean， Edi Patterson， Jenny Slate， Jack McBrayer， Melora Hardin， Stephen Root， narrators。All of these stories seem to be variations of these same themes: loss， disappointment， grief， sadness， disillusionment， vengeance， pettiness， cruelty， hopelessness， and perhaps， just momentarily， a bit of hopefulness， gratitude， and the milk of human kindness。 In the first story， the longest one， the one that gives the book its title， we witness a world beyond our imagination。 For those who have lost all hope of achieving their goals or of attaining success， there is a program that wipes their memories clean and gives them a fresh start。 If they enter it， their families will be provided for， though they will no longer be part of their families。 The life， as they had known it， would be erased。 Their memories would be gone and their age would begin from that day forward， so although they were fully grown adults， they would believe they were only a few years old。 They entered this program voluntarily。 No one was coerced， though they would soon be slaves， of a kind。Theirs would be an empty life， a programmed life， in which they would only be aware of information fed into them by means of a receptor。 They would be fed by others。 Most often they would be restrained。 Each day they would be told how to proceed with specific instructions。 They would live in the “listening room”， where like actors， they would perform for the entertainment of others by actually becoming the characters in the performance， using only the information fed into their thoughts by external means。 One day， a group stages a rebellion to free these “volunteers”， believing that they know what is right and are the virtuous ones; the accomplice who planned the liberation realizes too late， the error of his own ways。 The group’s behavior turns out to be no better， and perhaps a bit worse， than the behavior of those they had condemned。 The story made me uncomfortable， which is a testament to the author’s genius， for as the “speakers/actors” in the listening room are about to make the audience experience the fear of the Battle of Little Big Horn， or Custer’s Last Stand， the reading audience， too， will grow afraid， as I did， afraid to find out what was going to transpire next。 Moving on， in another story， a writer throwing out various plots as she attempts to write， is obsessed with the safety of her son。 She suddenly realizes that she does not know where he is， and when he does appear， she sees he is wounded。 What has happened to him？ Are her reactions or those of her husband rational？ Do they become like those they condemn？ This seems to be another story about people who thought they were the virtuous， only to discover that they are just as lacking in virtue as those they are judging。 In a letter to a grandchild， a grandparent offers advice with love and kindness， though his advice may not be compatible with your own offerings。 To be involved or not to be involved in situations which may negatively affect you or your family and friends， is the question。 What would you do？ When a young man and woman， with no particular stand-out or outstanding qualities， find each other， they somehow morph into things of beauty to each other， and others， which proves that beauty is indeed in the eye of the beholder。 Do your opinions often change because of the outward actions of people that you know？ If others are accepting， do you follow suit？ If they are judgmental， do you become a judge， as well？ If a person appears confident， do you view them differently than someone who seems shy and retiring？ Are both worthy of the same respect？ Is the cover of the book more meaningful than the pages within it？ Are you a follower or a leader？The protagonists in each of the stories has ulterior motives and often， in order to compete or achieve a goal， manipulates and instigates others to do their bidding， even with a subtle form of bribery or blackmail。 They justify the consequences of their behavior， on themselves and others， by their particular purpose or need。 We witness this kind of behavior every day， in our own worlds， but it isn’t as obvious to us as it is in the worlds the author provides。 We are in the forest and do not notice a single tree， but rather the multitude of them。 We are simply used to the daily happenstance and seeming randomness of the events we witness regularly。 We accept it all without question。 The author has skillfully made it more obvious， by pointing out， and then illustrating， our human frailties， the very ones that we wish to avoid， the sins that we wish never to commit， but somehow， he makes it apparent that we all do exhibit poor behavior at times。 Sometimes it is without thought。 Sometimes it is very well thought out and planned。 These are two different kinds of wrong doing， of evil behavior， but both are evil。 The drunk driver who gets into an accident may be just as much a murderer as the serial killer。 Although we witness this kind of behavior in our own daily lives， in the political environment in which we live， they are larger than life on these pages and serve as a mirror into our own souls。 That， in a nutshell， is the gift of this author。 He provides the mirror。 。。。more
Dan Claffey
，
I received a copy of this book through the Goodreads Giveaways program in exchange for an honest review。What a whirlwind collection of short stories。 I couldn't read them fast enough。 Highly recommend reading anything by this author， but if you are looking for short， deep， most often with a hint of spooky supernatural undertones， grab a copy of this collection。 The one that stuck with me the longest was Mother's Day - it's told in an almost stream of consciousness through two different perspecti I received a copy of this book through the Goodreads Giveaways program in exchange for an honest review。What a whirlwind collection of short stories。 I couldn't read them fast enough。 Highly recommend reading anything by this author， but if you are looking for short， deep， most often with a hint of spooky supernatural undertones， grab a copy of this collection。 The one that stuck with me the longest was Mother's Day - it's told in an almost stream of consciousness through two different perspectives which I would usually hate - I just keep thinking about the whole story over and over， exactly what I was looking for 。。。more
Alexa
，
I really like George Saunders’s other short story collections， but this fell flat for me。
Kate
，
Wow。
Mattschratz
，
Saunders remains the king， for good or for ill， of writing about Banal Ideas in Title Case （he knows they're banal， so he's not like David Brooks or somebody， happily naming dumb things to look like an Ideas Man）。 Nobody in the Saunders universe goes to work or talks to their partner; they Engage Customers or do some Feelings Processing。 He's good at writing about this necrotizing trend in English and has been for almost thirty years。 Two of the stories stood out for being exciting new kinds of Saunders remains the king， for good or for ill， of writing about Banal Ideas in Title Case （he knows they're banal， so he's not like David Brooks or somebody， happily naming dumb things to look like an Ideas Man）。 Nobody in the Saunders universe goes to work or talks to their partner; they Engage Customers or do some Feelings Processing。 He's good at writing about this necrotizing trend in English and has been for almost thirty years。 Two of the stories stood out for being exciting new kinds of things--"Sparrow，" developing a new kind of happy ending （it reminded me of maybe my favorite Saunders story， "Bohemians"） and "My House，" with an interesting and really effective economy of language。 Two others of the stories stood out for being the old Saunders thing really humming--"Ghoul，" a kind of successor to "CivilWarLand in Bad Decline" and "Pastoralia，" and "Liberation Day。" The latter's incorporation of bloody American history （Little Big Horn） into zonked Title Case stuff was really great and promising and maybe the most Lincoln in the Bardo-y of all of his stories。 。。。more
ABookwormWithWine
，
Ok， bear with me guys as I try to properly convey my feelings about this collection of short stories by George Saunders。 It was mentioned in the Indie Next List， and even though it wouldn't be something I would normally pick up I decided to take a chance on it。 I have never read anything by Saunders before， so I wasn't entirely sure what to expect， and what I got was a very strange but interesting experience。 There are a total of 9 stories in Liberation Day: Stories， and my favorite part was hon Ok， bear with me guys as I try to properly convey my feelings about this collection of short stories by George Saunders。 It was mentioned in the Indie Next List， and even though it wouldn't be something I would normally pick up I decided to take a chance on it。 I have never read anything by Saunders before， so I wasn't entirely sure what to expect， and what I got was a very strange but interesting experience。 There are a total of 9 stories in Liberation Day: Stories， and my favorite part was honestly listening to the audiobook。 Saunders read 2 of the stories himself and other narrators include Tina Fey， Stephen Root， and Jack McBrayer to name a few。 There is a star-studded cast reading this book for the audio and I adored it。 Each person is amazingly talented and perfectly picked for their story。 I loved hearing the author read as well！ For that reason， I highly recommend listening to this， but you might want to have a copy of the book as well because some of these were real thinkers。。。While I did get the concept of most of the stories， there were a couple that were rather ambiguous to me， and I wasn't quite sure what was going on just by listening to the audio。 I ended up having to look at the book itself and then even reviews to really grasp what was going on。 So why did I love this book so much when I didn’t even understand some of it？ I swear it was the world-building and the way each story really put you into its own world。 There was humor， politics， pettiness， sci-fi and so much more， and also some very interesting writing techniques that I had not seen before。 I was just really impressed that I could laugh and feel so many other emotions just by a collection of short stories， that even the things that were weird or didn’t make sense to me ended up being standouts。 I think Liberation Day would make an excellent selection for a book club because there would be plenty to talk about。 I will definitely be looking into other books by this author and if you think this sounds good， I highly recommend it。 Just be prepared for some weirdness！ 。。。more
Wendy
，
A lot of the same themes as his earlier story collections: bad jobs and dystopias。 I finished it while visiting a Mexican resort and saw some evidence of people performing servile jobs for clueless， impatient patrons or having to engage in odd performances。 I'm particularly thinking of two people near a Mayan ruin wearing traditional Mayan garb， and not much of it， waiting for tourist to take pictures with them and give them tips。 The costumes were legitimately amazing - when the woman crouched A lot of the same themes as his earlier story collections: bad jobs and dystopias。 I finished it while visiting a Mexican resort and saw some evidence of people performing servile jobs for clueless， impatient patrons or having to engage in odd performances。 I'm particularly thinking of two people near a Mayan ruin wearing traditional Mayan garb， and not much of it， waiting for tourist to take pictures with them and give them tips。 The costumes were legitimately amazing - when the woman crouched down and lifted her arms， she looked like a large owl。 And in terms of ways to make a living， it probably beats a lot of worse tasks。 But it was still just a weird performative thing to around。 Anyway， Saunders is always good at creating characters who usher you through these odd landscapes， sharing their stunning， odd perspectives。 These stories seem even more downbeat and current maybe？ 。。。more
Jenna Waldman
，
I love short stories， and I love George Saunders， but the last half let me down。
Ed Bernard
，
Well， if anyone doubts that George Saunders is the undisputed master of the short story， this collection will help convince you。 The centerpiece is the title story， a strange dystopian tale about a world where wealthy men enslave people — but not to abuse them。 Instead， they are manipulated into telling classic stories， the impact of which is surprising and devastating。 In Mom of Bold Action， two parents overreact when their son is slightly hassled by a homeless man and they exact their revenge。 Well， if anyone doubts that George Saunders is the undisputed master of the short story， this collection will help convince you。 The centerpiece is the title story， a strange dystopian tale about a world where wealthy men enslave people — but not to abuse them。 Instead， they are manipulated into telling classic stories， the impact of which is surprising and devastating。 In Mom of Bold Action， two parents overreact when their son is slightly hassled by a homeless man and they exact their revenge。 In Love Letter （a story critics disliked but I thought was very powerful）， a grandfather writes about an ethical dilemma to his grandson in a Trump-is future。 A Tale at Work describes work grievances from three points of view， with searing consequences。 In Sparrow， a meek girl finds love with her boss’ son。 Every single story in this collection has something great about it， though it’s hard to detect a proper theme — which is one of the many reasons why Saunders is so good， and also why I hope he sticks to short stories — Lincoln in the Bardo was great， but it didn’t truly cohere as a novel and also， perhaps， the concept was maybe stretched as a novel。 Saunders’ stories are perfect — perfectly paced， plotted and developed， with real characters facing big issues （for them， at least） with honesty and truthfulness。 Strongly recommended to anyone who， like me， loves great short stories。Grade: A 。。。more
Conner
，
This life will kill you， the system is inescapable and will see you destroyed， George Saunders tells you how in liberation day。 Maybe don’t read if you’re very sad， or maybe grow up and read it anyway。
E。 C。 Koch
，
A George Saunders short story is a thing to behold。 More than plot or narrative design， Saunders’ use of voice to convey character data， especially states of mind， is masterful and exciting and more than worth the price of admission。 What he provides so often – both here and in his other collections – is a world in which some form of indentured servitude/mind control is the norm and has become the norm by virtue of the logic of late capitalism， which Saunders carries into the near future in his A George Saunders short story is a thing to behold。 More than plot or narrative design， Saunders’ use of voice to convey character data， especially states of mind， is masterful and exciting and more than worth the price of admission。 What he provides so often – both here and in his other collections – is a world in which some form of indentured servitude/mind control is the norm and has become the norm by virtue of the logic of late capitalism， which Saunders carries into the near future in his fictional pieces。 What this looks like here， in “Liberation Day” and “Ghoul” especially， are instances of employees being forced to uphold the mock-real world desired by their employers， and thus exist， in the real world of their employers， as playthings or as brainwashed automatons。 Given when this was written and when this was released， it’s hard not to read into Liberation Day our contemporary moment and how we are often inveigled – by political party， by news apparatus， by religious orthodoxy – to maintain some not-quite-real sense of reality， and thus to live pseudo-voluntarily as one among a population of automata。 There is no way to be outside of mediated reality – I’m in it too – but to know that we’re in it is a way to avoid following the lead of the people who have had an outsized role in designing， and therefore benefitting from， the it that we’re in， which is the lesson that Saunders keeps offering us ways to learn。 This guy’s still got it。 。。。more
Ben
，
I loved the book for its courage and experimental playfulness！ It’s a bunch of short stories， partly excellent， partly… too weird？ Boring？ But I guess that euch bucket a story falls into is different for every person， so give it a try！
Scott
，
Undercurrents of guilt， nihilism， and imprisonment run through the nine short stories that compose George Saunders's "Liberation Day。" In stories like "Liberation Day，" "Love Letter，" "Ghoul，" and "Elliott Spencer，" the author delves into explorations of post-truth and post-democratic America。 "Mom of Bold Action"dresses up as a commentary on Karens， but is instead a look at the ripple effects of anxiety， while "Mother's Day" examines the secrets that everyday people have and hold。 The finale， " Undercurrents of guilt， nihilism， and imprisonment run through the nine short stories that compose George Saunders's "Liberation Day。" In stories like "Liberation Day，" "Love Letter，" "Ghoul，" and "Elliott Spencer，" the author delves into explorations of post-truth and post-democratic America。 "Mom of Bold Action"dresses up as a commentary on Karens， but is instead a look at the ripple effects of anxiety， while "Mother's Day" examines the secrets that everyday people have and hold。 The finale， "My House，" is a seven-page master class on depicting melancholy and mortality， and "A Thing At Work" is perhaps the highlight， a wonderfully wrought depiction of workplace politics， dynamics， subcultures， and double-speak。In the short story form， Saunders sketches memorable characters who have either built and become puppet to their own fates or are sacrificing their futures to a dystopian landscape。 "Liberation Day" is a stunning indictment of contemporary society -- and a warning of what may yet come。 。。。more
Mr。Jamie
，
Liberation Day: 5/5The Mom of Bold Action: 5/5Love Letter: 2/5A Thing at Work: 5/5Sparrow: 4/5Ghoul: unfin。Mother's Day: unfin。Elliot Spencer: unfin。My House: 4/5 Liberation Day: 5/5The Mom of Bold Action: 5/5Love Letter: 2/5A Thing at Work: 5/5Sparrow: 4/5Ghoul: unfin。Mother's Day: unfin。Elliot Spencer: unfin。My House: 4/5 。。。more
Marjorie Hogan
，
Some stories funny， poignant， brilliant - some inexplicable （for me）。
Brook
，
May George Saunders never stop writing。 His originality！ His empathy and humanism！ His wit！
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Liberation Day: Stories
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Liberation Day: Stories&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft