The Opposite of Loneliness

“We are so young. We are so young.”

I've had this on my TBR list for years, years. Of course, as it went viral, I hyped it up in my mind. And then I deflated all that hype before I read it because I've grown more cynical in the past years. I assumed it was just a bestseller because the author died. I don't mean to be cold, really. Her death was a true tragedy, so horrifying, and I cried years ago when I read about. I also cried when I read the beautiful introduction and again when I read The Opposite of Loneliness, the essay. And to that point, I was wrong. I was wrong to judge preemptively.

Marina would have been a great writer of our time. That doesn't mean she would have gotten published or had success, but she was an incredible writer. In the fiction section, I was drawn into every single story. I didn't want to put it down until I found out what happened. Her characters were real people that I could see. And that's a feat with short stories, it's difficult to write a character that real, with a backstory, in a few pages while also telling the story. But she did it.

And in the nonfiction section, Marina somehow managed to make Yale sound interesting enough to hold my attention. Not sorry, Universities are not the place for me. Her musings about life are young and unfinished, but insightful. I wish she had more time, she deserves more time. Of course she does.

Would I recommend this?

Yes, if you enjoy short stories, essays, and realism.