‘Mammals, I Think We Are Called’ – LeftLion Review by Lizzy O’Riordan

Absolutely delighted to get a fantastic review in Nottingham Magazine, LeftLion, by Lizzy O’Riordan.

Some excerpts from the review below, but you can read the full review here.

You can Read issue #157 of LeftLion Magazine here, or pick up a paper copy if you are in Nottingham

Some people think that good fiction should make you reflect. Others think that a great story should transport you into another world. But what if it could do both? Well, that’s exactly what you’ll find in this new short story collection. Thoughtful, bizarre and fantastical, Mammals, I Think We Are Called is an anthology of true dystopian merit, which leads the reader through a series of stories ranging from the ecological to the technological. Written by Nottingham-based author Giselle Leeb, and published by Salt Publishing, it’s a triumph. 

…Leeb’s work achieves this uncanny Slipstream effect by playing with contrast, and she has a knack for taking the familiar and turning it in on itself, leading the reader into a darker and twisted, but still recognisable, reality. The weatherman who looks for hope in flooding London. The lightning ball that falls onto a coffee shop. The robo-human who is studying ancient history. Throughout the anthology, Leeb succeeds by taking the comfortable things we know, and following them to uncanny and strange ends. 

…Skillfully ambiguous, dark and also optimistic, Mammals, I Think We Are Called is a wonderful contribution to the local literary world. 

Lizzy O’Riordan, LeftLion

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