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ksoles
Mar 21, 2013ksoles rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
In one of his earliest short story collections, gifted author Ian McEwan flaunts his status as King of the macabre. He keeps a straight face as he twists romantic relationships into obscene exploits, a technique which proves intriguing but not exactly absorbing. A stay-at-home narrator pines for his busy lover's attention, a lover who happens to be a gibbering ape capable of writing immaculate prose. A man falls in love with a mannequin. A divorced father straddles the line between parental and erotic love for his tween daughter. Along with other fragmentary pieces, "In Between the Sheets" does not represent McEwan at his best. Nonetheless, die hard fans will appreciate its quirkiness and recognize that it accurately reflects the sexually eruptive atmosphere of the 1970s.