A collection of short stories so short that they would be called “flash fiction” today, Cruel Shoes highlights Martin’s absurdist sense of humor. The title story involves a shoe store clerk offering every pair of shoes in the store to a client and then saying “you’ve tried everything except for the cruel shoes,” which turn out to have non-Euclidean twists and turns and the client thinks they’re perfect. I’ll be honest, most of the stories make very little sense, but somehow they are still entertaining. Also, Steve Martin looks amazing on the cover. It’s a really quick read and I imagine any Steve Martin aficionado will enjoy it.
Review by Jessica A.
