Reviews

The Same Havoc by Ely Percy, Mariann Evans, Jude Gray, Nathan Pascu, Sam Le Butt, Stan Reed, Lucy Rose, Luciana Erregue-Sacchi, Wes Lee, Vina Nguyen, Lydia Unsworth, John Tinneny, Sasha Saben Callaghan, Sofía Ballesteros, Christopher Moore, Charlotte Rattray, Charlotte Pain, Claire Hinchliffe, Ethel Maqeda, Toonika Guha, Melanie Maclennan, Sasha R. Moghimi-Kian, Aimee Rogers, Juliette F. Martin, Alexandra Ye, Quinn Lui, Lola Gaztañaga Baggen, Alexis Keir, Milagros Lasarte, Jennifer Dickinson, Nick Askew, Ruth Bradshaw, Becca McGilloway, Alice Pain, Kirsteen Bell, Jan McCarthy, Marjorie Waterman

carlyalynnsia's review

emotional reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

I enjoyed this whole collection, but a few months after finishing it, a few pieces particularly stand out/have stuck with me: 

• "I Love You Sugarplum" by Alexandre Ye 
  • A short story in which cultural and generational differences come into tension when a first-generation Chinese American family decides to adopt a greyhound called Sugarplum Fairy. At first, the young son, Kevin, thinks he got what he wanted, but as time goes on, he is not so sure.

  • ...with Sugarplum Fairy beside me, I experienced a greater sense of normalcy and belonging. I felt special, even. [...]  For the first time in my life, other boys and girls would come up to me and say hello, asking to pet him. My family didn't seem out of place anymore -- Sugarplum Fairy elevated us within the community.

• "Left" by Ely Percy 
  • A short story about two best friends who are separated when one's family moves from Scotland down to the Lake District, and the remaining one must navigate their changing friendship(s) with care. 

  • Kirsty, she said, Ah promise yi yi'll always be ma best friend. Well, ah said, When am ah ever gaunnae get tae see yi. Yi can come down an visit me at the weekends an school holidays an stuff, she said. Yir forgettin ma da disnae have a motor, ah said. Well, mine does. Aye, an he's also got a restaurant tae run. Well, said Harpreet, We can still write.

• "Winter Threads" by Susan Taylor
  • This poem lends the anthology its title. I loved the auditory imagery of icy branches clinking against one another and the references to wool and moths (my knitwear-loving shoulders shudder, though!). 
• "I Meet the Gods" by Charlotte Rattray 
  • Magical realism or a maladaptive daydream? The narrator of this story lives her life surrounded and counselled by the Greek gods. This one was my favourite piece in the collection. I love how it captures the magic and true meaningfulness of walking through life with a headful of characters and alternate worlds. 

  • I blow out the candles on my birthday cake. Thirty, Zeus says. It's been a decade. I shake my head. Time is not linear, I say, no time has passed, and yet eternity is just around the corner. Athena kisses me on the cheek. Mortal years don't matter to those who run with the gods.

buffna's review

5.0

Not only are the stories, poems, and artwork selected for this anthology of beautifully varied style and tone, they build upon one another in a way that forces you to stop and take a breath for your aching heart. This anthology not only pivots around the theme of home, it sings of the familiarity and reinvents it. Cheers to the team that brought all these creators together. Thank you. ❤️

fushyreads's review

5.0

This was a heartwarming read, especially during these times - when "home" has evoked all kinds of feelings and emotions. The contributors have a done a great job at capturing those feelings and the Selkie Team who brought them together in this anthology.

Thank you to The Selkie Publications for providing me a review copy.