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michellethebookcritic's review against another edition
5.0
Folk Songs for Trauma Surgeons highlights unforgettable, well-written short stories for the people who struggle with their identities, the people that ask questions and get no answers, the people with their families, etc.
We explore how relationships can affect us, how hope gets lost, and how trauma can delve into the roots of everything one stands for.
Award-winning favorites, unpublished works, and new tales fill this impactful short-story collection.
While we dive into the bold character designs and the emotions that well up inside them, we unearth eerie histories and tragic pasts. Will our characters ever find the one thing they're looking for or enclose in their afflictions? Only time will tell.
Rosson's expertise in literary fiction and magical realism shows as we perceive the intensity of how far your imagination can take you.
I certainly enjoyed this book! It was an engaging read supplied with raw, relatable people dealing with some concerns in their lives.
All in all, I highly recommend this one.
We explore how relationships can affect us, how hope gets lost, and how trauma can delve into the roots of everything one stands for.
Award-winning favorites, unpublished works, and new tales fill this impactful short-story collection.
While we dive into the bold character designs and the emotions that well up inside them, we unearth eerie histories and tragic pasts. Will our characters ever find the one thing they're looking for or enclose in their afflictions? Only time will tell.
Rosson's expertise in literary fiction and magical realism shows as we perceive the intensity of how far your imagination can take you.
I certainly enjoyed this book! It was an engaging read supplied with raw, relatable people dealing with some concerns in their lives.
All in all, I highly recommend this one.
nova42's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
seasonedreadings's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
monicagrace94's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
jervonyc's review against another edition
5.0
Well, I guess I have a new favorite author. Super dark, weird, funny, and one story so off-putting I had to skip it. Along with Nathan Ballingrud and Brian Evenson, Keith Rosson is now on my must-read list.
100pagesaday's review against another edition
4.0
Folk Songs for Trauma Surgeons is a short story collection that combines the everyday mundane with the fantastic and extraordinary. Like all short story collections, there were stories I loved, and stories I could live without. Most of the stories in Folk Songs for Trauma Surgeons were strong for me, taking everyday events and adding unexpected details to create something exciting.
The first story of the collection, The Lesser Horsemen caught my attention with three out of the four Horsemen of the Apocalypse sent on a cruise to work on their team building. This unexpected scenario combined with such a commonplace work task created an interesting and amusing story.
Baby Jill another favorite story of mine creating an emotional rollercoaster with the tooth fairy and what seems like run-of-the -mill workplace dynamics.
Yes, We Are Duly Concerned With Calamitous Events creates a humorous look at the kind-of end of the world through a group of dysfunctional office coworkers.
Homecoming is a heartfelt examination of the choices we make in life and the consequences we face after.
These are just a selection of my favorites from the collection. These stories made me think and all had deep emotional connections. Many had open endings creating a world of imagination for the characters when I was done reading.
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
The first story of the collection, The Lesser Horsemen caught my attention with three out of the four Horsemen of the Apocalypse sent on a cruise to work on their team building. This unexpected scenario combined with such a commonplace work task created an interesting and amusing story.
Baby Jill another favorite story of mine creating an emotional rollercoaster with the tooth fairy and what seems like run-of-the -mill workplace dynamics.
Yes, We Are Duly Concerned With Calamitous Events creates a humorous look at the kind-of end of the world through a group of dysfunctional office coworkers.
Homecoming is a heartfelt examination of the choices we make in life and the consequences we face after.
These are just a selection of my favorites from the collection. These stories made me think and all had deep emotional connections. Many had open endings creating a world of imagination for the characters when I was done reading.
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
aonoexorcist's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Toxic relationship, Murder, Mental illness, Gun violence, Gore, Alcoholism, Blood, Sexual harassment, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Pregnancy, Grief, Violence, and Animal death
annieb123's review against another edition
5.0
Originally posted on my blog: Nonstop Reader.
Folk Songs for Trauma Surgeons is a well curated collection of shorter fiction from Keith Rosson. Due out 23rd Feb 2021 from Meerkat Press, it's 206 pages and will be available in paperback and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.
This is a mixed bag of short fiction, 15 in all (plus a short acknowledgements and author bio). One reason I prefer collections and anthologies is that short fiction is really challenging. It's spare and the author doesn't have a wealth of wordage to develop characters or plotting. Well written short fiction is a delight. I also love collections because if one story doesn't really grab me, there's another story just a few pages away. The book doesn't include author notes or previous publishing info.
These are generally high quality speculative fiction/fantasy realism. About half are distinctly dark with original takes on the world and our reality in it. Probably my favorite story (there are several standouts) was "The Lesser Horsemen". Who know the afterlife was streamlining their corporate culture?
Four and a half stars. Outstanding stories from a talented author at the top of his game. All of the stories were previously unfamiliar to me.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
Folk Songs for Trauma Surgeons is a well curated collection of shorter fiction from Keith Rosson. Due out 23rd Feb 2021 from Meerkat Press, it's 206 pages and will be available in paperback and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.
This is a mixed bag of short fiction, 15 in all (plus a short acknowledgements and author bio). One reason I prefer collections and anthologies is that short fiction is really challenging. It's spare and the author doesn't have a wealth of wordage to develop characters or plotting. Well written short fiction is a delight. I also love collections because if one story doesn't really grab me, there's another story just a few pages away. The book doesn't include author notes or previous publishing info.
These are generally high quality speculative fiction/fantasy realism. About half are distinctly dark with original takes on the world and our reality in it. Probably my favorite story (there are several standouts) was "The Lesser Horsemen". Who know the afterlife was streamlining their corporate culture?
Four and a half stars. Outstanding stories from a talented author at the top of his game. All of the stories were previously unfamiliar to me.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
j_o600's review against another edition
3.75
I really liked this collection, it’s got a lot of gems and despite being drawn to the funnier sounding stories, the sadder ones were much better.
I wouldn’t class this as horror, and I think putting the last 2 stories back to back robbed them of the emotional strength each had, since they are more alike than I expected.
I wouldn’t class this as horror, and I think putting the last 2 stories back to back robbed them of the emotional strength each had, since they are more alike than I expected.