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thomaswjoyce's review against another edition
5.0
So, the only theme for this anthology of short stories is... there is no theme. The connecting thread is that all of the authors have appeared on the Booked. podcast, hosted by this anthology's "compilers" Robb Olson and Livius Nedin (If you enjoy podcasts about books, including reviews and interviews, give it a listen. They're on episode 455, so you know they have plenty to offer).
As with all anthologies, some stories appealed to me more than others. But that is part of the book's appeal; there are plenty of stories and genres (and sub-genres) represented here that you'll find something you like. More than a few have to do with crime or noir, whether overt or just as a flavour. And all authors have their own unique writing styles, but it is clear that they are all very strong, very competent writers. Some stories are told in a simple, easy-to-follow linear style. While others are more adventurous. Adventurous doesn't always pay off, but it does for the most part here, especially in Cameron Pierce's California Oregon and Joshua Alan Doetsch's The Mulligan.
So, I want to pick three strong stories and one "anthology winner", something you'll only understand if you listen to the podcast.
First, Pierce's California Oregon, which I first mistook for a "choose your own adventure" story. But, it's more like "choose your own tragedy". There are no multiple choices - it is a short story, after all - but you (as in the second-person, "You") must make a decision at the beginning of the story and follow your life as it is highlighted in the following pages, either in California with your mother, or Oregon with your father. It is a gripping story, often tragic, sometimes hopeful, but always full of heart. And, yes, I read the story both ways. (I could argue that you can read the story 3 ways, as you follow California, then Oregon, then finally, read the differences and similarities between the two. But I'm not that smart)
Doetsch's The Mulligan. From the disturbing opening line ("Every morning, I eat a Raven's brain.") I knew I was in for something strange. the author didn't disappoint. But he also used techniques like alliteration and repetition to add to the intrigue of the narrator's strange story as it unfolds. Hints at magical realism and mythology, while maintaining a very dark tone, kept me on the edge of my seat.
Straight Down the Line by Nik Korpon is one of those linear, noir stories that are definitely easy to follow, but it packs a punch. It is a story of infidelity and murder and he doesn't shy away from the dirt and grime. The two main characters are as real as anything you'd watch on screen, or even touch in real life. And the way Korpon portrays one character's fall from grace is beautiful. Life is rarely as simple as black and white and that is something he captured brilliantly with this tale.
My favourite story is probably Paul Tremblay's Scenes From the City of Garbage and City of Clay. Best known now for his work in horror (check out Head Full of Ghosts, it is amazing), Tremblay wrote plenty of crime fiction in the early years. This is something of a crime story, but it certainly has a darkness coursing through it. Told from the point of view of a young girl orphaned and forced to live with an Aunt and Uncle who may as well be strangers, the story opens in a New York City beset by sanitation strikes. I'm not 100% sure if it is based on real events, but it sure reads like it. The young girl becomes obsessed with finding packages left amongst the garbage of the city. She believes it to be clay, but I wondered if it was something more sinister. I won't give it away, but it certainly gave me the creeps.
I could probably have chosen another three stories to go with that top one, and maybe three more, to replace my top three. There are a lot of great stories included here. Of course, so many different stories and so many different styles, there may be a couple that don't work for you as others. But the ratio is so strongly in favour of enjoyable reads that this is an easy decision; pick up the Booked. anthology and give it a shot.
As with all anthologies, some stories appealed to me more than others. But that is part of the book's appeal; there are plenty of stories and genres (and sub-genres) represented here that you'll find something you like. More than a few have to do with crime or noir, whether overt or just as a flavour. And all authors have their own unique writing styles, but it is clear that they are all very strong, very competent writers. Some stories are told in a simple, easy-to-follow linear style. While others are more adventurous. Adventurous doesn't always pay off, but it does for the most part here, especially in Cameron Pierce's California Oregon and Joshua Alan Doetsch's The Mulligan.
So, I want to pick three strong stories and one "anthology winner", something you'll only understand if you listen to the podcast.
First, Pierce's California Oregon, which I first mistook for a "choose your own adventure" story. But, it's more like "choose your own tragedy". There are no multiple choices - it is a short story, after all - but you (as in the second-person, "You") must make a decision at the beginning of the story and follow your life as it is highlighted in the following pages, either in California with your mother, or Oregon with your father. It is a gripping story, often tragic, sometimes hopeful, but always full of heart. And, yes, I read the story both ways. (I could argue that you can read the story 3 ways, as you follow California, then Oregon, then finally, read the differences and similarities between the two. But I'm not that smart)
Doetsch's The Mulligan. From the disturbing opening line ("Every morning, I eat a Raven's brain.") I knew I was in for something strange. the author didn't disappoint. But he also used techniques like alliteration and repetition to add to the intrigue of the narrator's strange story as it unfolds. Hints at magical realism and mythology, while maintaining a very dark tone, kept me on the edge of my seat.
Straight Down the Line by Nik Korpon is one of those linear, noir stories that are definitely easy to follow, but it packs a punch. It is a story of infidelity and murder and he doesn't shy away from the dirt and grime. The two main characters are as real as anything you'd watch on screen, or even touch in real life. And the way Korpon portrays one character's fall from grace is beautiful. Life is rarely as simple as black and white and that is something he captured brilliantly with this tale.
My favourite story is probably Paul Tremblay's Scenes From the City of Garbage and City of Clay. Best known now for his work in horror (check out Head Full of Ghosts, it is amazing), Tremblay wrote plenty of crime fiction in the early years. This is something of a crime story, but it certainly has a darkness coursing through it. Told from the point of view of a young girl orphaned and forced to live with an Aunt and Uncle who may as well be strangers, the story opens in a New York City beset by sanitation strikes. I'm not 100% sure if it is based on real events, but it sure reads like it. The young girl becomes obsessed with finding packages left amongst the garbage of the city. She believes it to be clay, but I wondered if it was something more sinister. I won't give it away, but it certainly gave me the creeps.
I could probably have chosen another three stories to go with that top one, and maybe three more, to replace my top three. There are a lot of great stories included here. Of course, so many different stories and so many different styles, there may be a couple that don't work for you as others. But the ratio is so strongly in favour of enjoyable reads that this is an easy decision; pick up the Booked. anthology and give it a shot.
thomaswjoyce's review
5.0
So, the only theme for this anthology of short stories is... there is no theme. The connecting thread is that all of the authors have appeared on the Booked. podcast, hosted by this anthology's "compilers" Robb Olson and Livius Nedin (If you enjoy podcasts about books, including reviews and interviews, give it a listen. They're on episode 455, so you know they have plenty to offer).
As with all anthologies, some stories appealed to me more than others. But that is part of the book's appeal; there are plenty of stories and genres (and sub-genres) represented here that you'll find something you like. More than a few have to do with crime or noir, whether overt or just as a flavour. And all authors have their own unique writing styles, but it is clear that they are all very strong, very competent writers. Some stories are told in a simple, easy-to-follow linear style. While others are more adventurous. Adventurous doesn't always pay off, but it does for the most part here, especially in Cameron Pierce's California Oregon and Joshua Alan Doetsch's The Mulligan.
So, I want to pick three strong stories and one "anthology winner", something you'll only understand if you listen to the podcast.
First, Pierce's California Oregon, which I first mistook for a "choose your own adventure" story. But, it's more like "choose your own tragedy". There are no multiple choices - it is a short story, after all - but you (as in the second-person, "You") must make a decision at the beginning of the story and follow your life as it is highlighted in the following pages, either in California with your mother, or Oregon with your father. It is a gripping story, often tragic, sometimes hopeful, but always full of heart. And, yes, I read the story both ways. (I could argue that you can read the story 3 ways, as you follow California, then Oregon, then finally, read the differences and similarities between the two. But I'm not that smart)
Doetsch's The Mulligan. From the disturbing opening line ("Every morning, I eat a Raven's brain.") I knew I was in for something strange. the author didn't disappoint. But he also used techniques like alliteration and repetition to add to the intrigue of the narrator's strange story as it unfolds. Hints at magical realism and mythology, while maintaining a very dark tone, kept me on the edge of my seat.
Straight Down the Line by Nik Korpon is one of those linear, noir stories that are definitely easy to follow, but it packs a punch. It is a story of infidelity and murder and he doesn't shy away from the dirt and grime. The two main characters are as real as anything you'd watch on screen, or even touch in real life. And the way Korpon portrays one character's fall from grace is beautiful. Life is rarely as simple as black and white and that is something he captured brilliantly with this tale.
My favourite story is probably Paul Tremblay's Scenes From the City of Garbage and City of Clay. Best known now for his work in horror (check out Head Full of Ghosts, it is amazing), Tremblay wrote plenty of crime fiction in the early years. This is something of a crime story, but it certainly has a darkness coursing through it. Told from the point of view of a young girl orphaned and forced to live with an Aunt and Uncle who may as well be strangers, the story opens in a New York City beset by sanitation strikes. I'm not 100% sure if it is based on real events, but it sure reads like it. The young girl becomes obsessed with finding packages left amongst the garbage of the city. She believes it to be clay, but I wondered if it was something more sinister. I won't give it away, but it certainly gave me the creeps.
I could probably have chosen another three stories to go with that top one, and maybe three more, to replace my top three. There are a lot of great stories included here. Of course, so many different stories and so many different styles, there may be a couple that don't work for you as others. But the ratio is so strongly in favour of enjoyable reads that this is an easy decision; pick up the Booked. anthology and give it a shot.
As with all anthologies, some stories appealed to me more than others. But that is part of the book's appeal; there are plenty of stories and genres (and sub-genres) represented here that you'll find something you like. More than a few have to do with crime or noir, whether overt or just as a flavour. And all authors have their own unique writing styles, but it is clear that they are all very strong, very competent writers. Some stories are told in a simple, easy-to-follow linear style. While others are more adventurous. Adventurous doesn't always pay off, but it does for the most part here, especially in Cameron Pierce's California Oregon and Joshua Alan Doetsch's The Mulligan.
So, I want to pick three strong stories and one "anthology winner", something you'll only understand if you listen to the podcast.
First, Pierce's California Oregon, which I first mistook for a "choose your own adventure" story. But, it's more like "choose your own tragedy". There are no multiple choices - it is a short story, after all - but you (as in the second-person, "You") must make a decision at the beginning of the story and follow your life as it is highlighted in the following pages, either in California with your mother, or Oregon with your father. It is a gripping story, often tragic, sometimes hopeful, but always full of heart. And, yes, I read the story both ways. (I could argue that you can read the story 3 ways, as you follow California, then Oregon, then finally, read the differences and similarities between the two. But I'm not that smart)
Doetsch's The Mulligan. From the disturbing opening line ("Every morning, I eat a Raven's brain.") I knew I was in for something strange. the author didn't disappoint. But he also used techniques like alliteration and repetition to add to the intrigue of the narrator's strange story as it unfolds. Hints at magical realism and mythology, while maintaining a very dark tone, kept me on the edge of my seat.
Straight Down the Line by Nik Korpon is one of those linear, noir stories that are definitely easy to follow, but it packs a punch. It is a story of infidelity and murder and he doesn't shy away from the dirt and grime. The two main characters are as real as anything you'd watch on screen, or even touch in real life. And the way Korpon portrays one character's fall from grace is beautiful. Life is rarely as simple as black and white and that is something he captured brilliantly with this tale.
My favourite story is probably Paul Tremblay's Scenes From the City of Garbage and City of Clay. Best known now for his work in horror (check out Head Full of Ghosts, it is amazing), Tremblay wrote plenty of crime fiction in the early years. This is something of a crime story, but it certainly has a darkness coursing through it. Told from the point of view of a young girl orphaned and forced to live with an Aunt and Uncle who may as well be strangers, the story opens in a New York City beset by sanitation strikes. I'm not 100% sure if it is based on real events, but it sure reads like it. The young girl becomes obsessed with finding packages left amongst the garbage of the city. She believes it to be clay, but I wondered if it was something more sinister. I won't give it away, but it certainly gave me the creeps.
I could probably have chosen another three stories to go with that top one, and maybe three more, to replace my top three. There are a lot of great stories included here. Of course, so many different stories and so many different styles, there may be a couple that don't work for you as others. But the ratio is so strongly in favour of enjoyable reads that this is an easy decision; pick up the Booked. anthology and give it a shot.
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