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A review by msabatino
Melancholic Parables by Dale Stromberg
funny
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
It was a pleasure to read Dale Stromberg’s “Melancholic Parables.” I whizzed through each unique thirteenth of the book with excitement to enter every world and hear the voices of each character. It’s a vibrant multicolor quilt of parables spanning from poetic to matter-of-fact. If you liked the recent film “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” this collection is for you.
The way the main-ish character Bellatrix Sakakino’s stories are weaved among futuristic parables, dystopian worlds, wacky turns-of-events, and everyday happenings are delightful, thoughtful, and witty. And Stromberg is a chameleon of writing styles with an arsenal of different tenses and perspectives, making each world of the parables lifelike in record time.
I found the conversation between the parable title, epigraph, and parable particularly enjoyable and thought-provoking part of reading. Some of my favorite quotes come from the epigraphs. I caught myself smiling at the title of a parable: “Excellent Problem-Causing and Critical-Drinking Skills” only to be called out by the first line “ ‘What are you smiling about, scumbag?’” I love Stromberg’s wordplay and the consciousness that his stories are being read. As a reader, I love to feel included in the experience. Beyond this consciousness of the reader, the construction of the collection is clever. The stories stack like building blocks with the tone, the characters, and themes creating a complex work. I feel that with each parable I read, I got sucked into the stories more.
I would recommend this book! It’s a must-read for anyone interested in the construction of the novel, but also for anyone who wants a book that is both thoughtful and funny.
One line that particularly spoke to me and made me laugh: “Am I just a pocket of lukewarm air?”
Particular favorites in the collection: “Ngantukisme,” “We Drink Pearls—We Sup on Peacocks’ Tongues,” “Endlessly Cutting the Deck,” “Tumpangisme,” “Insolubilia,” “Whilst This Machine Is to Him,” “Nyetovshchik,” “Desengaños del mundo,” and “Un poco alterado” . . . just to name a few :)
The way the main-ish character Bellatrix Sakakino’s stories are weaved among futuristic parables, dystopian worlds, wacky turns-of-events, and everyday happenings are delightful, thoughtful, and witty. And Stromberg is a chameleon of writing styles with an arsenal of different tenses and perspectives, making each world of the parables lifelike in record time.
I found the conversation between the parable title, epigraph, and parable particularly enjoyable and thought-provoking part of reading. Some of my favorite quotes come from the epigraphs. I caught myself smiling at the title of a parable: “Excellent Problem-Causing and Critical-Drinking Skills” only to be called out by the first line “ ‘What are you smiling about, scumbag?’” I love Stromberg’s wordplay and the consciousness that his stories are being read. As a reader, I love to feel included in the experience. Beyond this consciousness of the reader, the construction of the collection is clever. The stories stack like building blocks with the tone, the characters, and themes creating a complex work. I feel that with each parable I read, I got sucked into the stories more.
I would recommend this book! It’s a must-read for anyone interested in the construction of the novel, but also for anyone who wants a book that is both thoughtful and funny.
One line that particularly spoke to me and made me laugh: “Am I just a pocket of lukewarm air?”
Particular favorites in the collection: “Ngantukisme,” “We Drink Pearls—We Sup on Peacocks’ Tongues,” “Endlessly Cutting the Deck,” “Tumpangisme,” “Insolubilia,” “Whilst This Machine Is to Him,” “Nyetovshchik,” “Desengaños del mundo,” and “Un poco alterado” . . . just to name a few :)