“The universe is not made up of atoms; it’s made up of tiny stories.”

It’s a great beginning to a very tiny book. The Tiny Book of Tiny Stories: Volume 1 by hitRECord and Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

Actually, the great beginning was the end paper. It’s full of tiny drawings and all the detail and work that went into it are just amazing.

Then, there are the stories — they are truly tiny. Maybe a sentence or two, with a drawing to go with them. They are sad and funny and wonderful.

My favorite, which I have stolen for a tagline on my favorite forum, reads:

“Okay, I’ll admit, I have a few skeletons in my closet; but they weren’t skeletons when I put them there.”

They’re all like that — little gems that you want to read out loud and share with people. The book is tiny enough that you can read it at a long stoplight, but you’ll be smiling for much, much longer, remembering it.

The book is from hitRECord, a collaborative art project. It’s a production company where people log in, upload their stuff, the directors combine it with other cool stuff or the artists grab the cool stuff and remix it. When they get something they think is finished, they sell it, like The Tiny Book of Tiny Stories, and split the profits 50/50 with the collaborators.

Now, I consider myself a creative person, but I don’t think you’ll find my kind of creativity (my book  reviews, my knitting, my recipes) on their site. But I think it’s a terrific idea and I am more than happy to lend my voice to it here. (I’m also happy to buy cute stuff on their website — put your credit card where your mouth is.)

My copy of The Tiny Book of Tiny Stories: Volume 1 was an Advanced Reader Copy, provided free of charge. The Tiny Book of Tiny Stories tote bag? That, I bought for myself.

I was very excited to receive this collection of stories. This is the third Ellen Datlow collection I’ve read, the second that I’ve reviewed, and I think she does a great job of choosing really interesting stories that all play to a theme. Blood and Other Cravings isn’t your typical book about vampires. These aren’t necessarily creatures that suck your blood and hate garlic, but they are creatures who steal something essential from you. They draw something — energy, will, love, vitality — from you and leave your diminished. They aren’t terribly happy stories, not surprisingly. Two of them were so cruel that I found them deeply disturbing. But all in all, this is a very good collection.

It’s always tough to review a book of short stories. Where do you begin? What if you love some stories and hate others? This is pretty easy review, though: most of the stories were quite good. I didn’t love the collection as much as I did Naked City, but I think that is partly because of the subject matter. Talking about something that sucks the life out of you — even if we’re not talking about your blood — is not cheery. But the stories aren’t all doom and gloom, they just aren’t as funny as in some of the other collections.

I particularly enjoyed “X for Demetrious” by Stephen Duffy. It is based on the true story of a man who was found dead in his apartment, surrounded by lines of salt, bottles of…waste, and cloves of garlic. It is a distressing look at a mind that is caving in on itself. I was also thrilled to see a story from Kathe Koja — I reviewed her novel Under the Poppy last year and loved it. “Toujours” is not a vampire story, but it is a story about losing the thing that sustains you, having it taken away from you. It fits right in, in its own way.

I also really enjoyed “Blood Yesterday, Blood Tomorrow” by Richard Bowes. I could easily understand the appeal of the mementos of “Myrna’s Place” and other, similar establishments, the feeling that you knew a little something that the world at large did not know. I have always found there is nothing quite as enticing as being in the inner circle, knowing the secret stuff that others can’t guess at — very, very alluring. And if you can profit from that, why not?

There were two stories that I found very disturbing. These were stories of cruelty that haunted me for a bit, a look at being the vampire that was not at all appealing. The first was “Mrs. Jones” by Carol Emshwiller. A lonely woman makes a discovery that lets her get something she desperately wants and also gives her a mean little triumph over her equally lonely sister. But what she is willing to do to get it! It brought out all my protective instincts. The second story was “Mulberry Boys” by Margo Lanagan. It’s a little difficult in the beginning, purposely so, to sort out exactly what is going on, but once you do…shiver. Again, you can’t help but feel a deep sympathy for the poor fellow, with his gentle protests. I found it much more distressing than the stories of more forthright violence.

Overall, this is an excellent collection. There are stories that look at the theme from a variety of angles. There’s a bit of humor (“The Baskerville Midgets” by Reggie Oliver) and a couple of good scares.

My copy of Blood and Other Cravings was an Advanced Reader Copy, provided free of charge.

This story comes at a perfect time. As I posted earlier today, my current book is Naked City: Tales of Urban Fantasy, full of stories about fae and other wildfolk, most of them taking place in urban environments. In the Dunes, a story/novella by John Leahy, runs along similar lines. Two good friends, on a golfing vacation in Ireland, find out that you ignore the warning signs at your peril, because you don’t really want to know what’s in the dunes.

Reviews like this are tough! The story is only 46 pages — not a lot of material to work with — and I would hate to spoil any of the surprises. It’s got a couple of themes I like to it: the silent, knowing townspeople, the perfectly innocuous nature of the warnings, a very surprising turn of events and time to lament your mistakes. After all, it’s no fun if you don’t have some time to savor the inevitable bad end!

My one criticism is that Leahy needs to work on writing in an Irish brogue. One character’s accent is spelled out for us, but it isn’t thick enough to seem truly Irish, and the spelling didn’t seem to match the pronunciation in my head. Perhaps he needs to hang out a bit in an Irish pub and try to translate what he hears. It’s an excellent excuse for a trip to Dublin!

Leahy has a few published stories to his credit and I hope he continues to write. This is a fun, spooky little bit of fiction and it should be nestled in amongst some other similar tales. That would make for a very pleasant bit of reading.

For more information on John Leahy, check him out on Facebook.

PUBLICATION CREDITS:
2011 – Novellette In The Dunes available under publisher Lillibridge Press
2011 – Novella Harry Wall’s Man available under publisher Melange Books.
2011 – Short story SpiderGirl167 available under publisher Racybunny.com. Writing under pseudonymn Mia Ryan
2010 – Novella Indomonu available under publisher Damnation Books.

Forgetting English is a slim volume of haunting short stories. These are stories of loss, of deep emotion, and of women trying to find their way forward. The language is lyrical — poetic in places — and the stories were lovely to read. Author Midge Raymond provides a very short but entertaining collection.

“The lanterns bob gently as they drift out to sea, some extinguished by waves or by the splash of other lanterns swimming past. Paige sees shapes of light hovering above the water — probably the mist in the air, or the effects of Abbey’s hash, or of the tears that suddenly rise in her eyes — but she stands still and watches for a long time, until the lights and voices fade away.”

My favorite of the stories is “The Rest of the World,” perhaps because it’s about a businesswoman on the road, a situation I am pretty familiar with. There is a definite feeling of disconnectedness when you’re on the road, especially in a strange country. Our traveler is in Taipei, dealing with unpleasant business while she deals with a crisis in her marriage. In her first hotel room, a man has left a message on the voicemail for another woman about a dinner date — and our businesswoman meets him instead. I love that idea, even if it’s something I’d probably never do. Through years of business travel, our traveler — whose name we never learn — has lost her connection to her husband, but maybe she is finally making a connection to herself.

“I’m not sure why I hope Kyle will call, except that I long for the familiarity of his voice. It reminds me that I’m still anchored to the world, a feeling I tend to lose when I travel, a feeling I’ve lost almost completely since losing him. I’m away six months out of a year, and when I’m home, I’m usually gearing up for another trip or coming down from one.”

This is not a long book — only 10 stories, less than 150 pages — which made it a quick read. The problem I had with it is that the stories are very much alike. The similar themes and mood, as well as Raymond’s style of storytelling, sometimes made the book feel like one long story. The writing is excellent and I was easily caught up in the stories. I hope that she expands on her themes and adds some additional stories. I would gladly read more from this author.

For more about Midge Raymond and her writing, check out her website.

My copy of Forgetting English was a review copy provided free of charge by the author.

Video Verite is a selection of short stories that explores our connection to the media.  Our lives are filled with images, but not all of them are real.  In a culture overrun with advertising, reality shows and celebrities famous for getting their faces on tv, how do we know what is truth and what is fiction?

William Petrick’s stories touch on various aspects of media culture, although the connection was not always clear to me.  In “Turn Around,” a couple in the midst of splitting up head to the airport, while in “Perfect View,” a little vacation rock-climbing has the potential for tragedy.  Others are more clearly connected — in “Video Verite,” “Sins of the Father” and “Shooting Harlem” there are definite connections to television and video and the truth of what we see on the screen.

Some of the stories are quite interesting.  ”The Captain” is the story of a military man trying to do the right thing.  ”Perfect View” has Paul stomping off to prove a point (and nearly get himself killed in the process), while poor, clueless Amy sits idly by, sketching.  These were quick reads, short enough to finish the book on the flight between Cleveland and Newark (1 hour, 20 minutes – I know that flight well).

The trend these days seems to be to smaller books – this one is less than 140 pages.  The stories themselves are very short, some only 3 or 4 pages long.  It all lends to the feeling that the book is somehow incomplete.  Many of the stories felt unfinished to me.  For example, in “Shooting Harlem,” a producer is sent to film the story of a young black girl who has received an important scholarship.  The news team is looking for a particular kind of story – poverty, depression, an escape from the ghetto.  When they don’t get that story, when they find a nice, middle-class family, they’re at a loss to know what to do.  That’s interesting, so far.  But then the producer just walks away, goes back to his newsroom.  What did he learn?  Did he confront his prejudice?  Was it shared by his colleagues?  No answers to those questions, and those were the ones that interested me.

The book also paints an unattractive portrait of women.  There is only one story told from a female point of view (and that woman is more than a bit nuts), and it ends with everyone in handcuffs.  There are bitter ex-wives, women nagging men to talk about their feelings, resentful girlfriends who don’t want their fellas to go out with the boys.  A pretty tired stereotype, in my opinion.

Video Verite and Other Stories is the second published work by William Petrick, an Emmy Award winning documentary producer and director.  My copy was a review copy, provided free of charge.

The premise behind The Dark End of the Street is simple:

When we proposed this book to writers from both banks of the stream dividing crime writing and literary writing, we thought we had a particularly alluring idea.  Write your heart out on the twin subjects of sex and crime.  Define each however you want, take any approach you like.  What writer could resist?

The result is a terrific collection of stories from some of my favorite writers.  Editor S.J. Rozan (author of one of my favorite mystery series), introduces the collection and provides a particularly chilling story, “Daybreak”, near the end of the volume.  Great writers and great writing are the rule here, and there is a little something for everyone.

They really did let the authors define sex and crime any way they wanted.  Some stories would barely garner a PG rating, a couple are far more racy.  The crimes are different, the criminals are different, and the approaches they take are all over the board — that’s what makes it such a fun read.

The first story I fell in love with was “Scenarios” by Lawrence Block.  I love his work (P.I. Matthew Scudder, among other great novels).  For everyone who has ever read a mystery story and thought “oh no!  not that again!”, this story lets you think through all the possibilities.

The very next story was also a great read, but in a totally different way.  ”The Hereditary Thurifer” by Stephen L. Carter is the story of an Episcopal priest unraveling a mystery.  The story never goes in the direction I think it will, a mystery and a main character full of surprises.

“The Story of the Stabbing” by Joyce Carol Oates takes the theme of sex and death in a new direction – not so much about the crime itself as it is about the person who witnessed it.  ”Tricks” by Laura Lippman is a great story about a conman and his next victim.

My favorite story of the bunch is “Midnight Stalkings” by James Grady (Six Days of the Condor).  I should have seen it coming.  I didn’t and I was thrilled.

The book is full of great authors:  Patrick McCabe (author of Winterwood – marvelous and twisted), Janice Y. K. Lee (The Piano Teacher), Michael Connelly (9 Dragons), Lynn Freed (The Servants’ Quarters).  Each author has their own slant on the book’s themes — they all come at it from a different angle, but it’s easy to follow the threads from story to story.

I realize that this is a review full links, but if you aren’t familiar with these writers, you should be.  Click on the links, look at their bibliographies, find yourself some great new books.  If you’re a fan of mysteries, definitely check out S. J. Rozan — I have several of her novels featuring Lydia Chin and Bill Smith.  They’re an unusual detective team and the stories are terrific.

My copy of The Dark End of the Street was an Advance Reader Copy provided free of charge.

I’ve been reading a lot of short story collections lately, not my usual fare, but short stories are a good way to get a sense of a writer, seeing how he or she handles a number of different plotlines, looking at the way stories develop, the way characters are presented and the patterns that emerge over the course of the book. months and seasons is very different from the recent collections I reviewed by Jhumpa Lahiri and Sana Krasikov. His characters are quirky and unpredictable and the stories are refreshingly modern. From Halloween parties in LA to a summer camp in northern Minnesota, his characters never seemed to do the expected thing.

In perhaps my favorite of the stories, “Breaking Water,” a former fashion model finds her life making several dramatic shifts. She is recovering from open heart surgery when her husband announces he wants a divorce, their marriage weakened by infertility and infidelity. In the aftermath, she goes to art school, hoping to find some new path for herself. She expects a new lover to be horrified by her scar, but he finds it “the coolest scarification” he’s ever seen; she has to remind him that it isn’t body art. Her actions and his reponses are unexpected but authentic – people often don’t do what you expect them to.

Along similar lines, the characters in “The Sun is a Billiard Ball” don’t react to their health crisis in typical ways. Albert has seen the telltale signs, but even though his father died from prostate cancer, Albert has refused to see the doctor, pretending the symptoms will go away. Waking up from a one night stand with Jazz, Wade gets a nasty shock. Still, weeks later, he seeks Jazz out and not only stands by her but wants to continue their relationship.

In “A Shoe Falls”, a man wakes up and decides he wants out of his marriage. He’s tired of his wife and her shoe fetish and their bickering. He finds his efforts thwarted when his wife is suddenly agreeable…and that just makes him grumpier.

The book is fairly short and some of the stories are only a page or two in length, but the book is still an enjoyable read. Christopher Meeks is a writing teacher and playwright, and has previously published another book of short stories, The Middle-Aged Man and the Sea. You can purchase months and seasons at Amazon.com.