Format: Kindle e-book
Find It: [Kindle] [PDF Via Author] [Author's Site]
Summary (≤10 words): Nine stories starring, or co-starring, awesomely odd characters.
Review (≤10 words): Rich in authorial voice, well worth the time and money.
I came across Chuck Wendig on Twitter. I can't quite remember how, I just remember that my first exposure to him was a linked article on his blog, Terrible Minds. The specific article eludes me, but it doesn't matter, because all of his posts are pure, unadulterated, uncut, fantastically raw awesome. When he announced that he was self-publishing an anthology of his short stories, I didn't hesitate to snag a copy and consume it in less than 24 hours.
Normally I'd write a more in-depth summary at this point, but...it's nine short stories. A couple of them aren't any more than a "page" or two on my Kindle screen, so summarizing them would, I think, not do them justice. Besides, if you click through to the Kindle link above, the author does a pretty good job of summarizing some of the draws. So instead I'm going to jump into my opinion of the whole thing.
These stories were, largely, engaging, engrossing, and appealing even despite (or maybe because of?) the more grotesque elements. Some of the stories (I'm looking at you, Product Placement and Mister Mhu's Pussy Show) inspired a physical reaction, though I'm not going to detail the specifics; suffice to say I don't recommend eating candy while reading Product Placement. Others evoked more emotional reactions, like the first story in the anthology, Dog-Man and Cat-Bird (A Flying Cat Story). This is a great tale to lead with--and is consequently the longest one--as it sets the mood and tone for the rest of the stories. It is at once creepy and touching, scary and amusing, sad and slightly joyful. Wendig's voice screams out of these stories. I happen to dig his style, so I had an awesome time reading his book. I was not at all disappointed (except when I got to the end and realized there was no more).
Final Word: Check out Wendig's blog--if you like his posts, you'll like his shorts.
Photo © Amy Houser
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