Book Reviews: Recitatif; Toni Morrison and The Invisible Life of Addie Larue; V. E. Schwab

Recitatif; A Story; Toni Morrison

Penguin Random House Audio - 2022

(1 hour and 54 min - narrated by Zadie Smith and Bahni Turpin - excellent)

This short story was originally published in 1983 and, it was the only short story that Toni Morrison ever had published.

What we know from the introduction of this short story by Zadie Smith is that this is a story about two young girls - one is black and one is white. We are left to decide the race issue for ourselves.

The story opens in the 1950s when two girls, Twyla and Roberta,  meet at St. Bonaventure's home for children at the age of eight. The two are roommates and we learn that their mothers are unable to care for them.  We learn that Twyla's mother Mary is a dancer who works at night and, we gather that Roberta's mother may be in an institution for some sort of mental illness.  The girls spend four months together but, that time together is significant and will impact their future lives.  When the women cross paths a few times as adults, it was interesting to read about their interpretations of an incident that occurred during their short time together.  

I was happy I tried this short story, it gave me a lot to think about and I liked that the reader got to learn about how their lives turned out as adults. The narration was excellent as well.  Honestly, I think I would have preferred that the fairly long introduction about race and stereotypes was omitted or shortened, it seemed to detract from the actual story.  I liked making my own decision about the race of these women as well.  Worth Reading!

Rating - 4/5 stars

The Invisible Life of Addie Larue; V. E. Schwab

Tor Books - 2020 - Book Group Read

This book was selected as our March book group read.  It is definitely not the type of book that I would have chosen on my own. First the time period - the story begins in 1714  when Addie is 23 and plays out over some 300 years.  Protagonist Addie Larue makes a deal with the God Luc hoping to avoid marriage and a more traditional life in her hometown.  She is granted infinite life until she agrees to relinquish her soul to him. Little does Addie know she will be forgotten by everyone she crosses paths with while alive.  

The story follows two timelines - through the present day being 2014.  I had a love-hate relationship with this book.  The writing was very good but, at times felt a tad repetitive.  I enjoyed the many wonderful quotes to be found throughout as well (my rating reflects this). I'm just not a fan of fantasy/magical realism or romance and this had all three. There were also more than 15 characters in this book and, although the audio was lovely (read by Julia Whelan) I had to switch to print in order not to drive myself crazy. I liked how art was significant to the story and, I did not realize the significance early on. My 4 star rating is based on how clever the story was; I loved how Addie did manage to leave her mark on the world. 

Quotes

“You see only flaws and faults, weaknesses to be exploited. But humans are messy, Luc. That is the wonder of them. They live and love and make mistakes, and they feel so much.”

“He always liked learning. Loved it, really. If he could have spent his whole life sitting in a lecture hall, taking notes, could have drifted from department to department, haunting different studies, soaking up language and history and art, maybe he would have felt full, happy.”

“He assures you that you’ll find your calling, but that’s the whole problem, you’ve never felt called to any one thing. There is no violent push in one direction, but a softer nudge a hundred different ways, and now all of them feel out of reach.”

“There is a rhythm to moving through the world alone. You discover what you can and cannot live without, the simple necessities and small joys that define a life. Not food, not shelter, not the basic things a body needs—those are, for her, a luxury—but the things that keep you sane. That bring you joy. That make life bearable.”

Rating - 4/5 stars

Book Review - Everything That Rises Must Converge; Flannery O'Connor

 

TITLE/AUTHOR:  Everything That Rises Must Converge; Flannery O'Connor

PUBLISHER: Farrar, Straus and Giroux

YEAR PUBLISHED: 1965

GENRE: Fiction / Literary / Short Stories

FORMAT:  Trade Paperback LENGTH: 269 pp

SOURCE:  My shelves

SETTING(s):  US, (New South)

ONE SENTENCE SUMMARY:  A short story collection that might shock you as well as make you smile with some hot topics like race, faith and morality.

BRIEF REVIEW:   This was an enlightening collection of (9) short stories that I was easily captivated by. The writing and subject matter in most stories was so different from anything I've read in a long while. The collection was written in the early 60s and published after the author's death.  With themes like faith, race, morality and death.  Six of the nine stories speak of dying and death and most exhibit some form of prejudice or downright racism.  Despite the serious topics, O'Connor's writing style and scenarios she created often made me smile.

My favorite was the title story: Everything That Rises Must Converge.  In this story, Mrs. Chestny and her son Julian live in 1960s New South,  and have conflicting views on desegregation now that the laws have begun to change.  Mrs. Chestny has a weight problem and takes the bus to the YMCA in an attempt to exercise and trim down but, now that integration is in effect she is nervous about riding the bus.  There is a scene where she wears a big fancy hat and is all prim and proper riding the bus to go to the YMCA when a black woman on the bus is wearing the exact same hat.  There is an incident when they get off the bus where Mrs C. insults the black woman and her young boy and the offended hits her with her purse in retaliation causing Mrs. C  a fatal medical event.   I loved the writing style where the reader got to see the happenings from a 3rd party POV but, is also privy to son Julian's outrage of his mother's behavior.  One final thought was that although Julian, a college graduate, saw himself as more progressive in thought when it came to how times were changing, deep down he wasn't very self-aware and actually pretty small-minded and rather petty.  

Most all of these stories seem to feature characters who were racist yet fail to see this in themselves.  I thought that the author had an amazing gift of pointing out irony and the absurdities of life. I definitely plan to read more by this author and, I actually own a few more of her books. Here is a LINK to my review of another of her short-story collections: A Good Man is Hard to Find and other stories which I read and reviewed in 2012 and also enjoyed.

Flannery O'Connor grew up in devout Catholic family in rural Georgia. Sadly she passed away at the age of 39 in 1964 of a form of Lupus, the same disease that took her father's life when Flannery was a teen. I wonder how her writing style might have changed after Civil Rights had she lived.

RATING:  4.5/5 stars

MEMORABLE QUOTES:  

"Will you for God's sake get off that subject?" Julian said. When he got on a bus by himself, he made it a point to sit by a Negro, in reparation as it was for his mother's sins.

"Mrs. May winced. She thought the word Jesus should be kept inside the church building like other words inside the bedroom."    

"She was a good Christian woman with a large respect for religion, though she did not, of course, believe any of it was true."   

2 short story thrillers - Slow Burner, Laura Lippman and Buried, Jeffrey Deaver

Book #3 from the Amazon HUSH series, available free to Amazon Prime members.

In this quick thriller Liz Kelsey and husband Phil have had their marital low points - Phil had been cheating on Liz but, that's all behind them now, or is it?

Liz doesn't want to snoop on her husband but, when she discovers that her has a secret burner phone she has to wonder why? It seems he has been carrying on with his mistress. The more Liz reads the more furious she becomes.  What is this spurned wife capable of?

I really enjoyed the surprise ending!

 Book #4 of the Amazon Hush series - Edward "Fitz" Fitzhugh is an old school reporter, ready to retire when he decides that he is just too old to learn new technology. He is not interested in the digital age as his trusty reporter's notebook has served him just fine over the years. When he stumbles on a gem of a story, about a serial kidnapper, known as "The Gravedigger",  surfacing yet again, Fitz sees this as a his big chance to show his stuff. The kidnapper loves taunting police with clues as to where the victims can be found.

A satisfying short thriller with a great ending.

(2) Short Story Reviews - Snowflakes; Ruth Ware and Treasure; Oyinkan Braithwaite

 I've long been an Amazon Prime member but, I've never really taken advantage of all the freebies being a subscriber affords: free eBooks, free movies and free music downloads and, I'm sure there are other benefits as well.  I decided to try some eBook downloads (10) maximum at one time and was pleasantly surprised by the (2) short stories I read.  What I loved about these short stories was that one was 37 minutes and the other 43 minutes so, it was perfect before bed reading on (2) consecutive nights.

Book #1 - HUSH Series

(a collection of 6 brief political mysteries and psych thrillers)

Snowflakes was a fast an engrossing read that I was able to finish in about  (35) minutes.

A father who seems to be obsessed with guns seems to be quickly losing grips with reality. He forces his children (2) boys (2) girls to gather huge stones to build a tall wall around the property because of something bad that is about to happen.  A gun shot and a shout-out by the father that "their coming" and suddenly the family, minus the mother, escapes by boat with some essentials. What happened to the mother? What has really happened here? 

A dark story that was well-written and left me pleasantly surprised overall. Told from the POV of Leah an older daughter.   4 stars

                                                       Book # 2 Hush Series

Treasure is a young girl who lives in Nigeria obsessed with becoming an Instagram influencer with a huge following. She shows off expensive clothing and accessories with a background of her opulent, gated community.

@Sho4Sure is a mechanic; he is obsessed with Treasure and flirts with her online. He is obsessed with meeting her in person and, he eventually finds a way to make that happen - think "stalker".

An eye-opener and warning to those who pretend to be people they are not.  A surprise ending too. This was described as darkly comedic. I found it dark, indeed, comic? not so much.  The author of this one has also written My Sister the Serial Killer, it's one book I had meant to try but never did.  I plan to remedy that soon. 4 stars

Wingspan; Chris Bohjalian

TITLE: Wingspan

AUTHOR:  Chris Bohjalian

PUBLISHER:  Knopf/Doubleday 

PUB. YEAR: 2019

SETTING:  Transatlantic flight from NY to London
FORMAT:  -  eGalley

RATING - 4/5

I've read most everything Chris Bohjalian has written so I was naturally curious about this novella.  At first I though it might be a prequel to The Flight Attendant, but it was not.

Originally a one act play staring Grace Experience (Bohjalian's daughter) and K.K. Glick, it's a very quick read, basically dialog between two flight attendants. There's veteran attendant Karen and  a newbie, Emily who is on her first transatlantic flight from NY to London. Emily is extremely nervous about this flight and starts talking pretty much non stop, unloading her secrets in the process.

I read this from start to finish in bed the other night and thought it was enjoyable enough to recommend.

Available on Kindle for 99 cents

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros - I See You Made an Effort: Compliments, Indignities, and Survival Stories from the Edge of 50; Annabelle Gurwitch

Every Tuesday I host First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros where I share the first paragraph sometimes two from a book I am reading or thinking about reading soon.  I'm trying to read at least a couple of books from my own shelves each month of 2016. This book arrived from the publisher in 2014 and, it seem like just the kind of humor I need right now.

I See You Made an Effort: Compliments, Indignities, and Survival Stories from the Edge of 50; Annabelle Gurwitch - Plume - 2014

STAY FUNNY

"On the day I turned forty-nine the first solicitation from AARP appeared in my email in-box.  At a glance, I thought it might be an ad for white-collar prison uniforms.  A couple is pictured dressed in matching cotton pastel sweaters and pleated Dockers.  The entire outfit screams, Here, take my libido and hold it for the rest of my life, which won't last much longer anyway.  The man has his arms encircling the woman's waist.  Is he propping her up because she's suffering from osteoporosis, or helpfully disguising her muffin top?  The expressions on their faces can only be described as resigned."

What do you think -- keep reading or pass? 

(Feel free to join in this week by posting your intro below?

American Housewife: Stories; Helen Ellis

American Housewife: Stories; Helen Ellis

Random House Audio & Doubleday - 2016

I wasn't sure what to expect when I began reading this short collection of (12) stories.  Now that I'm done, I can tell you that there are no prim and proper housewives to be found.  In fact, in these stories one housewife seemed more outrageous than the next at times. 

I started this collection of twisted tales in the lives of some very insane housewives on audio and later switched to the eGalley, as the stories somehow felt less bizarre in print.  There's a seemingly perfect Manhattan housewife with a much darker side, a bra fitter whose spouse is having cancer treatments, and another housewife who talks to the dead in their own home, and a story with "Tampax" in its title as well.

Although some of the stories are sharp and funny can make you think about how absurd daily life can be at times I just didn't get what was supposed to be humor of some of the stories.  There was talk of dead husbands and the loss of a child that felt rather flippant and way over the top. Overall, I think I was expecting the humor to be more in the line of how David Seders writes, so it felt a little disappointing in the end.

2.5/5 stars

(audio & eGalley)

I Don't Have a Happy Place: Cheerful Stories of Despondency and Gloom Kim Korson

I Don't Have a Happy Place: Cheerful Stories of Despondency and Gloom

Kim Korson - Gallery Books - 2015

I Don't Have a Happy Place is a collection of autobiographical stories of what life was like growing up in a non religious, Jewish family in the 1970's in Montreal.

After reading the first story about Kim as a child, vacationing with her rich friend's family and the friend's babysitter Pauline drowned, I wasn't sure what to expect with the rest of the collection.  It was a bit unsettling, one minute I'm chuckling as I read and then wham the babysitter is being pulled out of the water and dead.

The other stories which I read over a period of a few weeks were more easily imagined, stories about summer escapades, being a "latchkey kid", difficulties making friends as a child, career, pregnancy, and even a story about her Nana.

Although as an adult Kim, was diagnosed with a low grade form of chronic depression, I'm guessing Kim got her downer personality, at least in part, from her feminist, mother whocomes across as opinionated and who Kim described as "crabby".  I'm not sure who left a more lasting impression on me, Kim or her mother.

I loved the catchy title and, I admit it was fun to read in small doses. A little dry wit and snark goes a long way with me. I think much of what she writes about will be most appreciated by readers in their late 40's or older who will be able to relate to the nostalgia of days gone by.

4/5 stars

(eGalley)

Troubled Daughters, Twisted Wives ~ edited by Sarah Weinman

Title: Troubled Daughters, Twisted Wives: Stories from the Trailblazers of Domestic Suspense 

Author: (various) edited by Sarah Weinman

Publication Year:  2013 
Publisher:  Penguin
Edition: eGalley
Source: NetGalley
Date Completed: Sept - 2013
Rating: 4.5/5

Troubled Daughters, Twisted Wives, is a wonderful anthology of crime fiction (domestic crime fiction) from days gone by, all written by females. Edited by Sarah Weinman, this book contains some (14) chilling stories from days gone by.  Many of the authors were ones I was familiar with and a few I've enjoyed in the past, like Patricia Highsmith and Shirley Jackson. The authors in this compilation published these stories in the 1940s - 1970s, and before each story is a brief bio of the author and their work. Most paint an eerie picture of the sinister side of women. Some of the stories made me wonder whether the writers themselves might have experienced this darker side of domesticity themselves.  

Just a few of my favorites from the collection:

• The Heroine; Patricia Highsmith  (about a nanny who appears to be very sweet, but we all know appearances can sometimes be deceiving)
• Sugar and Spice; Vera Caspary  (2 women are in love with the same man which can only spell disaster)
• The Splintered Monday; Charlotte Armstrong  (what really happened to my sister is the question an elderly woman has when visiting her sister's family following the death).

I actually enjoyed at least 10/14 stories in this book, even though I have never been a big short story fan.  However, for me, crime fiction is a special treat, and trust me, this collection is worth your time. The stories both shocked and fascinated me. Try a few of the stories and I bet you'll end up reading more than you thought you would.  

I loved that must every story takes place in and around the home and so many in the kitchen or bedroom (our favorite rooms right?).  Until finishing this collection, I never thought of domestic life as entertaining reading.  Trust me, revenge and an unstable frame of mind  at any age can prove to be deadly. 

One thing I noticed was that the choice of words and phrases in some of the stories definitely made the stories feel dated, but to me that was also part of the old-fashioned charm of stories from the 40s and 50s. The best feature about most of these stories was that they were about real life situations handled with a sinister twist. The 40s, 50s and 60s, were times when many an unhappy woman, just couldn't walk out of a relationship, so some of these women had backup plans. TRY IT!

Sarah Weinman is the news editor for Publishers Marketplace and writes the monthly “Crimewave” mystery and suspense column for the National Post. Her work has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times, the Washington Post, the New York Observer, Slate, and the New Yorker online, among other publications.

Tenth of December: Stories; George Saunders

 

Title: Tenth of December: Stories

Author: George Saunders
Publication Year:  2013
Publisher: Random House and Books on Tape
Edition: eGalley/audio
Reader:  author read (well done)
Source: NetGalley and library (audio)
Date Completed: July - 2013
Rating: 3.5/5

I don't read a lot of short stories, but I wanted to try this collection as I heard this author was a bit different and worth trying.

There are 10 stories in Tenth of December; some of the stories are very very short, in fact, a few really didn't seem like a story at all.  Other stories are longer, and some had a surreal feel to them.  Most every story has to do with human nature and social mores. Many are written in such a way that made me flinch a bit at what I had just read.  Although some of the stories are satirical in nature, others packed a punch -- sad or ugly, but definitely powerful. Most of the characters were down on their luck or in a crisis situation, others were just pathetic. A welcomed relief to all the darkness was the dark humor and irony, which I enjoyed. It actually provided some much needed relief from the darker moments,

My favorite story was actually the last story and title story "Tenth of December". It is a story about a dying man contemplating suicide. He wanders into the woods prepared to end his life, when an incident with a young boy makes him rethink his situation.  "Puppy" was a story that really bothered me - it is about (2) women who meet by chance and yes, there is a puppy involved - I'll just say that this story left me feeling very sad.  "Victory" is another story  where a woman is being attacked and kidnapped, but the neighbor boy is torn whether to do something or not. In his head, he hears his strict father's voice telling him that what is happening is "none of his business".

Now two weeks after I finished this collection, I must admit that some of Saunder's stories left me as soon as I finished reading it, but a few, like the ones above, stuck.  This is definitely not a collection that will appeal to everyone, but George Saunders is a very good writer, it is just for the most part, most of the were too dark for me. Try it and decide.

Dear Life: Stories; Alice Munro

Title: Dear Life: Stories
Author: Alice Munro
Publication Year: 2012
Publisher: Random House Audio
Edition: audio
Source: Library
Setting: Canada
Date Completed: February - 2013
Rating: 4/5 
Recommend: yes

In the past I've tended to pass on short story collections but I've been trying to step out of my comfort zone a bit.  This collection was a good choice for me.

 

Dear Life: Stories, by Alice Munro is a collection of 14 stories, most of them are set in the 1940s-1950s and take place in rural areas of Canada - probably somewhere near Ontario.  Most of the stories had characters that are easy to feel for -- often flawed or with lives in turmoil. The characters and settings are what appealed to me the most.  The stories seem very plausible and in many cases the readers, once they finish a particular story, will be left to form their own conclusions. 

 

Some of stories in this collection that resonated with me the most were: In Sight of the Lake, story about a woman who seeks out a doctor to help her with her memory loss. Also, Pride, a story about a wealthy girl and a disabled boy who grew up in the same town and as adults have a somewhat awkward friendship. I also really enjoyed Amundsen, about a young woman who travels to a remote area to teach in a sanitarium for individuals who have contracted TB.  Sadly, she lets herself be seduced by the doctor in charge and begins a no-win relationship.

 

The final (4) stories Munro wrote are called, The "Finale" are autobiographical in nature. Munro is 81 and it seems clear that through this collection she is looking back at her "Dear Life", and those I found bittersweet.  Although most of the stories are a little sad, I did not find them depressing. Most involve a significant event that changes the lives of one or more of the people involved.

 

I would definitely recommend this short story collection. The audio book  (Random House Audio) was read by Kimberly Farr and Arthur Morey who did a very good job.

A Good Man is Hard to Find and Other Stories; Flannery O'Connor

Title:  A Good Man is Hard to Find and Other Stories

Author:  Flannery O'Connor

Publication Year: 1977 (reprint) 1955 (originally)

Publisher: Harcourt

Edition: Trade

Setting: Southern US states

Source: personal collection

Date Completed: November/2012

Rating: 4.5/5 

Recommend: yes

 

From a reader who isn't a huge fan of short stories, I must say that Flannery O'Conner's, A Good Man is Hard to Find and Other Stories is a wonderful collection that I really enjoyed a lot.  O'Connor was an incredibly talented Southern writer whose life ended much too early. She died in 1964 at the age of 39 of Lupus.  

In this collection, each story for the most part takes place in the 1940s and 50s, and although the reader is not always sure of the locale, it seems clear that most stories seem to have a rural south setting, as she is know for her Southern Gothic fiction. Most of her stories are dark, often tragic, but there always seems to be humor infused, and each story has at least one broken or quirky characters that makes the story memorable. Some stories have religious undertones or characters struggling with faith in times of crisis.

 

The title story (my favorite) featured a grandmother, who sees herself as a prim and proper lady. She's also an opinionated chatterbox who tells her family (and others) which she thinks about everything, but that doesn't mean she's a clear thinker and is able to always make good decisions.  In this story, her son wants to take the family to Florida on vacation, but the grandmother urges them to consider Tennessee instead, as an escaped convict labeled "The Misfit" has escaped from prison and is one the loose, and according to the grandmothers criminals tend to head to Florida.  Her son does not take her advice and the family (grandmother included) set out for a road trip to Florida -- a road trip that is a riot to read about, but one that ends badly.

 

The River, was another story that was tragic, yet so well done -  a five year old boy, with irresponsible partying parents, who is often left alone. He is a bit too trusting for his own good.

 

Good Country People was another one I enjoyed - what happens when a lonely lady with a fake leg is visited by a conniving, traveling Bible salesman? Let your imagination run wild, or better yet, read it for yourself and enjoy this wild ride.

 

Most of the stories range from 20-30 pages, and honestly, if you've been like me and avoided short story collections far too long, this would be an excellent book to start with to make you ease back in an see what you've been missing.  Other stories in this collection in addition to the (3) I mentioned are: The Life You Save May Be Your Own, (another favorite)  A Stroke of Good Fortune, (another favorite) A Temple of the Holy Ghost, The Artificial Nigger, A Circle in the Fire, A Late Encounter with the Enemy and The Displaced Person (another favorite).

 

I definitely plan to read more of Flannery O'Connor's work in 2013. 

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

Say You're One of Them; Uwem Akpan

Title: Say You're One of Them

Author:  Uwem Akpan

Publication Year: 2009

Publisher: Hachette Audio

Readers:  (3): Robin Miles, Dion Graham, Kevin Free (all very good)

Edition: audiobook

Source: Library

Date Completed: 5/2012

Rating: 4.5/5

Recommend: yes

Say You're One of Them, is a debut collection of (5) short stories about children growing up in Africa.  Each story tells of life in a different African country: Ethiopia, Nigeria, Benin, Rwanda and Kenya.  Making the stories especially poignant and sad is the fact that each story is told from the eyes of the children.  The stories are not easy to listen to, as some of the topics in these stories have parents who are dying of AIDS, children being sold into slavery, the lives of children as prostitutes, and even children who have had their hands amputated as a penalty for stealing.

Even though, in general, I am not a huge fan of short story collections, this audio book got my full attention.  An eye-opening collection of stories about children whose innocence has been lost, because they were born into a life where poverty, chaos and violence were commonplace.

The writing is vivid and sobering. Despite the despair exhibited through and through, never for a minute did I feel like I needed to stop listening.  The author is a Jesuit priest, who I can only imagine, knows first-hand what he has written about.  If ever for a minute you are feeling sorry for yourself, your situation, or your life, you should read or listen to these stories -- they will make you appreciate your life -- the way it is--a lot more. I know I did.

Full Dark, No Stars; Stephen King

Title: Full Dark, No Stars

Author: Stephen King

Publication Year: 2010

Publisher: Simon and Schuster Audio

Edition: audiobook

Readers:  Craig Wasson and Jessica Hecht (both excellent)

Source: Library

Date Completed: 5/6/2011 

Setting: New England and Midwest

Rating: 4.5/5

Recommend: Yes

It has been many many years since I've read or listened to a Stephen King book, but recently I felt the need to read outside of my comfort zone, so I decided to try King once again.  I am so happy that I did. None of the stories were really gory, and I only felt the tiniest bit squeamish was with the first story, 1922, as there were some scenes with rats. Other than that, I think this book was a pleasantly toned down Stephen King.

The audiobook is on (12) cds, and the two readers, Craig Wasson and Jessica Hecht were simply fantastic. The book has (4) separate stories.

1. 1922 - is about a rural Midwest husband who murders his wife because she wants to sell off part of family farm, so she can move to the big city-Omaha. The husband, Wilfred, evens convinces his teenage son Hank to help carry out the deed. The story takes place in 1922, when farming was a way of life. In this story, nothing goes as smoothly as Wilfred Leland James envisioned.  In this story there are a few scenes that rats kept appearing, and that part made me a bit queasy.  Despite this, I liked the execution of this story and thin it was my 3rd favorite of the 4 stories.
2. Big Driver - Tess is an author of detective mystery books; she is in her 30s. She is invited to speak at the, Chicopee Public Library....(it's a real place in New England. I grew up in this Massachusetts city). After her talk at the library, she is given alternate directions for a shortcut by the head librarian. The shortcut, turns out to be a near deadly experience for her that she'll never forget.  In fact, all she can think of is getting her revenge. My 2nd favorite of 4 stories.
3. Fair Extension - The weakest story, in my opinion is about a man with cancer who makes a deal with the devil, at the expense of someone else, in exchange for a longer life.  It is quite funny at times, but this story ranked 4th out of 4 for me.
4. A Good Marriage was my favorite story...#1 out of 3 for me. In this story, Bob and Darcy Anderson, a couple from New England, have been married for 28 years, and have had a happy marriage and now adult children. When Bob is away on a business trip, as is often the case, Darcy, accidentally uncovers, the elements of her husband's secret life tucked neatly away in a secret area of the garage.  What is a wife to do when she discovers that her husband has a darker side which he has long kept hidden?

Each of these stories was good in its own way, and the first person narration worked like a charm . Stephen King is a master of his trade. I love the way he made me as the reader see just how easy it can be for some people, at least in these stories to be conniving, deceitful, and vengeful. There were times that the revenge even seemed right in these stories, and I found myself rooting for the person who was carrying out the act.  At least in one or two stories, I found myself wondering what I would do under similar circumstances.

If you enjoy audiobooks, and would like to give a gentler Stephen King a try, this book of (4) short stories may be just perfect for you.  My husband even got caught up in one of the stories on a brief trip, and commented how great the readers were. Seriously, I don't think you will lose sleep listening to these stories. I thought they were great.

65 - The Simplest of Acts and Other Stories; Melanie Haney

I do not read many short stories collections, but when I was asked to review Melanie Haney's recent book: The Simplest of Acts and Other Stories, I did not realize what a treat I was in for.

This collection of (11) stories, just 102 pages was excellent. Each story was well written, and kept my interest. I especially enjoyed the fact that I could actually relate to the characters in most of the stories, as they were every day people, and the stories were about every day life: joy and sadness, love and loss.

My favorite story was : An Ordinary Evening where a devoted mother spends long periods of time at her daughter's bedside in the hospital. She is faced with a difficult decision regarding terminating life support; poignantly written. While this story of some of the others might lead you to believe they might be terribly depressing, I found the opposite to be true. There seemed to be a message of hope and renewal throughout these stories, that made the reading so rewarding. I hope to see more books from the promising new author in the future.

RATING - 4/5 - COMPLETED - 5/1/09

WHERE FROM - My Stacks (review)