Short Stories Books

This is a great story of the magic that Christmas brings each year.

A dear teacher friend recommended this book and said she couldn't read it to her class without crying! I thought I would be able to read it to my grandson without tearing up, but alas...he had to finish the last few pages! (Much to his delight!) It is such a gentle, tender story. Even when you KNOW what the outcome will be, you can't help but FEEL the emotions the writer conveys so well! Outstanding illustrations put this book in a rare class!

This was a beautiful story written and illustrated. It allows one to discover how people can reach into the hearts of so many with a simple act of kindness. It also reassures children that one does not have to have a lot to change the lives of another. And that dreams do come true.

Karen

I like Chris Soentpiet's book called Silver Packages. The pictures he drew were OUT OF THIS WORLD!!! The book was outstanding! I like the part when the boy is holding his first one in front of the Christmas tree.

If you want to read a great book then read Silver Packages because it will just touch your heart. It all started when no one had anything so every Christmas a man came and threw silver packages out the back of the train. Chris Soentpiet's illustrations are colorful and interesting.

Wow, this book took me way back to the 80's. It also has a strong positive message that our youth need to hear and read about cause they are our future and that street life ain't gon get where ya think ya want to go. Congrats! Jihad for a book well wrote, I know it is hard to put ya self out there but you you did a dayum good job. It also shows that this is just the beginning so keep'em comin no turning back now.

Glamour
coast2coastreaders.com

I think Street Life is such a good book. After I read that book it made me stop and think. One message that he sent out was never giving up. I had to let my boyfriend and my couisn read the book because they are doing the same exact thing did Jihad did. They think its all play and games when its not. Jihad your book is real and you are the best, Dont stop doing what you do best and dont let no one put you down at all.

I thought that Street Life had a good start to it as well as a good message to young black men of what will inevitably happen to them if they choose the street life. This book also had pretty good jokes from the main character. The reason I gave the book 3 stars though is near the end of the book this thing just went all over the place. I know the author was trying to send a positive message out but I started getting confused because I was like "ok has this book turned from fiction to nonfiction, is the author writing about himself or what?" It's ok to take pieces of reality and put it into fiction but this just got crazy. Although I was disappointed towards the end of the book, I would still recommend at least borrowing this from someone and reading it if you don't buy it yourself.

Street Life is a VERY INSPIRATIONAL...REAL...IN YOUR FACE journey of LIFE in the HOOD. This book is DEFINITELY a MUST READ for the kid that has a GLAMOURIZED perception of Living Life in the FAST LANE. STREET LIFE should be RECOMMENDED reading for any HARD HEAD youth that needs to be SCARED STRAIGHT.

I had the pleasure of hearing Jihad read from his book "Street Life" at a book club gathering in Oakland, CA. The reading was so enthralling that I had to purchase his book. I was not disappointed. I finished it in a weekend. As I read it, it reminded me of Sistah Souljah's "Coldest Winter Ever." Most definitely, elements of street life are glamorized in our society. But, Jihad keeps it extremely real. The good and the bad. The money and the mayhem. The life and the loss. His book is not only for those hardheaded kids who think that life in the streets is their destiny, but also for those kids who think that they are better than their peers. It's a reality check for us all.

I really enjoyed the first 4 and thought the last was the least , but overall one of E.L. DOCTOROW'S best writings .

Bought this as an amazon remainder. Doctorow is one of the most underrated of America's authors. His language is brilliant, and he manages to entertain without pulling out every post-modern trick in the book. Always a good read.

the 5 short 'Sweet Land' stories keep you in their grip and make you think about how much of it could happen or has happened in real life, they are that intense and down-to-earch, another proof why E. L. Doctorow is an author essential to any Reader's Must List.

JohPWilbrand

I read and enjoyed Doctorow's current historical novel of Sherman's march, "The March," and wanted to read more. Doctorow's "Sweet Land Stories" (2004) lacks the sweep of his Civil War novel. But it excells in its picture of American down-and-outers, loners, losers, grifters, and wanderers. It includes short but unforgettable scenes of a varied and almost timeless American, in rural Illinois, Chicago, Alaska, a religious commune, Las Vegas, and elsewhere.

The book consists of five short stories, four of which appeared initially in the New Yorker while the fifth story, "Child, Dead in the Rose Garden" appeared first in the Virginia Quarterly Review. Each of the stories is faced-paced, draws the reader into the action, and can be read easily in a single sitting. The stories reminded me of Hubert Selby's "Last Exit to Brooklyn" and of the novels of Charles Bukowski without their rawness. Doctorow's is the voice of a polished literary artist.

Three of the stories are told in the first person by male narrators. The first story "A House on the Plains" is recounted by Earle and tells of his conniving and murderous mother on a small farm in Illinois. For all the brutality and irony of the story, the characters come alive sympathetically. "Baby Wilson" is told in the voice of a young man with nowhere particular to go whose girlfriend has kidnapped a baby claiming it is the couple's. We are treated to a picturesque ride through dusty roads and small towns as the two loners truly become a couple and parents as well as they struggle to resolve the situation.

"Walter John Harmon" tells the story of its namesake, a former garage mechanic and thief, and current alcoholic and philanderer, who becomes the leader of a religious commune. But the narrator is an attorney who has given up a staid if successful law practice and, with his wife Betty has joined the commune. The tone of the story is set by its first sentence: "When Betty told me she would go that night to Walter John Harmon, I didn't think I reacted." Doctorow shows the credulous, unresolved needs of many people, including highly educated individuals, for belief and spiritual support, as the narrator is cuckolded by Walter John Harmon who runs off with Betty and abandons the commune to its fate.

The story "Jolene:A Life" tells of a young woman with three bad marriages and other affairs who works through a life of trouble and attains a degree of peace at the end. This is a tawdry story with tawdry scenes, tattoo parlors, topless bars, sexual abuse, gangster-style killings,convincingly portrayed. Jolene struggles throughout all this to develop her talent as an artist.

The final story, "Child Dead, in the Rose Garden" seems to me weaker than the others in that it is too overtly political. I had the same problem with Doctorow's "The Book of Daniel" which is a fictionalized account of the Rosenbergs. This story also differs from its companions in that the protagonist is not a down-and-outer but a respectable person in a responsible job. The story is about the adventures of a retired special agent named B.W. Molloy who, over official resistance, solves a mystery about how the body of a dead child was found in the White House Rose Garden and in the process learns a good deal about himself.

Doctorow has made his reputation, and deservedly so, as a writer of American historical fiction. This book is smaller in scope than novels such as "The March" but perhaps digs deeper into the hearts of its characters. This book together with Doctorow's difficult modern novel "City of God" which to me shows the promise of a secular, open America, are thoughtful, spiritual works which I have greatly enjoyed.

Robin Friedman

I've said I don't know how many times that I really don't like short stories. But every now and then I'll pick up a short story book, and I'm usually always disappointed. Well, not this time. These 5 stories grab your attention from start to finish.

The first...A House On The Plains, is the tale of a mother and son and their murderous means of living, and how they continue to get away with it. The second...Baby Wilson, is the story of two lovers. A shady man, and a delusional woman who kidnaps a newborn child and tries to pass it off as their own, while the man finds a way to get them out of the mess she created.

The third...Jolene: A Life, was my favorite. We meet Jolene at the age of fifteen. An orphan who over the span of 10 yrs. goes through three husbands, a stint in a psychiatric hospital, a mobster boyfriend, living the high life, being homeless, and countless jobs, some pretty gritty. The fourth...Walter John Harmon, is an inside look at life in a cult. Members give all their wealth and possessions to 'prophet' Walter John Harmon in exchange for a peaceful and clean community. But they are so disillusioned, they cannot comprehend when he betrays them.

And finally...Child, Dead, In The Rose Garden. This was my least favorite. A dead child is found in the White House Rose Garden after an event. Special Agent Molloy sets out trying to find the answers as to who, why, and how this act was carried out. I definitely recommend this book. The stories are short and very intense. I will most certainly be giving more of Mr. Doctorow's books a chance.

I am in the process of answering a questionnaire asking, if I could recommend one book to someone to read, what book would it be?

I came on this site to check the spelling of the full name of this book.

I love this book.

A collection of interwoven tales told from the perspective of the different residents of Ferozsha Baag, an apartment building in Bombay. All the stories are good; some are outstanding. In particular, the story of the son who emigrates to Canada to become a writer has a uniquely autobiographical feel to it. =)

I read A Fine Balance about a year ago and loved it. I just finished Swimming Lessons and I'm going out to buy Family Matters right now. He writes so beautifully and descriptively that you feel that you lived alongside the characters in his books.He's my favorite author right now.

"Swimming Lessons", a short story collection, may be Mistry's earliest published work. He of course wrote the awesome "A Fine Balance", a panoramic look at life in India circa 1975. "Lessons" is set in about the same time period and chronicles the life experiences of middle-class Indians from a particular apartment complex. Major characters in one story show up as minor characters in other stories, giving the book a novelistic feel. Emigration, experienced directly by Mistry in his early 20's as he moved to Canada, is a major theme of the book. The story "Squatters", contains a "story inside the story" that affect your thinking about the trials of emigration (as it relates to bodily functions) for a long time. Those who know Mistry will enjoy this look at his early writing. Newcomers to Mistry might enjoy the short story form as an intro before tackling the epic "A Fine Balance."

And I thought that "A Fine Balance" was Rohinton's best! Yet again, I find myself speechless in my admiration for his astute command of language. His precise and inventive prose never quits until he has portrayed an image in sentences. Images that I grew up with myself but never quite would have thought of expressing in the grippingly sensitive way he can.

Swimming Lessons is a collection of such reminiscences from the author's childhood in a Parsi neighborhood in suburban middle-class Bombay. The setting itself may be confined to a particular community, but his compassionate brush carves such a wide sweep of the minutest of human emotions that the sheer force of this book is not in its plot or setting, but in its recognition of the universal bounty of life.

Our quirky residents of 'Firozsha Baag' have every reason to be disconcerted and baffled with their difficult lives. The walls of their building complex are coming apart. Washroom flushes don't work. One family has the refrigerator that's shared by the entire colony, and another has the common telephone. Their lives are marred by simple everyday things, innocent infatuations, unconfessed fantasies, fatal jealousies, neighborhood bullies, petty thefts, memory lapses, shared newspapers, cultural/generational clashes, etc etc.

Yet, beneath this veneer of this seeming hardships glimmers a subtle undercurrent of hope and happiness, of a bond that does not need expressing in the common social forms.

The high praise that Mistry has garnered is not exaggerated. The man has a disarming sense of humor and a lingering sense of what makes literature great. I laughed, I cried, I sat back and pondered. I was especially stirred by the moving story "Of White Hairs and Cricket", and the cover story, which is saved for the last, "Swimming Pools."

Couldn't recommend this brilliant compilation highly enough. It hardly reads like a debut.

I have a hardcover of this book - first edition - and where my kids have long since destroyed the dust jacket, the book sits amongst other treasured stories of my youth. I loved this book so much, I 'borrowed' this copy from a friend and never returned it -- another story in and of itself. But the book haunted me, as did the transgression, and when I finally offered to return the book to her some 30 years later, she told me to enjoy the book and give it to my children! Few books today capture a child's love of time travel like this one. Read and enjoy Susan's journey.

I read and re-read this book as a kid. Recently a student of mine ased abotu books on time traveling and I thought of this one and another book, "The Root Cellar" that could be of interest.
I loved Time At The Top, Susan was a great character and I truly loved to read about her comprehension of her situation and her strong decisisons to help the family she comes to know...

I never thought I'd find it again! Lovely plot, great characterization, a heroine you feel strongly for, and an unforgettable ending. By mere chance I found this title on a recommendation list and knew it was the book I'd half-forgotten. Now I get to recommend it to my nieces, nephews and someday my daughter!

I purchased this book to pre-read for my 8 1/2 year old advanced reader. I couldn't put the book down! The book was very well written with several fun twists and turns. Books with age appropriate content that are challenging to read are often hard to find for her age group. I can't wait for her to read this one.

This book was one of my favorites when I was a kid...too many years ago to mention. Oh, all right then...40 years ago. I loved Susan Shaw and was so thrilled with her adventures. It is wonderful that this book is back in print so that more kids can run away to the past with Susan.

Every time I put it down I found myself wondering what would happen next, I became that intrigued with the characters! Each and every one of them were brought to life for me!

Mama Creole - It's very rare to come across so much compassion and kindness! This beautiful woman possessed this and so much more. She was brought to life for me thanks to this writers excellent descriptions and I was left feeling blessed to have learned some valuable lessons from Mama Creole.

Triple Threat - Surprise, Surprise, Surprised! Loved It! This one left me totally engrossed from beginning to end. The lengths that the main character, Gayla Camray went through to get revenge for her broken heart left me reading with my mouth agape through the end. Very exciting! I would love to read a sequel to this!

Genocide - Very well written and very insightful! A good look at Women faced with betrayl by their own gender! The writer could not have done better than to have the main character, Gayla Camray so eloquently open the eyes of the reader by sharing her own experiences as well as those of other Women through her work as a director in a Womens clinic. I agree that Men and Women alike should learn the valuable lessons of the darker side of sisterhood from this story.

Gloria Tillis Jones is so obviously gifted with her writing! I was taken with each story in this book and I look so forward to reading much more of her writing in the future!

I LOVED "A TRILOGY OF WOMEN" IT WAS AN EXCELLENT FRONTLIST READ, IT WAS FACT BASED FICTION, WONDERFUL AND CHARACTERS WERE MESMERIZING.

THIS BOOKS WAS TOTALLY EDUCATIONAL, HUMOROUS, MADE ME LAUGH OUT LOUD AND CRY, IT WAS DEAR TO MY HEART AND GAVE ME A SENSE OF REALITY AND UNDERSTANDING OF SOME OF THE MANY THINGS I HAVE HAD TO DEAL WITH IN THE SISTERHOOD OF WOMEN.

I JUST WANTED TO HAVE FRIENDS, LOVE THEM AND BEFRIENDED BACK BUT MOST OF THE TIME YOU DEAL WITH JEALOUSY, BETRAYAL AND NOT SURE IF YOU CAN TRUST ONE AS FAR AS YOU CAN THROW THEM.

MS OPRAH NEEDS TO GET TO THE BEAR FACTS OF RECOMMENDING BOOKS THAT CROSS ALL BARRIERS OF SOCIO-ECONOMICS, RACES, COLORS, CREEDS, AND GENDERS, FOR MEN CAN LEARN ABOUT WOMEN FROM THIS BOOK AND WOMEN CAN UNDERSTAND WHY THEY HAVE HAD TO DEAL WITH CERTAIN THINGS FROM OTHER WOMEN.

IT TEACHES YOU TO BECOME A BETTER PERSON FROM THE CHARACTERS WHO ARE REAL BUT BASED ON SOME FICTIONAL OR CHARACTERISTICALLY IT SEEMS TO PROTECT THE ACTUAL PEOPLE WHO MAY BE LIVING OR DEAD, SO I UNDERSTAND THE NAMES BEING CHANGED.

IT WAS GREAT BUT ACTUAL, REALISTIC AND THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN ONE OPRAH PROMOTED ON HER BOOK CLUB, BUT WE GET OTHERS THAT ARE LIES AND OR HYPE TO PROMOTE SOMEONE WHO DID NOT KEEP IT REAL OR AT LEAST BE CANDID ABOUT THE ACTUAL INFORMATION.

THIS IS ONE FOR YOU MS OPRAH IT HAS BEEN OUT SINCE 2002 YOU MAY NOT DEAL WITH THIS BECAUSE YOU HAVE YOUR GIRLFRIEND YOU TALK ABOUT ALL THE TIME MS GAIL, WHO IS A NICE LADY BUT EVERYONE DOES NOT HAVE THAT BENEFIT, SO IT HELPS TO UNDERSTAND WHY SOME WOMEN ARE LIKE THEY ARE, IT HELPS ONE TO MAKE PEACE WITH THEIR GENDER AND COMPREHEND THE PERPLEXITY THAT RUNS ALL BARRIERS FOR FEMALES.

EXCELLENT BOOK AND HIGHLY RECOMMEND, SUCH UNTAPPED TALENT LEFT TO BE SET APART WHILE OTHER BOOKS OF LESS CALIBRE ARE PUT ON HIGH, NO JUSTICE, NO PEACE, NO TRUTH, NOR REALITY.

I WISH YOU MUCH SUCCESS MS JONES AND HOPE THAT ONE DAY SOMEONE RECOGNIZES YOUR GENUIS. I WILL LOOK FORWARD TO OTHER BOOKS YOU MAY PRODUCE BUT I UNDERSTAND THE DELAY. HAVE A WONDERFUL LIFE AND BLESSINGS TO YOU MS JONES, ENJOYED YOUR BOOK IMMENSELY FROM START TO FINISH, ALL DIFFERENT AND UNIQUE LADIES I COULD RELATE TO.

THANKS

PRIS

Three very interesting stories of women and the joys and sorrows they endure. Each story is long enough to let you know the women involved yet does not include excess "filler". I enjoyed these stories and wish Gloria only the best with her future publishing projects.

This book was very entertaining to me. I also learned a lot from it for it helped me comprehend in many ways some of my own true life experiences. I enjoyed having three different stories in one book. It was like buying one book but getting three for the price of one. The characters were entwined in two of the stories. I just loved Mama Creole I could see the people and taste the food and Triple Threat was very thrilling in fact I was surprised at the end of the story, it was not something one could contemplate. I loved the mingling and discriptive words and the detailed manner of the author. Thanks for a great read I hope it becomes a frontlist for you, you deserve it.

Sincerely,
Saffron

P.S. I read the book again and was still very mystified and learned something new. I encourage men and women and anyone to get this book you will not be disappointed.

A Trilogy of Women includes three short stories, each exploring relationships among women. Gloria D. Tillis Jones reveals and focuses on the highs and lows of how women treat one another.

The first relationship most women have are with their mothers. In some cases, a solid relationship may be built with the grandmother who is the main caregiver. In the first short story "Mama Creole, the reader is introduced to Gabriella Angelique Bardot. Due to the death of her mother at her birth, Gabriella is raised by an incredibly strong matriarch Mama Dear. Gabriella grew up to become a very blessed, but generous individual in her community, known to those around her as "Mama Creole". Though never having children of her own, "Mama Creole" embraced family, friends and at times complete strangers. Readers will definitely find a little piece of their own mother, aunt or grandmother in the delightful "Mama Creole".

Where "Mama Creole" is a story of warmth, the second story "Triple Threat" is a sad story of betrayal and unbridled wrath. Raised in a broken home, Moiya Towers develops a close relationship with her best friend, Diedre during their years at college. The close relationship continues to flourish as the two women become business partners. Engaged to marry the dashingly handsome Kallos, Moiya anticipates having the family she has always imagined. Her dreams are shattered as the two people closest to her, Deidre and Kallos, commit the ultimate act of betrayal. Moiya unknowingly through surpising circumstances spins out of control on a path of vengence. Along the way, she discovers details about herself and her past. Truly shocking and fascinating material arises from this story!

The last story "Genocide" centers around Gayla Camray, the director of a women's clinic. A "Mama Creole" type, Gayla builds a support system for hurting women in the community. Through her own life experiences and those of the women she serves, Gayla discovers a pattern of destructive behavior among women against other women.

In this trilogy of stories, the reader is bound to be able to relate to one or more of the characters. I personally like how Jones structured this book with "Mama Creole" as the first story. Her warmth and desire to reach out to others serve as a sterling example for all women.

The following quote is being included with this review because it wrapped up the message of the book so eloquently. "Women have it hard enough without being so down on one another, suspicious, jealous, and backstabbing .... If women who are plaqued with the same problems on one level or another, whom can they trust?" Kudos to Gloria D. Tillis Jones for an extraordinary book. May its pages serve as a source of healing for women everywhere.

Though Roald Dahl's reputation comes mostly from his children's books, these stories, though mostly aimed at adults, are worth reading. This book is full of short stories with somewhat bizarre twists to them, though they are enjoyable all the same. My favorites are Mrs. Bixby and the Colonel's Coat, The Butler, The Landlady, Parson's Pleasure, The Umbrella Man, Vengeance is Mine Inc., and Taste.
In Vengeance is Mine Inc., Two brothers named George and Claude move to New York with only four hundred and fifty dollars. When they run out of money, they become desperate. Then, Claude gets an idea. The brothers start a company called Vengeance is Mine Inc., which sends out letters to rich people who have been insulted in the newspapers, offering to punch the offensive columnist them in the nose, black their eye, put a rattlesnake (with venom extracted) in their car, or kidnap them, take off their clothes (except for underwear), and dump them on fifth street at rush hour.
After just two days of sending out letters, they already have to punch someone in the nose, put a rattlesnake in someone's car, and kidnap someone (with the above specifics). Do you want to know if they succeed? If you do, you'll have to read the book.
However, if you do decide to read the book, you will end up reading a lot of other great stories in addition to this one. The endings are just as varied as the topics of the stories. Several are slightly gruesome, others are very interesting, and one of them is very sad. Generally, though, they turn your expectations inside out and upside down, with witty (though sometimes outdated) humor and clever plot lines. If you enjoy this kind of thing, I highly recommend that you read this book.

It has taken me nearly ten years to complete my collection of Roald dahl books in hard back and this was worth the wait.

Simply an amazing book. Roald Dahl does have quite the reputation for creating children's books, but this is no child's book. Each story is so brilliant that you would think there were several decades of planning put into each one. A few will leave you frightened, some will leave you gasping, some might leave you roaring with laughter, and others will have you feeling sad.
But I assure you, no matter what feeling these stories leave you with, each and every one will be accompanied by satisfaction.
Roald Dahl was a saint when it came to children's books, but if you haven't read any of his Young-Adult (I like to call them) classics, then you have no idea what true literature is. I also recommend some of his other non-children's books, such as, one of my favourites: Going Solo.

I am a huge Roald Dahl fan, so naturally I am a bit biased. I love this compilation of short stories, and I constantly reread my favorites, which include Mrs. Bixby and the Colonel's Coat, The Butler, Man from the South, The Landlady, The Umbrella Man, The Way Up to Heaven, Royal Jelly, Taste, and Neck. If you like Roald Dahl's stories as much as I do, I recommend Dahl's Omnibus, which compiles most, if not all of his short works.

Thirteen tales of horror and hilarity from master storyteller: Roald Dahl. How much will you pay for revenge? Would you stake a bet on your little finger or on your only daughter's hand in marriage? Each of the thirteen stories collected here will grab your attention and keep you riveted till the very last words. By turns shocking,ironic,humorous and touching, these tales are filled with bizarre twists and unexpected delights. This collection proves Roald Dahl's standing as one of the world's finest storytellers. My favourites in this book are The Umbralla Man, Mrs Bixby and the Colonel's Coat,Parson's Pleasure and Taste.

The best thing about a book like this, 100 short stories in 145 pages (not counting the lengthy interview with the author at the end), is that everybody will have their own favorites. Mine were the "Nightmare Jobs" series and "A Donation," a macabre first person account of a man who plans to will his body to science. These stories are horror stories, complete with blood and viscera and body parts. But the most important thing a potential reader needs to know is that these stories are FUNNY.

100 Jolts is a book comprised of what is called "Flash Fiction", a type of very brief fiction pieces that has gained a lot of popularity in the computerized publishing age. When reading online magazines, one does not want to scroll forever, and the eyes will tire; which is where flash fiction lights up to its best advantage.

Whether calling it Flash Fiction or Minimalist Horror, 100 Jolts is a shockingly delightful romp through some very sticky, and very slimy, situations. Michael Arnzen clearly demonstrates that he has been working with Flash for some time, showing off these bereft-poetry-haiku type of "smack you in the face" stories with style and substance.

We have all occasionally read those droll books where an author takes a 50 page story and pads it into 500 pages of tedious reading, and 100 Jolts is the exact opposite of those snooze fests. In this book, there is the sense that a 50 page story has been pared down past the meat into the skeletal frame and left us quivering with the ringing of steel on bone, as Arnzen slices off the juiciest of the story just for us, handing it out to us on a tiny platter, a toothy grin gracing his face.

Well, eat up, boys and girls! 100 Jolts is one of the best collections of this new type of fiction I have seen yet. There were a few pieces that left me disappointed, having the feeling of a muse or a simply jotted idea, but the rest of this thin volume left my hunger satisfied and my mind whirling with the impact, exactly how the author intended.

And for those of us with a warped or twisted sense of humor, you will find a chuckle or two lurking here also.
Some of my favorites include: Skull Fragments, Take Out, Stabbing For Dummies, White Out, The Seven Headed Beast, Psycho Hunter, Inside The Man With No Eyelids, Burning Bridges, Next Door, Nightmare Job #3, Five Mean Machines, The Eight Ball In Big Mouth's Pocket, An Evil Eye, The Blood Ran Out, How To Grow A Man Eating Plant, and Domestic Fowl.

Those are just a tiny sampling of the works collected here. With stories ranging from two or three sentences to two or three pages, this book is perfect for a beach afternoon, a late night flight, or a nice little story before bedtime.

Enjoy!

This book is fantastic. Arnzen takes ideas that lesser authors would stretch out over 500 pages and slams them down in remarkably short, yet complete, stories. Arnzen succeeds in doing what I have been attempting to do my entire life. He scares the hell out of people.

One stormy night...well, it wasn't stormy, but six of us did stay up all night, taking turns reading these flashes of horror. Everyone had their own favorite. I fluctuated between 'Stretch' (which few people can read all in one breath) and 'Brain Candy' (which is so good it's used as a back cover blurb).

It's also great to read with a flashlight around a campfire.

Of course, now that some of these were made into the movie EXQUISITE CORPSE, you can see some of the images inspired by the book. (With the lights out, of course.)

In his introduction, author Michael Arnzen states that "Horror is the genre of the jolt, the shock, the spark." To prove his point, he then offers up one hundred short stories to his audience, the longest, "Five Mean Machines," only nine pages in length (many are only one paragraph long), each designed with the idea of creating an immediate, visceral reaction in readers. It's a measure of Arnzen's talent that he more often than not achieves this goal, all without losing sight of a couple basic tenets of storytelling, those being to grab and hold your reader, and maybe make him think in the bargain. Despite the limits he's imposed on himself, Arnzen still proves capable of doing just that in little gems like "Nightmare Job #1" through "Nightmare Job #5" (think of it as a mini miniseries), "The Curse of Fat Face," and "Her Daily Bread." One warning before you begin 100 Jolts, though--like the candy in a Whitman sampler, you'll find yourself gobbling up one tale after another. Not a big problem, until you abruptly come to the end, still craving more. You might consider exerting some willpower, and force yourself to sample these varied delights over several days, thus maximizing their impact.

The book is divine. All of her works are great. Judy passed away here in Tampa, Florida a few days ago and this great author and woman will truly be missed.

Carmin Dolphy-Williams

Jael Reynolds a detective by choice, a Christian by Faith, has had to endure much. A young son to raise on her own,and a anal ex, along with the pressures of a successful career in a dominating world of men & bigots. It is one thing to adjust to when you have to work under the leadership of a woman, but add color to that title and you got blatant racism and hidden racism. Jael learns that you never know who your enemies will be. Jael has sacrificed much to succeed and also to find her way spiritually. She learns that even though she has done what was considered right, the devil has his spawns and there are times in a believer's life where they have to practice and battle that "No weapon formed against (me) shall prosper." and the fact that GOD said that he will "never leave you or forsake you." Jael is a living testimony that "He may not come when you want him, but he'll always be right on time." Life itself is hard, but racism and supremacy is real and very much around, you have to know that there are wolves in sheep clothing. Grant is what Jael needs, someone who is strong, connected and believes in having faith. You never know when your prince charming will be delivered. This story line was intriguiing and very captivating, you have to keep reading. You have suspense, mystery, romance, desparation, spirituality, maternal love, and much more in this book. TO THE AUTHOR JUDY CANDIS.... "JOB well done!!!" I look forward to reading more by Ms. Candis. If you are a Christian fiction reader or if you are not, I recommend this book!!!

Author Judy Candis has written a beautiful Christian Fiction mystery novel, one in which it is more than evident she spent a lot of time and love writing. Jael Reynolds was godly proud of her position with the police department as a detective with promises of a promotion to lieutenant in the near future, but not as much as she was humbled and thankful for her Christian walk and faithfulness to the Lord. Because of this, she is able to do her job and be a help to as many people as she can, but not even her eventful past, an arrogant ex-husband, raising her son alone, and the usual dealings of police work prepare her for what was lying beneath in her small Florida city.

For some reason, the unease Jael felt when the first drug dealer was killed would change her life as she knew it. The turn of events that followed appeared to be a serial killer taking out the local drug dealers, but that was just scratching the surface. As each event would unfold, it appeared to be one positive step towards solving the spree of killings, including bringing in the FBI. Even still things were not as they appeared to be.

Jael's faith was tested through the roof when her son and young friend were kidnapped because she had gotten too close to finding out about the true "White Power" hate crimes, who was involved and how they had covered their tracks. Stressed far beyond her limits, Jael found herself in a place of obedience by praying and waiting on God to move on her behalf as He placed people in her life and in the way of the ongoing investigation who turned out to be a help to her bringing those responsible to justice.

Author Judy Candis penned a beautifully written Christian Fiction mystery in which she took a lot of time to research and put into her story as it pertains to detective and police work. I would recommend this book to anyone who is going through a time in their lives where it seems they will not make it. In the face of adversity, there is God's mercy and His unfailing love and faithfulness. Rest in peace, Judy Candis.


Reviewed by Sharel E. Gordon-Love
Apooo BookClub

Somebody send some aspirin over to Publisher's Weekly, because you don't have to be Christian or African-American to appreciate this book.
The strong female lead Jael offers up a lesson in faith, applicable to all flavors. I don't typically read books because they're Christian, but this book gave me a new perspective on my own faith - I didn't feel like I was being evangelically pounded.
It's so good to see a woman lead character without super powers dealing with her problems and not passing them off on someone else, or waiting for a man to come to her rescue!
I laughed and cried when I read this book - then I bought it for my mother to use at her Bible study, glad to have this literary bridge to connect our religious gap.
Judy Candis writes books that stay with you for awhile. This is the second of her books that I've read --and enjoyed.

I would highly recommend "All Things Hidden" for anyone who loves suspense novels. The added dosage of Christian principles made this book even better. The lessons in the book go hand in hand with the suspense and situations Jael finds herself in.

Appalachian people know how to tell a good story, and Bob Sloan is a wonderful storyteller. This slim volume packs a very large emotional punch with its honest prose and wistful and comical glimpses of an area Bob knows well. My favorite story (one that he read at the Harriet Simpson Arnow Conference at Somerset Community College in 2006) is "Finding the Gate," written from the perspective of an old woman. It's amazing to me how Bob can write so well in that voice. In his acknowledgments, he thanks a very special librarian who opened up the world of books to him and encouraged him to read anything that caught his interest, to question what he read, to write, and to think. Her name was Jeanne Burr. A thank you from me too, Jeanne, as Bob's stories are a wonderful addition to literature.

Bob Sloan is a master of the writing craft and a true voice of his roots. His stories are rooted firmly in the soil of working class Appalachia. The land and the people are brought vividly to life without one wasted or false word. It would be easy to get caught up in how technically proficient the author is in this very difficult art form, except the stories and characters are too engrossing to allow you to be analytical. No BS - just darn good yarns! Great stuff!!

Bob Sloan is in his true element when spinning a good yarn on the interpersonal dynamics of mountain Appalachia, either on paper or in person at the Blue Gator. He is a frequent contributor to National Public Radio, and has published numerous short stories in literary magazines.

Bob and his wife, Julie, live on the family farm near Morehead.

The book is Bearskin to Holly Fork, Stories from Appalachia (Wind Publications, 2003), comprises of 15 true stories about individuals, usually a wash in alcohol, coping with predicaments often of their own making - - coming to bad or good ends as things work out. The stories are poignant, wistful, yet tough, hard as nails.

Sloan spins his stories in efficient honest prose, crafted to say just enough. As one reviewer wrote, these stores "fall from the pen the way leaves fall from trees; some cosmic force helping them find their place." Their being rich with humor, irony, Sloan's yarns are fun to read. They are laced with the colorful vocabulary of the Appalachian culture - "hesitant, like a fat man descending a ladder." But they also have a serious dimension and are also very well crafted to illustrate humanity and dignity in characters we might think as losers in situations bordering on the criminal - assisted suicide, getting even, getting away with murder - sort of...

Being a product of Appalachia himself, Sloan knows these people well; his writing is not overdone or contrived. The reader will care about these people, warts and all.

Ted Foster, Newsletter Editor

"Bearskin to Holly Fork: Stories from Appalachia" is a collection of gritty stories populated by tough people, and author Bob Sloan exposes their faults and failures as well as sharing with us their merits and accomplishments. Murderers, bootleggers, pot-growers, crippled war veterans, ex-cons and drunks rub elbows with sheriffs, waitresses, clerks, farmers, carpenters and the like. Sometimes it is difficult to tell who is who, as they are quite often one and the same.

This meticulously edited medley is not only an enjoyable read but should be considered a textbook for writers. Throughout, the author has sprinkled his wonderful imagery in carefully worded and structured sentences and paragraphs. Bob Sloan paints with his words.

My favorite story in this anthology of fifteen tales is "A Ride Across Open Water" in which a man and a woman who have suffered a grave loss attempt to put their empty lives back together. In this seemingly simple paragraph, the author reveals volumes:

"Twice in the week before she left, he came home to find his wife sleeping on the sofa, an empty glass that smelled of bourbon on the floor. Both times a pink and blue baby book, purchased the afternoon a doctor confirmed Bea's pregnancy, was on her lap. Paul's memory still held whole paragraphs from pamphlets and articles about Sudden Infant Death Syndrome."

In the author's own words about his writing: "My wife gave me the phrase `blue collar fiction.' It suits me better than any other label. I write stories about Appalachian working class people, the `working poor,' because they're the people who raised me, the people I live with, the people who matter to me."

Don't be fooled by the author's modesty. This is some of the most sophisticated and carefully crafted fiction you will ever read.

Good short stories are hard to write. Those that resonate are coordinated combinations of authenticity, good dialogue that moves stories along, and an almost gifted ability to trust readers enough not to tell them everything -- only what they need to know. Bob Sloan, who is also a frequent contributor to National Public radio and lives near Morehead, is a master at the craft.

Sloan doles out 15 previously published stories over 135 pages and gives us a clinic in what good short stories are. One can get all senses activated -- can hear the sound of tires rolling on gravel, see Harlan Carter wheel himself up a redwood ramp built for elderly or disabled tourists, taste the freely flowing bourbon, touch Don Reynolds' partner "Troop" (whom others see as a ghost), and figuratively smell a rat when Bide goes for his commodities during the Great Depression.

The stories, often depressing and mostly laced with potent alcohol, nevertheless are told straight and with little contrived sentiment.
- Steve Flairty