Short Stories Books

This is an incredible book, which features many of Updike's earlier stories. The title story is amazing in its meaning and moral complexity. FIVE STARS!!!

Good short stories from thr great Updike. Each one uniqely different.

If there is, you have my attention. Maybe Isaac Babel's Collected Stories or Fitzgerald's Selected Stories. I've been writing for 27 years; I may have written three sentences that compare with the average in an Updike story. In "Flight" he captures in several sentences more about family than I've discovered through an entire life. Sorry for being self-referential; it's a measure of my awe. Updike's magic is that he can tell a story in a single sentence. If you only know Updike through his novels, you're in for a treat. By my lights, this is the greatest living story writer and this is the book that made that clear.

There is little, if anything, one is able to say that can possibly capture the beauty or majesty of a great Updike story. The gentle yet exact measure of his sentences, the bewilderingly complex yet infinitely fluid (and eventually near-epiphanic) weaving of narratives, his control of internal characterization--few are masters in the manner that John Updike is a master.

And this volume contains his greatest story--possibly what I feel to be the greatest piece of literature in all of latter-half 20th century American literature (and we're including it all here, not just short stories). The last story of the volume: Packed Dirt, Churchgoing, A Dying Car, A Traded Car.

Enough with the theoretics and generalities here. This story can change your life. Or, at the very least, it can alter the way in which you interact with literature--what you can expect out of literature.

One piece of advice, though: read it in one sitting.
Seriously.
Don't get up, even just for a little while to fix something to eat. Don't read it bit by bit (it's long, so you may be tempted). And, whatever you do, don't look at the last page before it's time.

It may seem disjointed. It may seem an odd accumulation of narratives. Don't stop reading.

Two years, and a hundred readings later, I still haven't gotten over that first experience. What I wouldn't give to have it again...

I'm a budding short story writer, myself; and no course, no workshop, no amount of instruction can subsitute for the lessons one learns leafing through and ingesting these exquisite paragraphs of John Updike. I find myself, in this volume, more than other Updike works, reading and re-reading the prose, even emailing sections to friends. Like a fine restaurant I want to tell people about, like a band that plays exceptionally well live which you get to catch on a great night, Updike, here, is "on"; he is at the absolute peak of his craft. I only wish there were more collections of short stories written as well as these.

My yardstick for excellent writing about a foreign culture is probably Paul Scott's "The Raj Quartet", which was the basis for the BBC TV series "The Jewel in the Crown". I think these four books are a real tour de force - he writes in several different voices throughout, but remains - I think - completely sensitive to the political and social complexities and subtleties of the situation in India towards the end of the British occupation. Very nuanced, extraordinarily sensitive writing.

It's not just the writing: the stories that unfold in this masterpiece will draw you in, grip you, and break your heart.

Paul Scott's following is small, but Loyal. He is a fantastic writer. The Raj Quartet by far, is my favourite favourite series of books by him because of its complexity and such extraordinary characters. His charactres are so indepth, so well played out that the reader feels that he or she knows them thouroughly. Its a historical epic, very well written, and its absolutely a must read.

About 25 years ago I got a list of the best 100 books of all time, and found "The Raj Quartet" by Paul Scott listed. I started at the beginning with "The Jewel in the Crown" and got bogged down. Coincidentally, PBS started its Masterpiece Theatre version. I watched a few of the episodes (actually all of them, eventually) and got back to reading. What I discovered was the best set of novels I've ever read, and each one an individual "jewel" as well. A pebble thrown, the towers of silence, and many other images stay with me, as well as the memory of Scott's beautiful writing and well-developed, complex characters, and the scope and importance of the story. If there wasn't so much else to read, I'd reread the whole set--sounds like a good retirement project some day.

This book (or series of books) is so sprawling and intricate, like India itself, one might say, that it is impossible to "pin down", as it were, in a review like this. The thing to do, I think, is to cover the most salient aspects of the work separately. Otherwise, one will become lost, as many of the characters herein do. So, salient aspect numbers:

1.) History - This is the novelistic equivalent of Gibbon concerning the British Empire. It might even be called "The Decline and Fall of The British Empire." As a reviewer for the Sunday Times puts it, "A history student years from now should be able to say to his professor, `Yes, but what was it REALLY like in India in the last days of the Raj?' and be told, `Read these four books and you'll not only know, you'll understand...' " The "understand" part is especially significant in that these books will have you totally spellbound by Scott's deft character portrayal and psychological insight. It is no exaggeration to say that one feels one has lived in India from 1939-1947 after having emerged from the nearly two-thousand pages that comprise this work. But the deft character portrayal leads me to a more troublesome, salient point:

2.) Ronald Merrick-A host of characters populate this work, portrayed with deep sympathy herein. And yet, one can't help but feel, upon closing the pages, that the work might also be called, "Ronald Merrick: An in-depth Portrait of a Psychotic in India". It is a tribute to Paul Scott that we do not discover the depths of the....evil (Sorry, I can't think of another word that fully encompasses the character.) of Merrick until the tag end of the work. Yes, Hari Kumar is the other major character who, to a certain extent, offsets Merrick. But he fades into the background after his interrogation by Nigel Rowan with Lady Manners looking on in the second book, The Day of the Scorpion. Merrick, so to speak, stays on until the very bitter end. Not only does he stay on, but he lingers in the mind. What is he? What does he represent? The British Raj itself, as some would have it? Partly, I would say, but there is something about Scott's obsession with this fellow that refuses to be pigeonholed. It's all very eerie. By the end of the book, you won't be able to hear the word "Merrick" without a troubling frisson running through you. - He is not mad like, say, Susan Layton, who rather resembles a character from one of the Bronte novels. - His nature and the nature of his evil are complex. They defy reduction. So, I shan't venture on a futile quest to do so but rather come to salient point:

3.) The brooding fatalism that overhangs everything here. Of course, one knows before one picks the book up that the Brits in India are doomed. But, well, I'll just let Daphne Manners' quote from the first book, The Jewel in the Crown, give the reader notice of the feeling that permeates this work:

"We were sitting on the verandah. Oh, everything was there - the wicker chairs, the table with the tea tray on it, the scent of the flowers, the scent of India, the air of certainty, of perpetuity; but, as well, the odd sense of none of it happening at all because it had begun wrong and continued wrong, and so was already ended, and was wrong even in its ending, because its ending, for me, was unreal and remote, and yet total in its envelopment, as if it had already turned itself into a beginning. Such constant hope we suffer from!"

Salient points covered...except that the reader might do worse than to do as Perron does at the end and look up Philoctetes, not a futile quest by any means.

It has been too long since I read this book [probably 15 years ago] for me to offer an erudite and detailed analysis. But I do remember vividly that when I read it that the word "masterpiece" came repeatedly to my mind. In a league with Thackeray's "Vanity Fair" and Naipaul's "A House for Mr. Biswas". Find the time to read it; you won't regret it.

I'm a big fan of Raymond Chandler, and I'm also a big fan of Everyman's library.

I purchased this book after completing all of Chandler's novels. As usual with Everyman's Library, this is a very high quality hardcover edition with a cloth cover and high quality paper at a bargain price. Also, I believe this is the most complete set of Chandler's short stories you can currently buy (if I recall correctly, the Library of America collection, which is also quite a good buy, leaves out several stories).

One word of caution - if you plan to read both, I'd recommend reading Chandler's novels before the short stories, as he cannabalized a good amount of his earlier short stories when constructing some of his novels, so you'll end up reading some of the material twice. That said, for the most part, these stories are every bit as satisfying as his full length novels and I'd highly recommend this edition for any fan of Chandler's writing.

I have reviewed Raymond Chandler's seven full Phillip Marlowe epics elsewhere in this space. For those who doubt that a mere plebian detective in a once seedy genre can hold your attention and win your admiration as very, very good literature then try these short pieces to work up the 'big' boys. You will not be disappointed. Moreover, you will get a fair peek at what makes Marlowe tick in his previous guises-his sense of honor, his doggedness in the face of adversity and his tilting after windmills when he gets his teeth in a case. And it does not hurt if there is a good-looking 'dame' in the bargain.

ON BECOMING PHILLIP MARLOWE


Apparently there are many, many editions of this work listed under the Trouble is My Business label. I have reviewed the one that has Chandler's introduction about his take on the place of the detective novel in American literature circa 1950. Since then I have found a copy under the same title that has 12 stories in it many of which are different from the above. If you can find it- Vintage Paperback-1988- you will be justly rewarded because what you will get are snatches of stories with various charcters, locales, named detectives and different ending that will later go on to become The Big Sleep, Farewell, My Lovely and Lady in the Lake. Get it if you can, if for no other reason than to see how the master noir detective writer moved the work forward. Amazing.

I'm giving the book five stars anyway, since I've read most of these stories before BUT ESPECIALLY because it is the only ABSOLUTELY COMPLETE COLLECTION of Chandler's short stories, including the ones he cannibalized to write three of the Marlowe novels which the late Chandler did not want to see reprinted, and several other rarely-seen stories including two fantasy ones!

AMAZON IS USUALLLY ACE WHEN IT COMES TO FILLING ORDERS, BUT IT SEEMS SILLY THAT THEY ASKED ME TO WRITE A REVIEW OF A PURCHASE THEY SHOULD KNOW THEY HAVEN'T SENT ME YET!!!

Yes, there are a lot of great stories in this book, but for me the real interest is seeing Chandler develop the traits and try out the plotlines that will be fully fleshed out with the definitive Philip Marlowe. I was introduced to Chandler by a good friend (thanks, Darlene) about 25 years ago, and I still read his novels at least once a year. I would read The Big Sleep, The Long Goodbye, and Farewell, My Lovely first to get a sense of who Marlowe is and then backtrack into these stories to find out where Marlowe comes from. Marlowe has been my favorite literary character for a very long time. Down these mean pages, a man must go. An excellent collection and an excellent value.

WANT TO KNOW HOW TO WRITE. READ CHANDLER.
WHAT A MASTER.
AND YES! IT'S FUN TO READ.
THAT'S WHAT MAKES HIM A MASTER.
SUBSTANCE AND PROFUNDITY AND A HECK OF A GOOD YARN.
THAT'S A MASTERWORK.
AND CHANDLER IS THE ULTIMATE WRITER'S WRITER.

This is my second book by Ms. Norfleet and all I can say is I'm now a life long fan. I agree with the other reviewers, this story was wonderful!! As I read it, I kept remembering places I visited while in PR and it just made the story even more romantic and sexy.

I loved Marco's fierceness and his brooding nature matched up against Angela's sassy attitude and kind heart. I also enjoyed the story behind Marco's parents and his relationship with his brother, Roberto. I would love to hear about future adventures of Roberto and catch up with Marco and Angela in a sequel. I think Rita would be great for Roberto...after all still waters run deep. Much respect to Ms. Norfleet.

I don't see how any woman could choose between Marco and Roberto. What I wouldn't give to take a trip to Puerto Rico to meet my own little version of Marco or Roberto. Reading this and going back to the drudges of reality just don't measure up. This is what dreams and fantasies are made of. Dam, Angela was one lucky woman. Now, if I can see what's going on with Roberto, I will be completely satisfied. I happen to agree with with one Amazon reviewer. Rita would be too outta her league with Roberto, but who knows? Love can make funny things happens. We just have to wait and see.

Dope story

I agree with the other readers. This was a well-written, hot- sensual story that got me wanting to revisit Puerto Rico. Maybe I will find my own Marco the next time I'm there. Yes, please write a sequel for Roberto and I would love to see how the author handled Marco ex-wife with his present wife. Roberto love interest should be someone new. Rita didn't seem like she could handle him.
Love reading all your other books. Waiting for JT Story.
Keep writing. God Bless

This book was so very well written. The story line between the main characters sent so many emotions through me, frustration, admiration, jealousy, amusement, bottom line - it was excellent. Celeste did a great job weaving the story lines considering the various issues going on between the characters. I truly enjoyed this book and I can't wait to read a sequel to this story. I want to be like Angela - Just send me a Marco.

Marco and Angela's story was wonderful! Her initial dislike of him added to the fuel of their fire. It was good to see Marco letting go and moving on from the "death" of his ex-wife, Angelina. A sequel of Roberto's story would be the icing on the cake. I hope the relationship with his "friend" in Texas stays as is and that love blossoms with Rita. They seem to be a perfect match for each other. It will be interesting to see how Marco handles the news of Roberto's secret in Texas and how it affects his relationship with Angela. Great job, Ms. Norfleet! I look forward to reading more of your work.

Ivan Turgenev (1818-1883) is one of Russia's greatest authors. Turgenev was a pro-Western author who portrays a vanished Russia of serfdom and
rural landowners. Tsar Alexander II liberated the serfs in 1861. It is reputed that the tsar took this action based on his reading of these sketches.
The book is divided into twenty-five sketches portraying peasant life. Along the way we meet such characters as:
Chertopkhanov who loves his beautiful, spirited horse Malek Adel. When the horse is stolen the old landowner journeys across the steppes seeking to find the majestic creature. This tale will break your heart. Turgenev is good at describing animals and the joy of awaiting a day of hunting.
We meet the Hamlet of the Shchigrovsky who falls in love with a beautiful gypsy serf. Turgenev believed the statoc social structure in Russia needed to be changed for the better. He did not live to see the Russian Revolution living most of his life as an exile in France.
Death is a story of how several Russians met their deaths. Stoicism is a characteristic we see in this harrowing and sad tale.
Singers takes us to a village drinking den where we witness a raucous singing contest among serfs.
Someone who does not hunt may believe that this classic will be boring. How wrong! The book is written with lyrical descriptions of nature in all seasons of the rural year. We almost wish we could join the unnamed narrator as he journeys from his estate meeting the men and women of Russia. Turgenev is a poetic author who wells deserves a revival of popularity.

There was a moment, long back, when you lay in the dry, brown grass on Blueberry Hill, listening to the whispering wind on a bright September day. A catbird mewed off in the little green woods down by the tracks. A rabbit thumped once or twice; a white sea gull soared over your head in the brilliant blue sky that held promise of a crisp New England fall to come. The gull headed out to sea, that dark blue Atlantic lying just beyond the old seaside mansions of Boston executives, already boarded up for the season. Your thoughts flew off with the gull, to life beyond that little town on a rocky peninsula, but the clear light, the smell of the sea, the tiny mewing of a catbird--these stayed with you forever. Fifty years later, it's all gone except the sea. A writer tries to catch the world around him (her). The best create word-portraits that preserve the past into the future.

Turgenev caught the Russian countryside south of Moscow as it was in the 1840s, when serfdom still ruled, and hunters could roam properties at will. His lyrical descriptions of nature, in my opinion, have never been surpassed; on every page, you feel as if you were there. Your head fills with the beauties he saw, you cannot remain untouched. Turgenev wrote of the enduring peasantry warts and all, no simplistic pictures for him, and he lambasted the vanity or predatory nature of the landlord class. SKETCHES FROM A HUNTER'S ALBUM is just that, only a series of separate pictures composed around the author's trips through the countryside to hunt. Religion and poetry suffuse the pages along with insightful portraits of many individuals. "Bezhin Lea", "Kasyan from the Beautiful Lands" and "Bailiff" will impress you with their psychological excellence along with the beauty of their descriptions. "Singers" has to be one of the most powerful stories of music ever told. "The Living Relic" reminded me of India in its acceptance of human fate, though it is certainly a Russian tale of those times. Almost every story is a masterpiece by itself. In short, in all my readings throughout my life, I can scarcely recall a more beautiful book than this. I recently re-read it. It is ridiculous to give it five stars. If Russian literature contained only this book, it would already be world-renowned. Read some of my other reviews---you'll see I don't say this lightly.

It's taken me until now to get to Sketches From A Hunter's Album. Now I have finished it and now I am grieving. It will stay in my nonlending collection so I can savor it even after the surprise has gone. It's like losing a friend.

Turgenev calls these 'sketches' rather than stories. It's a good distinction. More story writers should concentrate on their sketch pads. The sketches are of places and people in the rural south of Russia in the 1840s. Each is strung thematically on Turgenev's wandrings through the countryside while hunting for game birds. Each begins with a mention that he was hunting in a certain place. He goes into lovely thoughtful and surprising descriptions of the woods or marsh, the sky, the smells, the sounds, the light. Even in translation, these are exquisite. He speaks of shifting light shining through the leaves onto the forest floor, or unbreatheable noonday heat, or changing skies at the advent of a storm, a dawn, or a sunset; he calls up moments from your own life that you thought could not be shared with anyone who wasn't there and he makes you relive those moments as if he had been there with you.

For anyone who has spent time out of doors, these little Aldo Leopold nature essays standing alone would be reason enough to read the 'Sketches', but these are just hors d'œuvre to his descriptions of the persons he meets while hunting. When sketching people, Turgenev does gracefully what Dickens tried to do and did clumsily; that is, he describes the physical characteristics of a person and gives you a fully formed description of their character as well, and he does this without sounding forced and without showing himself. (And you will burst out laughing at the sudden recognition that, indeed, someone does look 'like a root vegetable'.)

"Sketches" was published twice in Turgenev's lifetime and in the second edition he added to it. In the earlier sketches, Turgenev brings a character to life in a description; the character may speak a few words, and disappear from the scene, as people do in real life, leaving the reader to speculate what became of him. Yet, Turgenev has given us enough insight into the character that we think we know what probably happened next, and so the story is complete. These are elegant Aristotelian constructs with the action taking place offstage, and, oh elegance! with the final action taking place in the reader's imagination after the story has ended. If my description leaves you wondering, read them! (Would that I could spur you to act as Turgenev spurs his readers to think. Ah, but it's too much... .) This is what Turgenev does. He starts you thinking, but requires you to complete the story. In the later sketches Turgenev is just as deft in his descriptions, but perhaps to satisfy the market or his editors he adopts a more plot driven model. These later contributions can more truly be called stories rather than sketches. They are equally well-crafted, but they demand less of the reader. Curiously, they give us less as well.

The hunter's travels theme gives the collection an interrelatedness, almost like a picaresque novel. As in Huckleberry Finn or Don Quixote, neither the author nor the protagonist directly express opinions, but as stories accumulate the reader acquires the author's strong politicized view. We meet the aristocrats and peasants of rural Russia. The serf-holding system had been 'liberalized' in the early 19th century, but it is revealed as the unnamed slavery it was. Landlords control peasants' rights to marry; they name the persons to fill regional conscription quotas; they assign agricultural and residential alotments; and thoughtless and uncaring aristocrats use these powers carelessly or maliciously to destroy lives. Liberal aristocrats fare no better than traditional feudalists, as Turgenev details social reformers' well-meaning disasters which beggar both for the peasants and the bumbling aristocrats who direct them.

America often forgets that its civil war was part of a European pandemic of peasant revolts driven by the extended logic of the Enlightenment. As masters and slaves in the United States were struggling with the immorality of a divine order handed down from a prior age, the masters and servants in Europe did the same. The 1840s, 50s, and 60s were tumultuous times in central and eastern Europe. Turgenev, arrested and exiled in 1852 because of the 'Sketches', has an historical place akin to the American abolitionists of the same day, however, unlike Harriet Beecher Stowe, Turgenev draws his characters in three dimensions with humanity, with love and understanding even when he does not forgive them their moral failings. The 'Sketches' would be an interesting book to teach alongside Huckleberry Finn.

Turgenev effectively invents a new form -- the literary sketch -- to impart a new kind of content. What is brilliant about these sketches which are in part nature meditation and in part biographical sketch is how Turgenev allows each character to speak for themselves. As a result we feel like we are hearing something we have never heard before -- the natural voice of the people. By allowing people to speak for themselves Turgenev gives us a truer and more genuine idea of how people -- serf and gentry -- really think and relate. Each sketch begins with a detailed description of the natural surroundings he is walking through and these descriptions give us insight into Turgenev's cast of mind which is infintely receptive, and discerning, even romantic and delicate at times as when he describes staring up through the forest canopy and imagining he is staring up at the world from beneath a vast body of water. These magnficent introductions set the mood for the character sketch to come. When he meets a serf it is as if he is merely continuing his communion with nature for the serfs live at one with the land. When he meets one of the gentry, however, and passes time in their company he feels removed from the natural settings and people he so values. It is a fascinating and very subtle technique but Turgenev makes the landowners seem like unnatural creatures who are disturbing the natural order. Though he is one of the gentry himself Turgenev hunts with the serfs , he values their company and conversation, and he values what they know. He knows them as individuals not just as serfs and so we too come to know them as individuals, each with their own personality and ideas about life and story to tell. Since we know these sketches are from real life we listen more carefully to them than we would if they were mere inventions; real life has a resonance that fiction does not. Given the choice of spending the day with a either serf or a landowner Turgenev would choose the serf. The serfs have not received an education and their opinions are often shaped by superstition, and yet it is these very superstitions that make them such colorful characters, the gentry may be educated but they are full of self-importance and affectations and see everything through the limited scope of their own self-interest which is merely another form of ignorance. Turgenev's most effective weapon is not bitter invective but irony. He never comes out and says serfdom is bad because the landowners are in some cases such vile creatures that there is no need to. By simply quoting them and describing their manners and actions Turgenev allows the landowners to do a fine job at condemning themselves.

The most profound sketch to my mind is "Yermolay and the Millers Wife" which relates the harsh treatment doled out to a beautiful serf woman merely because she wants to get married, and a close second is "Bezhin Lea" about a group of boys telling ghost stories around a fire as they tend a herd of horses grazing at night. The former sketch pefectly conveys what absolute power the landowners have over every aspect of the serfs life and the latter sketch perfectly conveys how the serfs pass down their own particular brand of wisdom from one generation to the next. Perhaps the most famous sketch however is "Khor and Kalinych" which juxtaposes two kinds of serfs--one resigned to his lot and the other who despite his status as serf finds his own kind of freedom by wandering the countryside. "Kasyan and the Beautiful Lands" is perhaps the most unusual story as it presents a sage-like man who speaks as though he were a living oracle. Deprived of education the serfs remain in thrall not only to the landowners but to ignorance as well; nonetheless there is a beauty and tragic grace in the voices of these serfs that remains in memory long after you have read these sketches. The sketches are complex and layered enough to invite you back to them again and again.

The biggest joy of the sketches is their casualness. Nothing is ever overly stated or stated in black and white but everything nonetheless appears clear as day. It seems at times as if Turgenev is the only enlightened soul in Russia and yet he is absolutely civil even when with a pernicious landowner because he innately knows what is right and he trusts that we know as well. Turgenev reminds me of Thoreau in his devotions which are equally divided between nature and the forwarding of liberal ideas. Though Pushkin and Lermontov both came before him Turgenev was the first Russian writer to achieve fame outside of Russia. Fathers and Sons is considered his masterpiece but these sketches stand as something unique in all of literature.

Simply, one of the greatest book ever written. Turgenev's style is wonderfully evocative, and yet it has not an ounce of sentimentalism: its depictions of natural landscapes are incredibly lucid, almost detached, in a sense; today, we could say his writing has a "zen-like" clarity. His human character are little parts of this whole, but Turgenev's panteism has nothing of the desperate, ferociously ironic pessimism of, say, Thomas Hardy; his vision is perfectly impartial, and yet sympathetic: each of his characters appears in his fundamental, intact dignity of human being. I'm not myself a starry-eyed dreamer: but reading this book, with its wonderfully easy and aimless wanderings, is like psychoterapy; you can't get out of it but feeling calmly hyper-oxygenated, as it were; you can't read this book but thinking that this man, Turgenev, mysteriously understood what it is like to be fellow sharers of this strange place, Earth, and of this strange thing, life. If something like "occidental buddhism" does exist, this book is a lesson in it.

Stars deserves ongoing mention as an extraordinary collection of science fiction inspired by the music of folk singer Janis Ian. Janis invited respected authors in the genre to contribute works influenced by her songs: the result is an unexpected, wonderful collection of original stories - based on her music, but no prior familiarity with Ian is required in order to enjoy these varied tales.

Having heard some of Janis Ians work I thought it interesting that people would be so drawn to her lyrics to write stories about them. I bought the book not knowing what to expect and have been thrilled with what I read. I really think it was worth every penny and made sitting on the beach in Hawaii recently even better than I ever thought it could be!

I have never been much of a fan of SciFi, nor a reader of short stories. I am, however a fan of Janis Ians Music. So buying this book was a must for me.
However, I felt it would be very easy to be dissapointed with what other writers did with the songs I love so much. I need not have worried. The stories are all very different in how I see the songs, but often add interesting insights that I would never have thought of.
Most of the stories have a strong moral base, and provoke thought about the world we live in.
I enjoyed this book from cover to cover......and can't wait to explore the writing of the various authors.
Favourite Story......"EJ-ES", based on "Jesse", buttomorrow, could be another one!!!
Mike Andrew.......New Zealand

The list of authors is exemplary. The list of songs is exemplary. That Janis Ian and Mike Resnick could bring together authors of this stature, meld them to the songs, and come up with 30 astonishing stories based on those songs, is more than I can handle! I read it cover to cover, and plan to read it again and again. Robert Silverberg's "Legends" was pretty terrific, but it didn't sit on the cutting edge. It was too safe. This is the closest thing to "Dangerous Visions" I've found. A "Dangerous Visions" for my own generation!

A wonderful combination of the best-Mike Resnick-amazing sci-fi writer and Janis Ian who's illustrious career keeps expanding,have combined their talents.This is a real treat and not to be missed.An excellent anthology for the well seasoned sci-fi reader as well as the novice.

I believe that a well written short story is easy to imagine but difficult to capture. Mr. O'Hara, however, seems to capture different moments and ideas in his short stories with effortless flair. His writing is both sparse and ornate--which is just the way I like my stories. His words took me to places that were magical and raw. Reading The Swan also made me want to visit the Sacremento Valley immediately.

Mr. O'Hara has given us such a gift with this book. I will read it again and again. I am honored to have it in my collection.

lavish Lines/luscious Lies

The Swan: Tales of the Sacramento Valley is the debut book of Andrew F. O'Hara, a former patrolman and current editor of the online magazine, The Jimston Journal www.jimstonjournal.com. Mr. O' Hara's book is a collection of short stories and from past experiences, any collection of short stories that I've read with the exception of Carol Riley Cain's Ghosts, Spooks and Spirits of South Texas, have been rather dismal or uninspiring to say the least. But this little 140-paged book was a welcomed change.
The Swan, as mentioned before, is a diverse range of short stories. From humorous yarns about a nagging wife to a patrolman who's losing his sanity and resorting to alcohol for some solace, there is something here that caters to everyone's taste.
There's a mantra that has been around for many years now and that is, "never judge a book by its cover." Well when one glances upon the cover of The Swan, they are greeted with an image of a swan with its wings poised in the air as it glides along the shimmering waters of some anonymous pond or lake. This image of pleasantry does somehow go hand-in-hand with the stories of this book as they are beautifully written. Every tale was unique and written in a fresh approach but what was really distinctive was the method in which the author was able to breathe new life into each character. From start to finish, one has a vivid picture in their mind of the character's actions in all the compositions. My favourites are "A Poet's Song" and "An Act of Cowardice" because these contain, in my opinion, the strongest characters of the entire collection. In "A Poet's Song", an old husband and poet, has to listen to the nagging of his wife as she no longer likes to see him writing poetry. Her biting words or comments ring in the ears of the reader and you cannot help but feel pity for the old man. The main character in, "An Act of Cowardice", is a World War II vet who feels guilty about a deed he did in his past and although anyone in his position would've done the same if they were in his position, his feeling of guilt resonates with the reader. Another talent that O'Hara possesses is a certain richness in his descriptions. For those of you who may never get a chance to visit the Sacramento Valley or indeed the US, Andrew paints a scenic picture of the location in which each tale is set in. It's these attributes that make Tales of The Sacramento Valley a worthwhile addition to your bookshelf.
If you're remotely interested in compiling a book of short stories, then The Swan is a must read as O'Hara expertly displays how it's done. With splendid characterisation, picturesque descriptions, and excellent stories, this should be on everyone's "to buy" list and would make a great gift at Christmas to pass away the winter blues.

Aidan Lucid
www.iol.ie/~thelucidreview

Andy O'Hara is a storyteller who understands the value of a good story, well told. And that is what you'll find in The Swan - a collection of very good stories, very well told by a writer who understands that a whispered word can pack more punch than a raised voice. These are stories of love and death (and really what else is there worth writing about?). They are not easy stories and they are, perhaps, uneven (which is just another way of saying you'll have your favorites). They are written with a gentleness of spirit that some might call old-fashioned. So be it. I just call it good writing.

This 2007 revised edition is a collection of wonderful provoking short stories. Each as engaging as the one before. The descriptions of the small towns made me feel that I was in each place; seeing and feeling the scenery, people and even the stars.
I could not put it down. My only disappointment was that there was not another story and I had to close the book with its beautiful cover.

This is the new Swan, the 2007 Edition with feathers all bright white, fluffed and ready to lull and captivate you at the same time. Andy O'Hara has improved on the un-improvable this time around. The weave is tight, but so smoothly done the stories blend into each other, carrying two common themes to fruition by the turn of the last page. The fun is how Andy has taken the reader on a swing through his beloved Sacramento Valley. He describes obscure towns giving us a mental picture along with the smell of the dust, the fields, the eucalyptus groves and more. The stories, Andy claims, are fiction, but I would bet most have been drawn from his own experiences. A great read and a great buy, one I will enjoy over and over again...J.B. Bergstad

Tales of a Texas Boy took me home. I grew up in Texas on a large chicken farm with a grandmother who told me stories of the 'good ol days'. Marva captured for me a sense of peace and a longing for how things use to be. This is a great book for children of all ages. Marva, Hon would be proud.
Sarah--Utah

Tales of A Texas Boy is a funny, charming, and bittersweet vision of a vanished time. Its host of characters include a jack mule from Georgia named Samson, a grandfather who fought in the Argonne, and (unbeknownst to Eddie) Mae West, encountered in a roadside café. The stories, narrated in Eddie's West Texas accent, perfectly capture his childlike perceptiveness. The sense of place is wonderful, whether we are passing the evening on horseback across the prairie, bone-hunting in the dry washes or watching Sophie the bear roll up to the county fair sitting in the back seat of a Studebaker. What a pleasure it must be to spend a day with the man behind these stories!

Ms. Dasef wrote a marvelous portrayal of America's history through stories told by a young Texan. She takes the reader into events such as World War I and The Great Depression. The photos add to the depth of this most enjoyable book!

Ms. Dasef has captured the essence of her father's life on the Texas prairies. These folksy, heartwarming stories bring to life endearing characters who were real, flesh and blood people struggling to farm the priaire lands of the Texas panhandle.

The stories are enchanting, humorous and often contain a sort of morality tale. I especially liked the one about the grandfather taking on a hired hand he could not really afford simply because even though his family had little, the hired hand's family "had nothing."

In this day of callousness and cynicism, Tales of a Texas Boy resonates with echoes of the real America. Kudos to Ms. Dasef and to her remarkable family. A great read for all ages.

Barry Yelton,
Author of Scarecrow in Gray, a Civil War Novel

Tales of a Texas Boy is a charming collection of anecdotes about life in Western Texas during the Great Depression. The author has related these stories through the narrative voice of Eddie, who is a slightly fictionalized version of her own father. These twenty vignettes are retold in first person, with an appropriate Texan dialect. I plan to use them in my fifth grade classroom as models for writing personal narrative. Each story is fairly short, the perfect length for a quick classroom reading, and will undoubtedly spark the students to respond with anecdotes of their own. ("That makes me think of the time ...") Although the historical setting of the tales provides an unfamiliar backdrop for most students, they will be able to relate to stories about Eddie meeting a bevy of skunks in a cornfield, briefly living his dream of becoming a cowboy, and watching an act of acrobatic derring-do from a sheep dog. Because each story revolves around one simple but charming episode of daily life, they provide perfect models for writing workshop.

Dianne K. Salerni
Author of High Spirits: A Tale of Ghostly Rapping and Romance

In Tales of Dirt, Danger and Darkness, Paul Steward shows us the intensity, the peril, the exhilaration of subterranean exploration. These tales will thrill, amuse, and frighten--in other words, they do exactly what good stories are supposed to do, entertain and inform.

This book is a must-read for cavers and non-cavers alike, and for adventurers in general (including the armchair variety).

Paul Jay Steward's novel of short stories, "Tales of Dirt, Danger, and Darkness," is a variety show of caving macabre. The author is your host as he appears throughout the book as if to say, "Welcome to my nightmare." Every page is filled with wry commentary and twisted wit as Paul guides you through caving anecdotes and tales that will make you paranoid enough to avoid the dark recesses of your own garage. This book not only held my interest, it also gave me the creeps and made me laugh out loud. I heartily recommend this one.

Although not a caver myself, I certainly have enjoyed the beauty of caves. They have always seemed to have a life of their own, but now, after reading this collection of stories, I see dark and terrifying things in every corner (which is not a bad thing since I love a good horror tale).

These stories truly reach out and grab your heart and give it a good twist. No matter what your views were on caves before, wonderful or scary...you won't walk away from this book and see them the same ever again.

Mr. Steward's book should come with a sticker like a sign I once saw at a cave entrance. "WARNING, ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK!"

I once enjoyed going into caves. Now I think I'll just be content with the IDEA of going into caves.

Seriously, Paul Steward's stories are intriguing and scary. In fact, the next time I'm with friends at a late-night campfire I'm going to pull out Paul's book and read the one about the two guys who make the mistake of trying to convince a landowner to let them explore a cave on his property...

If you think you like caves, you need to read this book. There are some things you should know...

Outrageous, bizarre and funny, Paul Steward's book, TALES OF DIRT, DANGER AND DARKNESS, transports the reader into realms of terror not often visited. The horrors of the cave world, presented as entrapment and death, remind the reader that, in darkness, the mind is precariously perched between fantasy and reality and between good and evil. The terror of being accountable to the devil is there because of human greed and the desire for fame and power. And Steward often approaches the episodes in this book with subtle humor. We all have our spiritual dark sides, so clearly presented in this book. An electrifying collection of original short stories, and an excellent read!