The 2017 Short Story Advent Calendar

A co-worker purchased the 2017 Short Story Advent Calendar and has been bringing me her daily short stories.  I have to admit that I have been enjoying this for a change.  I will update this blog post as I read each day (SPOILERS AHEAD):

Day 1: Laird Hunt, "The Face"

This story confused me - at first I couldn't figure out what the heck happened.  But as I re-read it and discussed it with someone else it made sense.  Story revolves around a 14 yr old boy raking leaves in the country for an elderly couple.  The man of the house comes out and tells the boy a story about when he was a sheriff in Tipton County and a strange case he had. Great twist in the story!

Day 2: C. P. Boyko, "Forty-Third C Platoon"

This one was...graphic.  And unusual.  I'm still not sure if I am in the mindset of reading short stories as opposed to whole novels as yet.  Basically it's a story about the 43rd C Platoon and as it progresses it's told from a different person.  I had to go back and forth in each section to figure out who each person was.  Still this one had a flavor I'm not quite used to and it was a pleasant change.

Day 3: Christopher Boucher, "Lady with Invisible Dog"

So far this was my favorite short story.  It’s a little futuristic and a little otherworldly.  A bookstore owner files an “apology” with the bureau and meets a lady with an invisible dog.  I liked the main character and how the author explains his inward feelings.  I really felt connected with him in the small amount of pages.

Day 4: Hasanthika Sirisena, "Kings"

I usually love stories set in foreign lands in and around the 20’s but for some reason this one just didn’t grip me.  D.H. Lawrence in his early 30’s escaping his native England to Kandy Ceylon (now Sri Lanka). Apparently, this short story is based on D. H. Lawrence’s poem “Elephant”. The author uses fantastic comparisons and descriptions don’t get me wrong.  I think maybe I’ve been reading books too long that the short story thing is throwing me off and that I’m not enjoying them as much as I should be..

Day 5: Carmen Maria Machado, "Help Me Follow My Sister into the Land of the Dead"

OMG I lied.  THIS is my favorite story!  It was soooooo good.  Told in the prose of someone needing funding for something and the posts for it.  DUDE!!    All around I’m pretty sure this is the best short story I have ever read or will ever read.  Yup.

Day 6: Edie Meidav, "Dogs of Cuba"

I’m not sure about this one.  The story is about a journalist (I think – or a writer at least) and her ex.  She jumps down the rabbit hole so to speak when he comes to America and more specifically to her area.  I like how the author really captures that feeling of relationships and the things that go through our minds and memories we hold on to.  I wasn’t a big fan of the setting.  Fighting – whether in a ring or cage – isn’t my thing.  However it does lend itself to the volatile part of relationships so….

Day 7: Marie-Helene Bertino “Edna in Rain”

Story about a woman walking to the coffee shop while her ex boyfriends are raining down on the sidewalk.  Interesting take and I swear when I finally realized that was what it was about all I heard in my head was It’s Raining Men.  It was a nice little walk down memory lane thinking of my old exs and the feelings that envokes.

Day 8: Jim Gavin, "The Copy Chief"

About a young man and his change in life from a gas station bum to a newspaper man.  I liked the feel of this one and how we delved into his mind and his thought process behind making the decisions he made.  It was well written and a pretty good read.

Day 9: Laura van den Berg, "Aftermath"

A woman, an attic and a boat.  I hated this one.  First off it was scary which is so not my thing but at one point it was scary you can’t put it down reading to wth does this tintanic-esque moment have to do with an attic and her sister.

Day 10: Daniel Orozco, "Announcements"

7 tiny love stories written in the form of wedding announcements.  It was cute, sometimes funny and sometimes you felt like they were not meant to be and their marriage won’t last.  It was a cool little take on a short story.  I kinda liked it.

Day 11: Brent van Staalduinen, "Skinks"

Story of a little boy at a hospital with his mom and stepdad.  This story had the feel of the book Room by Emma Donoghue.  I really love that despite the seriousness of the situation and the emotional parts, it’s told completely from the eyes of a young boy.  And I really feel like the author gets that and makes the reader believe it.  It was very well written.

Day 12: Maggie Shipstead, "Souterrain"

What can I say about this one?  For the first time I feel like I read a complete story in 28 pages.  The story is about 4 people (more or less) and it interweaves and jumps in time frame.  I never felt lost within the story it was that well written.  The anguish, highs, beauty of life are so well presented I felt transported like I was watching thru the window like some kind of time traveler observing.  I think so far this is my favorite.

Day 13: Danielle McLaughlin, "Secondary Memory"

Think Toy Story but for a computer.  A computer that is sentient and has feelings – as much as a com-puter could.  I love this one too.  It was such a great surprising perspective that I immediately loved the idea.  Ironic I had to take my laptop in to be fixed after reading this…

Day 14: Deborah Willis, "Eva"

This one was interesting.  The premise is about basically a bearded lady.  Except it’s more about her start in life as a little girl and how she got there more or less.  I really enjoyed the first part of it, but it is almost inhumane how she was treated.  But you have to read it with a grain of salt as that was how things were at that time.  I kinda liked it however but I didn’t like the jump from half way to the end – it was…well it didn’t seem very cohesive.  It was just a ridiculous jump.  This would have been far better as a novel than a short story.

Day 15: Ken Liu, "The Journal"

I related to this one.  One day while cleaning the house a wife finds her husbands journal and reads it however in doing so mentally she becomes unable to read anything else.  This story is about the communication between people no matter the relationship.  Our own inability to see things and relate to others or misinterpret actions or words from others.

Day 16: Salvatore Scibona, "Tremendous Machine"

The one was interesting…Story of a Polish/Russian woman and her obsessions.  She buys a piano and hires a teacher and it comes full circle when the piano tuner and teacher are at odds.  It was a longer short story that at moments rambled .  Wasn’t my favorite but wasn’t bad.

Day 17: Carleigh Baker, "Last Woman"

This story is about a woman who escapes it all to write in a cabin in the woods and plays a video game about the last woman on earth surviving an apocalypse of some kind.  It’s an interesting take on how sometimes our lives mirror a book we are reading, a game we are playing or some event that happens.

Day 18: Martin MacInnes, "Chemistry"

I was not a fan of this story.  A couple find themselves in a relationship that isn’t quite working out so they go and have themselves chemically altered to make their relationship more chemistry compatible.  Fundamentally speaking I don’t agree with this so had a hard time reading it.  This story for me was far too controversial.

Day 19: Lindsay Hatton, "The Friend"

A story about a veteran who works for a company that builds bridges and this mans one story about a bridge in San Francisco.  It was an odd little story that was more than a little strange.  The writing style is very good but it does jump a little bit.

Day 20: Kelly Link, "The Game of Smash and Recovery"

I really like this one.  A story about a big “brother” and a little “sister” on a different world told through the eyes of the “sister”.  It’s not what you think how ever.  This story reminded me so much of Anne McCaffrey’s The Ship Who Sang (which I love).

Day 21: Rebecca Rosenblum, "The First Day of Winter"

This one was an interesting take on a single father’s day before xmas and shopping with his daughter.  They decide to go to a restaurant and grab a bite to eat before catching the bus home and a waiter his on the father but the daughter just doesn’t seem to notice.  Oh and he a vegetarian.  And gay.  I didn’t mind this one at all.  Not my favorite in terms of writing style but not the most terrible.

Day 22: Nathaniel Hawthorne, "The Christmas Banquet"

This one was a tough read for me.  The story is about a xmas banquet but with a twist.  When a rich gentleman died he stipulated in his will that every xmas a dinner would be held but the only guests should be the most pitiful people in life.  Not pitiful money wise but people that had experienced tragic things that had altered their outlook on life.  The most odd thing about this is that at the head of the table would sit a shrouded skeleton holding a wreath.  I found this to be a description heavy short story that had intricately rich characters.  Not the kind of read you should do before falling asleep.  I like the richness to it but it was more like eating a heavy rich meal then going on a big hike.

Day 23: Rebecca Schiff, "How to Be a Slut"

Literally the title – short paragraphs on a woman from first person perspective telling the reading how to be a slut.  Didn’t care of this one from the way it was written and the feel of it.

Day 24: Rachel Lyon, "Tripping Sunny Chaudhry"

This one was good.  During one xmas going back home a woman and her husband stay with her mom.  The woman goes for a drive to her old haunts as a teenager and runs into old classmates including an ex.  Real feeling of nostalgia her and I loved the feeling of being able to be transported back into your own history and remembering high school days.

Beyond the Blossoming Fields - Jun'ichi Watanabe

This book is based on the real-life story of Ginko Ogino - Japan’s first female doctor.  After contracting gonorrhea from her husband, experiencing divorce and humiliation of being examined by male doctors, Gin sets out in male dominated 19th century Japan to become the first female doctor so other women don't have to experience the same humiliations she did.

What can I say about this novel?  I finished it.  It was a tad painful.  I'm not sure if it's because it's a male writer portraying a female persona, maybe something was lost in translation from Japanese or that the writer can't decided to tell the story in first person narrative in the characters present or telling the story ABOUT Ginko historically but this was a terrible read.  It had such great potential and it was so disappointing.  In the middle of Ginko talking about how she applied to a school the next paragraph will talk about how that particular school many years last would go on to become a blah blah blah which would have absolutely nothing to do with Ginko, female doctors or the story.  It was a random historical fact.  And how he writes about Ginko herself there is a disconnect with the character.  For all that she went through and the strength she had to fight to become a doctor, as the reader you are not in any way connected with her.  There's no emotion.  You don't even feel sorry for her.  It's like you're just reading facts about a condition not a person.

All in all with poor writing I would not recommend this book.  Save yourself the trouble and read the wiki article about Ginko Ogino.

The Diamond Throne (#1 of The Elenium) - David Eddings

After being exiled for many years, Sparhawk made his way home to his queen.  But things are not well in the kingdom of Elenia and it's queen Ehlena is encased in glass to save her life.  What happened to the young queen and who's head does Sparhawk need to bash?

I am the biggest fan of David Eddings and his Belgariad series.  It was only a matter of time before I dusted this series off the shelf and read it.  And I'm not sorry I did.  I was always afraid like most really good authors it would be a rinse and repeat storyline and characters would be too similar.  Eddings not only managed to create a whole totally different world but another set of amazing characters that aren't like my beloved Belgariad.

I love Sparhawk.  For lack of a better reference he is a paladin.  He is a no nonsense knight that kicks, ass, takes names and his horse is worse.  I may be more in love with his horse Faran.  Anyways Sparhawk already has a reputation (I would pay good money to read about Sparhawk as a youth!) but when he returns to the kingdom and then sets out to save his queen the characters he takes with him are just as rich and mysterious and spirited as he is.

Read it!!

A Court of Wings and Ruin (Book #3) - Sarah J. Maas

The last book in the series.

Feyre has returned to the Spring court.  War is coming, has come already to some parts of the land and she has to play a dangerous game of being a spy.  Her loyalties clear, she must save all those she loves or all is lost.

I must admit that the second book is still clearly my favorite.  This one tied up everything quite nicely and once again Sarah has quite a bit of intrigue.  She still introduces characters (ones you've read about before but she describes them thoroughly here) and takes you further into other lands of Pyranthian.  There are unexpected and gripping surprises and some characters doing things you would at first think they would do but upon further/deeper reflection it is within character.  So she really shows a depth to characters that is awesome.  The beginning of the book sees some HUGE changes to some that is felt throughout the rest of the book.  I like the direction she went with the ending and am happy with how the series has finished.

Read it.  You've already read the first two...

Split Infinity - Piers Anthony

Stile lives on Proton - where he is a serf and master games man.  His life is pretty good and he is marveling at his luck lately when suddenly he doesn't have a good streak anymore - someone wants him to not be so good and injures him enough that he isn't very much use to his citizen.  Stile is no dummy.  There is a reason he is a master gamesman.  While hiding out he stumbles through to another world.  Another world nothing like his but somewhat the same.  Where is he and can he survive here?

What can I say about this book?  It was written in the 70's.  AFTER I read the book I read other's reviews and some of them are pretty harsh.  Stile is a manly man man.  But I don't think this book is sexist.  I don't think women are objectified in this book either.  He has created some very strong women characters and they have their place in these worlds.  Stile is the main character and it's his story.  I liked the way Piers writes and I like concept of parallel universes.

I think this is a good old read and it should be experienced.

Wishful Drinking - Carrie Fisher

Ah Carrie Fisher.  Princess Leia.  I have to admit that I didn't even realize that she had written a slew of books until she passed away.  So like the others I started researching and reading.

Short and bittersweet life story from her own words, Carrie takes writing to a different place than most readers are used to.  From the moment she was born to her famous parents and what that's like, her marriage, life as a single mother and the many times she's tried for roles other than princess leia mold.  Humorous, blunt and heartbreaking.

This was a very short read.  It was interesting to see into her mind and hear her own words.  This one starts off a tad strange until you realize it's Carrie and being inside anyone's mind is a strange thing but being inside the mind of someone with a mental illness is well not a straight line.  We think very differently than other people.

I enjoyed this one.  I am looking forward to delving deeper into her life with her other books.

Pawn of Prophecy (The Belgariad #1) - David Eddings

Ah David Eddings.  This series holds a very special place in my heart and bookshelf.  Not only was this the very first fantasy series I read as a young adult but this series was something the hubby and I shared many hours talking about when we were dating.  We have both read this series more than 15 dozen times and could probably recite half of it.  But still we keep coming back to read it through.  Again and again and again.  Its. That. Great.

Long, long ago the evil god Torak saw something that didn't belong to him and stole it.  The Orb, having sentience, sensed that Torak was not good, but also his intent for the Orb nefarious, damaged him forever.  Wars fought, magic in existence and god's in exile.

But this is only a story told when the Storyteller visits remote farms like the one Garion lives on and Garion doesn't believe in magic.  Sure he's had a shadow of a man following him for years but that's normal right?  And what does a young boy know of apostates planning to wake gods in exile or sorcerers and sorceresses that live milleniums?  Nothing.  His life is farm chores, the cute farm girl kitchen maid and Aunt Pol's ever watchful eye on his existence.

But Garion's world is about to be turn inside out and who he thought was normal isn't...

This series has the most in depth characters and even tho there is a ton of them by the fifth book, you never feel overwhelmed by the magnitude (*cough* GoT *cough*).  And the writing style is from Garion's perspective 98% of the time so you are never confused as to where in the storyline you are.

If you never read another fantasy series - read the Belgariad starting with Pawn of Prophecy.  Then continue reading The Mallorean series of Garion grown up cause who doesn't love a sequel that's just as good if not better that the original?