Friday, June 29, 2012

Thursday, June 28, 2012

Day One Hundred Eighty: "Kentucky Ham" by William Burroughs, Jr.

Observation.

A boy watches his father and his father's friends engage in the decadence of Tangier. This story is alive with images of a world most readers in the 1960's couldn't have imagined and as a Beat writer, Burroughs' use of voice was spot on and it really helped showcase what this period of time was like for American artists and writers.

Drugs. Confusion. Friendship...primary.

Family...secondary.

(this was actually an excerpt from the novel by the same title but it works as a stand alone story and it was read that way)

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Day One Hundred Seventy-Nine: "Jacklight" by Jeff Ewing

Persistence.

A man shoots a buck and hunts it down late into the night when the buck refuses to simply stop and accept the death. The reader gets a glimpse into the mind of the hunter, a unique look at the vulnerability present in many men who take the lives of animals such as this. I thought the story was well written and it really made me think about the idea of hunting, the thrill of it, in a completely different way.

The story is available online here:

http://necessaryfiction.com/stories/JeffEwingJacklight

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Day One Hundred Seventy-Eight: "What the Moon Brings" by H.P. Lovecraft

Rot.

In this story a man fears what the moon will bring or rather, what the moon's light will shine upon and unearth to the eye. Staring at the sea, the narrator is afraid of what lurks beneath the water among the seaweed and the grime. There is a tension in this story that both detracted from the meaning for me but at the same time, kept me reading swiftly toward the story's end.

The writing itself was gorgeous and that too threw me for a loop when contrasted with the general topic of the story. This was an interesting read indeed.


A link to the story online can be found here:

http://www.flashfictiononline.com/fpublic0001-h-p-lovecraft-what-the-moon-brings.html

Monday, June 25, 2012

Day One Hundred Seventy-Seven: "A Pretty Quarrel" by Lord Dunsany

Epic.

A Battle between dwarves and demi-gods. Thank goodness this story was a short one. It's a shame that an Anglo-Irish writer like this doesn't give me more to talk about...I had such high hopes after reading his wikipedia bio as follows:


Edward John Moreton Drax Plunkett, 18th Baron of Dunsany (24 July 1878–25 October 1957), was an Anglo-Irish writer and dramatist, notable for his work in fantasy published under the name Lord Dunsany. More than eighty books of his work were published, and his oeuvre includes hundreds of short stories, as well as successful plays, novels and essays. Born to one of the oldest titles in the Irish peerage, he lived much of his life at perhaps Ireland’s longest-inhabited home, Dunsany Castle near Tara, received an honourary doctorate from Trinity College, and died in Dublin.


For what it's worth, a link to the story online can be found here:

http://www.flashfictiononline.com/fpublic0058-pretty-quarrel-lord-dunsany.html

Sunday, June 24, 2012

Day One Hundred Seventy-Six: "Skin Tailoring" by Marina Harris

Week Twenty-Six Short Story Selections

Day One Hundred Seventy-Six: "Skin Tailoring" by Marina Harris
Day One Hundred Seventy-Seven: "A Pretty Quarrel" by Lord Dunsany
Day One Hundred Seventy-Eight: "What the Moon Brings" by H.P. Lovecraft
Day One Hundred Seventy-Nine: "Jacklight" by Jeff Ewing
Day One Hundred Eighty: "Kentucky Ham" by William Burroughs, Jr.
Day One Hundred Eighty-One: "Wake in the Night" by Laura Krughoff
Day One Hundred Eighty-Two:

Saturday, June 23, 2012

Day One Hundred Seventy-Five: "Debris" by Courtney Elizabeth Mauk

Thoughtfulness.

A floundering artist prepares to meet his daughter after not seeing her for many years. He dumpster dives and finds items with which to make a doll, a gift, something for her to show his love, to show how his creativity has worked to his advantage when in all truth, he is failing, and couldn't have bought a toy for his child if he'd wanted to.

Ultimately, this story is heartbreaking and unique and will not soon leave my memory for the vividness of the images, the language used, the sheer force of the ending where the man doesn't see his daughter after all.

Brilliant. A gem of a read.

Friday, June 22, 2012

Day One Hundred Seventy-Four: "Pig" by Yann Martel

Science. Boundaries.

A bovine digestive system is transplanted into a human and soon, its success story spreads and society adapts and more and more people began to have the procedure. But, the unforeseen consequences of the success of such a transplant is what this story is really about.

Cause and Effect. Slippery Slope. Science sometimes only gets it half right when it doesn't look far enough ahead into the future. This story makes this point perfectly and with wit and intelligence. Nice job!

Thursday, June 21, 2012

Day One Hundred Seventy-Three: "My Father Sits in the Dark" by Jerome Weidman

Consistency.

A man recounts seeing his father sitting in the dark in his home, always sitting and smoking and staring straight ahead, quiet and without much to say to his son even when his son tries to engage him in conversations. When this story occurs, the son has grown angry with his father over this.

But still, despite the frustration of this nightly ritual, there is something comforting in this story. There is a steadiness about the relationship, an idea that there is known about these two all there is to know, or rather perhaps, all that they want to know. So, but not saying much, much is being conveyed and that makes this piece subtle and beautiful.

This story warrants a re-read...or five...for sure.

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Day One Hundred Seventy-Two: "The Staircase" by Connie Mae Fowler

Pride.

A young black woman cleans house and spends most of her time and effort polishing a wooden staircase. Interestingly, while a huge source of pride for her, the act of cleaning offers this young woman a way to engage with those around her in a way they are unaware. She hears their stories, their secrets, and she carries with her their fear and their hate and their lies but she wipes it all away. She is there to do that as much as to actually dust the wood itself.

This was a lovely story set in the South with language and dialogue to match. I thought it was a very authentic read.

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Day One Hundred Seventy-One: "Mirrors to the Soul" by Elizabeth Judd

Blindness. Denial.

A young woman dates a painter and is enamored by the way he paints, the way he views her and how those views show up on the canvas. She is so proud of her relationship with him as if it is a way to tell everybody who ever dumped her to "piss off" but, by the story's end, with a clever twist, the reader sees that she has turned a blind eye to what this man is about. The paintings she loves are hers but not about her.

Told in the first person, this story was really hard to read because one almost gets the sense that this girl is really overselling herself and is that convinced of her own allure. I felt myself waiting for the big reveal. Any girl who is that sure about herself is a fool. This story proved this point in a very interesting and new way.

Sunday, June 17, 2012

Day One Hundred Sixty-Nine: "Fathering" by Bharati Mukherjee

Week Twenty-Five Short Story Selections

Day One Hundred Sixty-Nine: "Fathering" by Bharati Mukherjee
Day One Hundred Seventy: "Laurie Dressing" by Harold Brodkey
Day One Hundred Seventy-One: "Mirrors to the Soul" by Elizabeth Judd
Day One Hundred Seventy-Two: "The Staircase" by Connie Mae Fowler
Day One Hundred Seventy-Three: "My Father Sits in the Dark" by Jerome Weidman
Day One Hundred Seventy-Four: "Pig" by Yann Martel
Day One Hundred Seventy-Five: "Debris" by Courtney Elizabeth Mauk

Saturday, June 16, 2012

Day One Hundred Sixty-Eight: "Rat Beach" by William Styron

A link to the story online is below:

http://www.newyorker.com/fiction/features/2009/07/20/090720fi_fiction_styron

Friday, June 15, 2012

Day One Hundred Sixty-Seven: "Big Inches" by Ralph Robert Moore

Intrusion.

A man is stopped in his vehicle and subjected to a search. Then he is taken to a sort of jail it seems where a search of his person ensues. Then, the man is searched piece by teach, has his hair shaved off, his teeth pulled, etc until when the story ends, his heart is all that is left and even then, nothing can be found in it.

Talk about a strange story that I couldn't stop reading. I didn't want to finish it but I couldn't help myself, sensing that on a metaphorical level, there was meaning to this disgusting madness. I was left with a sense of "ewwwww" and to that end, the story was successful in that it was memorable for sure.

EWWW!!!

A link to the story online is below:

http://www.ralphrobertmoore.com/biginches.pdf

Thursday, June 14, 2012

Day One Hundred Sixty-Six: "Mornings, with Teenage Genius" by Jakob Drud


Tinkering.

A father is confused by his son, his son's talk of charged particles, fusion, things from his job. By the story's end though, the dad doesn't want his son to change anything. He is comfortable with their relationship even if he doesn't understand all there is to know about his son. They talk. There is that. For the father, that is enough.

Again, this story was a bit sparse for me and it made it difficult to follow despite the shortness of the piece.


A link to this story can be found online here:

http://www.everydayfiction.com/mornings-with-teenage-genius-by-jakob-drud/

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Day One Hundred Sixty-Five: "Moe Simon's Victory" by Marisa Samuels

Odds.

A man bets on a Jewish horse and wins. How the money will be spent is up for debate but the astonishment over the win is not. That's this story in a nutshell. The details were rich and interesting but I thought it needed more of an "arc" to feel complete. I would have liked more development but still, the read was enjoyable.

A link to the story online is below:

http://www.everydayfiction.com/moe-simons-victory-by-marisa-samuels/

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Day One Hundred Sixty-Four: "All Summer in a Day" by Ray Bradbury

The Unknown.

A group of children living underground haven't seen the sun in years when they are told by scientists that on the next day, the rain will stop and the sun will be out for two hours. One of the children among them remembers the sun and its warmth and colors from her time on earth before being forced underground. None of the others believe her. To punish her for "lying" to them and teasing them with a knowledge they lacked, the children lock the young girl into a closet when it is time to go outside and bask in the rare sunshine.

When the story ends, the children return and are mortified at what they have just deprived this girl of. No more sunshine for seven years is the prediction. Their cruelty was only the tip of the iceberg. The young girls' hurtful silence in the face of their cruelty will be the lesson gleaned from it all and scientists cannot predict that.

A link to the story online is below:


http://staff.esuhsd.org/danielle/English%20Department%20LVillage/RT/Short%20Stories/All%20Summer%20in%20a%20Day.pdf

Monday, June 11, 2012

Day One Hundred Sixty-Three: "The Thief Who Stole the Melody" by Naguib Mahfouz

Arrangements.

This was a part of a larger work and was the story of a man's rise to some semblance of power in his own circle of "riffraff" as the title of the larger work indicates--The Harafish.

Overall, I was a little lost while reading this and I feel certain it was the translation from Egyptian. Even so, I enjoyed seeing how the underbelly of this Egyptian society worked and how it shaped the characters Mahfouz chose to write about, characters I felt he both knew well and admired in his own way.

Perhaps this is an example of where I should start at the beginning of this longer work and read from there instead of starting where I did. It might have made this story more appealing throughout if I had.

Sunday, June 10, 2012

Day One Hundred Sixty-Two: "The Bully" by Roger Dean Kiser

Karma-esque.

A man in a diner winds up in a discussion with a former classmate, a classmate who was a bully to him when they were in middle school. As it turns out, the bully is now in a wheelchair and has trouble maneuvering around the restaurant, ultimately requiring the help of his classmate, the narrator.

This could have read like a story about karma but instead it exuded forgiveness and compassion. I like to think I'd behave as this narrator did but I'm not so sure. If anything, this story got me thinking and counting my blessings.

A link to the story online is here:

http://www.eastoftheweb.com/short-stories/UBooks/Bull.shtml

Week Twenty-Four Short Story Selections

Day One Hundred Sixty-Two: "The Bully" by Roger Dean Kiser
Day One Hundred Sixty-Three: "The Thief Who Stole the Melody" by Naguib Mahfouz
Day One Hundred Sixty-Four: "All Summer in a Day" by Ray Bradbury
Day One Hundred Sixty-Five: "Moe Simon's Victory" by Marisa Samuels
Day One Hundred Sixty-Six: "Mornings, with Teenage Genius" by Jakob Drud
Day One Hundred Sixty-Seven: "Big Inches" by Ralph Robert Moore
Day One Hundred Sixty-Eight: "Rat Beach" by William Styron

Saturday, June 9, 2012

Day One Hundred Sixty-One: "The Worst Girl's Best Day" by Susan Rukeyser

Concessions.

The reader watches as a young girl goes from being the "pig" mascot at a supermarket to finding herself, leaving her life behind where she is alone and an outcast. She takes to the road and hopes for the best but in the end, the reader doesn't have the hope that she does. On a stylistic note, this story is rich in details and a very enjoyable read.

This tale is about starting over...the belief that starting over can make a difference. I'm not convinced but I still feel for this character. I want her to be more than this even if I don't know what her future holds.

Friday, June 8, 2012

Day One Hundred Sixty: "PS" by Jill McCorkle

Confession.

A woman writes a letter to her therapist explaining her mania and why she feels her therapist is the cause of it rather than the cure. Told in the first person, the voice in this story is convincing and original and it keeps the reader engaged from the opening sentence of the letter as addressed to Dr. Love:

"By now you have gotten several letters from me and this will probably be the last."

This story absolutely doesn't stop. It's funny, disturbing, sad, and engrossing. I'd read more of these letters if there were more to read.


A link to the story online is here:

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2009/08/ps/7540/

Thursday, June 7, 2012

Day One Hundred Fifty-Nine: "Black Box" by Jennifer Egan

Direction.

A woman lists the requirements to satisfy her "designated mate" and reflects on the need to reflect on her situation. It was an interesting read and told entirely in the second person which is rare and made the story come off as choppy but still entertaining in parts.

I'm not sure how I really feel about this story but I admire what the author was trying to do with playing with form and voice. A link to the story online is below:


http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2012/06/jennifer-egan-black-box.html

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

Day One Hundred Fifty-Eight: "A Clean Well-Lighted Place" by Ernest Hemingway

Empathy.

Two waiters discuss the plight of a local drunkard and the rationale behind his nightly ritual of drinking until 3:00 in the morning. The story explores the dark and scary side of failed suicide and its implications for the life that remains but at the same time the story doesn't try to explain anything. It simply poses questions. The reader is not given any answers which I quite liked.

A link to the story online is below:

http://www.mrbauld.com/hemclean.html

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Day One Hundred Fifty-Seven: "The Vibraphone" by Rita Dove

Infatuation.

A young vibraphone player searches out the musician she most admires. He has abandoned music himself, exiled to a distant city when this young woman finds him. She listens. She hears his music, his complaints, his history that includes seducing and marrying a woman much like her. There is a quality to this story that was enticing and for a poet, I was very impressed by Dove's prose.

A link to the story online is here:

http://people.virginia.edu/~rfd4b/Vibraphone.pdf

Monday, June 4, 2012

Day One Hundred Fifty-Six: "The Ascent" by Ron Rash

Neglect.

A young boy dealing with drug addict parents finds an abandoned airplane in the mountains of North Carolina and scavenges the dead bodies for jewelry, not knowing that revealing his discovery to his parents will result in them pawning off the jewelry for more drug money. When he realizes what his parents have done, he finds his way back into the snow covered woods and climbs into the plane to "save them" as if he has the ability to do that when he can't help his parents at all.

Talk about a sad and frightening look at what it must be like for a child to watch his parents in the grips of addiction. This story reflect neglect at its most unnerving. This boy was destined to be lost.

Sunday, June 3, 2012

Day One Hundred Fifty-Five: "Feeling Lucky" by Michael Knight

Week Twenty-Three Short Story Selections

Day One Hundred Fifty-Five: "Feeling Lucky" by Michael Knight
Day One Hundred Fifty-Six: "The Ascent" by Ron Rash
Day One Hundred Fifty-Seven: "The Vibraphone" by Rita Dove
Day One Hundred Fifty-Eight: "A Clean Well-Lighted Place" by Ernest Hemingway
Day One Hundred Fifty-Nine: "Black Box" by Jennifer Egan
Day One Hundred Sixty: "PS" by Jill McCorkle
Day One Hundred Sixty-One: "The Worst Girl's Best Day" by Susan Rukeyser

Saturday, June 2, 2012

Day One Hundred Fifty-Four: "This is a Voice from Your Past" by Merrill Joan Gerber

Mistrust.

A woman hears from an old classmate who, as it turns out, is freeloading after failing at his attempts at becoming a writer. He is a con artist of the worse kind and while she suspects it, the reader sees this woman trying to believe him, to trust him, and ultimately, keep him in her life. But she has made a mistake and by the story's end, the woman is paranoid and this man, her old friend, is haunting her. He is there in every unanswered phone call, in every knock at the door. It was a mystery story in its own way from start to finish and I could NOT stop reading.

I'd read this author again for sure. The flow and the feel of the story was fantastic!

Friday, June 1, 2012

Day One Hundred Fifty-Three: "A Family of Breastfeeders" by Starkey Flythe, Jr.

Pride.

A young boy recounts having heard about being from a family of breastfeeders. He knows every story, every analogy, every euphemism, and it's hilarious to watch his observations on the page. I personally loved this story because I could relate to the explanations and the rationales given by nursing mothers. There is such a sense of pride that is conveyed in this story that is done perfectly and not overtly. I very much enjoyed this read. The dialogue was spot on and the details entertaining, keeping the story moving from humorous comment to humorous comment.