Houses Without Doors by Peter Straub

I listened to the unabridged audio version of Houses Without Doors by Peter Straub, which well narrated by Patrick Lawlor last month as a spooky/horror themed read for Halloween. This is the first book I've ever read by Peter Straub, although I've heard about him before as an author for a number of years. I am so happy that I have finally read a book by Peter Straub. His writing is exquisite.

Houses Without Doors by Peter Straub is a collection of short stories. I usually find short stories hit or miss. The stories in this collection were interesting, engaging, and different to say the least. Each story was so different. If you like the horror genre and also short stories, then give this collection a try.

I think what I enjoyed most about Houses Without Doors by Peter Straub was the writing itself. I look forward to read a full length novel by Peter Straub in the future.

Below is the publisher's summary for Houses Without Doors by Peter Straub from Amazon's website:

These psychic and horror fictions - seven of them short-shorts - reveals Straub at his spellbinding best. Two tales (first installments of his Blue Rose trilogy), are linked to Koko and Mystery and exactingly probe the consequences of boyhood clashes with evil.

In "Blue Rose," sadistic Harry Beevers, 10, hypnotizes and destroys his younger brother; the tale leaps ahead to the ironic verdict in Harry's court-martial for wreaking atrocities in Vietnam.

In the outstanding "The Juniper Tree," a novelist relives a harrowing, seductive summer when, at age seven, he was sexually molested in a movie house by drifter Stan, a seedy Alan Ladd lookalike.

"The Buffalo Hunter" fastidiously chronicles the fixations of a 35-year-old who numbs his fear of women by sucking his coffee and cognac from baby bottles.

In the ambitious gothic thriller/academic spoof "Mrs. God," a fatuous professor is lured to a creepy English mansion crammed with grisly secrets to research the papers of his poet ancestress; dead babies provide a subtheme.

Wry and riveting, "A Short Guide to the City" fuses and parodies two genres: the self-congratulatory tourist blurb with a news alert on the "viaduct killer."

I am giving Houses Without Doors by Peter Straub a rating of 4 stars out of 5 stars.

Until my next post, happy reading!!

Top Ten Tuesday - Top Ten Quick Reads/Books to Read When Time is Short

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl. Top Ten Tuesday was originally created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

The following short reads are ones I have enjoyed. Maybe you'll find some gems below too!

1. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes by Anita Loos (84 pages)

2. The Birds by Daphne du Maurier (75 pages)

3. The Lottery by Shirley Jackson (30 pages)

4. The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman (64 pages)

5. The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin (130 pages)

6. Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata (116 pages)

7. Primates: The Fearless Science of Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, and Biruté Galdikas by Jim Ottaviani (144 pages)

8. Killer Fashion: Poisonous Petticoats, Strangulating Scarves, and Other Deadly Garments Throughout History by Jennifer Wright (56 pages)

9. Crap Taxidermy by Kat Su (96 pages)

10. Embroideries by Marjane Satrapi (134 pages)

Short Reviews For Eight Short Stories I Listened to Through YouTube

1. 'The Voice In The Night' by William Hope Hodgson is a horror/suspense short story I was able to listen to for free through YouTube. I enjoyed this short story quite a bit and it is very well narrated. 4/5 stars.

2. 'The Witch Door' by Ray Bradbury is another horror/suspense short story worth a listen! I haven't read many things written by Ray Bradbury. I am usually impressed by what I have read by him. 'The Witch Door' is set in present day and involves time travel through a special door. This short story also touches upon what it means to be a 'witch' in the present day and in the past. The ending of the story leaves it to the reader what may become of the two side characters; one travels to the past and the other to the future. 3/5 stars.

3. It's been several decades since I've read anything by Anton Chekov. In fact, I can't really remember what I've read by him other than perhaps a play or two and some short stories, but which ones? I can't recall anymore. I decided to revisit Chekov's works by listening to 'The Lottery Ticket', which is a very short read. This story essentially takes us through the minds of a husband and wife on how they envision life being different for them should they have won money from a lottery ticket. 3/5 stars.

4. 'The Landlady' by Roald Dahl is a short story for adults. I am very familiar with Roald Dahl's novels for children... In fact, I've read quite a few of them over the years. But it wasn't until I became an adult that I realized that Roald Dahl also wrote things for adults as well. I decided to explore a work of shorter fiction by Roald Dahl by listening to 'The Landlady', which is a creepy, horror short story! 3/5 stars.

5. 'In Amundsen's Tent' by John Martin Leahy is a very well narrated short story. It's creepy. As much as I enjoyed the narration, I wasn't a fan of this short story. 2/5 stars.

6. 'Robot Dreams' by Isaac Asimov is a science fiction story about robots, AI, and consciousness. This topic seems relevant as ever. I enjoyed listening to 'Robot Dreams'. I think you will too. 3/5 stars.

7. 'Garg the Good' by Dominic Bowers-Mason is a fantasy short story. It is a decent listen at just over 13 minutes. This story is nicely narrated. 3/5 stars.

8. 'A Sound of Thunder' by Ray Bradbury is the best of the best of these eight short stories I listened to last month!! 'A Sound of Thunder' is in essence a tale of time travel and covers the idea/concept of the 'Butterfly Effect'... Or put another way, the idea of the 'Grandfather Paradox'... If you go back in time and one thing is changed in even the slightest way, how will that effect the future? 'A Sound of Thunder' by Ray Bradbury explores this idea in a unique way. 4/5 stars.

Love Like That by Emma Duffy-Comparone

 

I received an uncorrected proof copy of Love Like That by Emma Duffy-Comparone through the Goodreads Giveaways program earlier this year.

This year I have read more short story collections than I normally do in a year... And so far, Love Like That by Emma Duffy-Comparone has proven to be the best short story collection by a single author so far.

Below is my honest, unbiased review of Love Like That by Emma Duffy-Comparone.

Love Like That by Emma Duffy-Comparone is a collection of nine short stories and was published in March 2021. All nine short stories feature a woman as its protagonist. The short stories are all well crafted and good for the most part despite the crappy situations that the women in each short story find themselves in... I enjoyed all of the short stories, except for one of them titled, Exuma. The rest of the stories were well done.

Emma Duffy-Comparone is a new to me author. I look forward to reading more of her work in the future.

Below is the summary for Love Like That by Emma Duffy-Comparone from Amazon:

Named a Best New Book of 2021 by Vogue and Refinery29
Named a Most Anticipated Book of 2021 by Lit Hub
Named one of "5 Hot Books" by The National Book Review

"For a friend who needs a reminder that love is weird, humans are complicated, and bad things often get better or at least later become funny stories to tell our friends." —Vanity Fair

A sharp, witty book about brilliant, broken women that are just the right amount wrong.

Whether diving into complicated relationships or wrestling with family ties, the girls and women who populate this collection—misfits and misanthropes, bickering sisters, responsible daughters, and unhappy wives—don't always find themselves making the best decisions.

A woman struggles with a new kind of love triangle when she moves in with a divorced dad. A lonely teenage beach attendant finds uneasy comradeship with her boss. A high school English teacher gets pushed to her limits when a student plagiarizes. Often caught between desire and duty, guilt and resentment, these characters discover what it means to get lost in love, and do what it takes to find themselves again.

Utterly singular and wholly unforgettable, Emma Duffy-Comparone's stories manage to be slyly, wickedly funny at even their darkest turns and herald the arrival of an irreverent and dazzling new voice.

I am giving Love Like That by Emma Duffy-Comparone a rating of 3 stars out of 5 stars.

Until my next post, happy reading!!

The Ranger, and Other Stories by Zane Grey

 

The western genre is one I am normally not drawn to or one I find very captivating. However, in an effort to expand my reading horizons, I decided to read something from the western genre this year. Zane Grey and Louis L'Amour are the two biggest names I know of in the western genre arena. I decided to go with a short story collection written by Zane Grey dealing with the themes of love and adventure.

I ended up enjoying the audio version of The Ranger, and Other Stories by Zane Grey and narrated by Robert G. Slade. There are a total of four short stories in this collection, which include the following stories: "The Ranger", "Canyon Walls", "Avalanche", and "From Missouri". Both "Avalanche" and "From Missouri" were my two favorite short stories.

Listening time for The Ranger, and Other Stories by Zane Grey is 6 hours, 50 minutes and is well narrated by Robert G. Slade.

Below is a summary for The Ranger, and Other Stories by Zane Grey from Audible:

Four tales of love and adventure in the Old West introduce a cast of characters that includes a brave Texas ranger who risks his life against avenging outlaws to rescue the woman he secretly loves; a beautiful seductress who comes between two brothers; a desperate fugitive who seeks sanctuary with a peace-loving people; and a daring young schoolteacher who journeys West to meet the man who has captured her heart.

I am giving The Ranger, and Other Stories by Zane Grey a rating of 3 stars out of 5 stars.

Until my next post, happy reading!!

The Lottery, and Other Stories by Shirley Jackson

 

I listened to the unabridged audio version of The Lottery, and Other Stories by Shirley Jackson and narrated by Cassandra Campbell, Gabrielle de Cuir, Kathe Mazur, and Stefan Rudnicki.

Listening time for The Lottery, and Other Stories by Shirley Jackson is 9 hours, 34 minutes.

I am hugely disappointed with the collection of short stories contained within The Lottery, and Other Stories by Shirley Jackson. I had listened to two prior works written by Shirley Jackson, which I enjoyed. So, I was eager to listen to The Lottery, and Other Stories. I enjoyed roughly half a dozen of the short stories within this collection with “The Lottery,” (which won the O. Henry Prize Stories award in 1949) and "Charles" being my two favorites. Most of these short stories I found to be too creepy and odd.

Below is a summary for The Lottery, and Other Stories by Shirley Jackson from Audible:

A powerful collection of short stories by Shirley Jackson.

"The Lottery," one of the most terrifying stories of the twentieth century, created a sensation when it was first published in the New Yorker. "Powerful and haunting," and "nights of unrest" were typical reader responses. This collection, the only one to appear during Jackson's lifetime, unites "The Lottery" with 24 equally unusual stories. Together they demonstrate her remarkable range - from the hilarious to the truly horrible - and power as a storyteller.

I am giving The Lottery, and Other Stories by Shirley Jackson a rating of 2 stars out of 5 stars.

Until my next post, happy reading!!

Lizard by Banana Yoshimoto

As a writer, Banana Yoshimoto, has been on the periphery of my radar for a few years. But until this year, I'd never anything by Banana Yoshimoto.

I decided to listen to the unabridged audio version of Lizard by Banana Yoshimoto and narrated by Emily Zeller.

Listening time for Lizard by Banana Yoshimoto is 3 hours, 34 minutes.

Lizard by Banana Yoshimoto is a collection of six short stories. All six of the short stories are unique and engaging. I liked them all quite a bit in their own way, but I think I prefer novels more than short stories. So, I'd like to read a full length novel next by Banana Yoshimoto.

Below is the plot summary for Lizard by Banana Yoshimoto from Audible:

Banana Yoshimoto's warm, witty, and heartfelt depictions of the lives of young Japanese have earned her international acclaim and best seller status, as well as a place among the best of contemporary Japanese literature. In Lizard, now available in Grove Press paperback, Yoshimoto deftly fuses traditional and pop culture to create contemporary portraits of love and life. These six tales explore themes of time, healing, and fate - and the journeys of self-discovery through which young urbanites come to terms with them.

In "Newlywed", an unhappily married young man deliberately misses his stop on the train, only to be questioned by a shape-shifting homeless man about the trials of his marriage. In "Blood and Water", a woman recalls how she left the village she grew up in - which was run by a New Age cult - in order to lead a fulfilling life, even against her parents' wishes. And in the title story, "Lizard", a woman who has never before felt truly secure in her life admits a deep secret to her lover - that she has the ability to heal others with her mind.

In different ways, these six stories explore what it takes to navigate the perils of the modern world as well as what it takes to reinvent one's self. Permeated by the author's own effervescent spin on magic realism, Lizard cements a special place for Yoshimoto in 20th-century Japanese fiction.

I am giving Lizard by Banana Yoshimoto a rating of 3 stars out of 5 stars. 

Until my next post, happy reading!!

Drinking with Dead Women Writers by Elaine Ambrose and AK Turner

Drinking with Dead Women Writers by Elaine Ambrose and AK Turner made for an interesting read. Take two women writers, Elaine Ambrose and AK Turner, who've captured what it what it might be like to converse with famous, deceased woman writers (come back to life ever so briefly) over their favorite beverage of choice in unique locals. 

Good storytelling and writing by the authors. Drinking with Dead Women Writers by Elaine Ambrose and AK Turner is a short read at approximately 102 pages. This novella is perfect for anyone who has every tried envisioning what it might be like to have a brief interaction with a female author from the past.

Below is the plot summary for Drinking with Dead Women Writers by Elaine Ambrose and AK Turner from Amazon:

Essays on drinking with Dorothy Parker, Louisa May Alcott, Jane Austen, Erma Bombeck, The Bronte Sisters, Willa Cather, Emily Dickinson, George Eliot, Margaret Mead, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Margaret Mitchell, Carson McCullers, Flannery O'Connor, Sylvia Plath, Ayn Rand and Virginia Woolf.

Facts about Dead Women Writers: 

Most early female writers used pen names because women weren't regarded as competent writers.

Margaret Mitchell wrote only one published novel in her lifetime, but Gone with the Wind won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1937 and sold more than 30 million copies.
Emily Dickinson was so paranoid that she only spoke to people from behind a door.

Carson McCullers wrote The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter at age 22. Her husband wanted them to commit suicide in the French countryside, but she refused.

Ambrose and Turner explore these and other intriguing facts about the most famous (but departed) women in literary history.

I am giving Drinking with Dead Women Writers by Elaine Ambrose and AK Turner a rating of 3 stars out of 5 stars.

Until my next post, happy reading!!

Top Ten Tuesday ~ Favorite Novellas/Short Stories

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl. Top Ten Tuesday was originally created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

I've read a great number of short stories and novellas over the years. Here is a list of those I've enjoyed since I've begun blogging in 2012. 

Click on the links below to read each review I've written for the novellas/short stories I've enjoyed.

1. Kentucky On The Rocks by Gwendolyn Grace
2. The Dispatcher by John Scalzi
3. Larger Than Life by Jodi Picoult
4. The Forty Fathom Bank by Les Galloway
5. Ivan (Her Russian Protector #1) by Roxie Rivera

6. Oh Whistle and I'll Come to You, My Lad by M. R. James
7. All By My Selfie by Jo Noelle
8. Protected Mate by J. H. Croix
9. The Diaries of Adam & Eve by Mark Twain
10. Lantern by Chess Desalls
11. Crushed Gardenias by Heather Osborne

Share with me, in the comment section below, some of your favorite short stories and novellas!

50/50 Friday - Favorite/Least Favorite Short Story

50/50 Friday is a meme hosted by Carrie @ The Butterfly Reads and Laura @ Blue Eye Books. This fun themed meme focuses on the opposite sides of books (best/worst, differing opinions, etc). Every week a new topic will give bloggers the chance to showcase their answers.

This week's topic is picking one's Favorite/Least Favorite Short Story!

Wow, this is a really difficult topic to choose from as I've read a lot of short stories over my lifetime! I'm trying to mentally go through all the short stories I've read over the years and decide which ones fit this weeks topic the best for each category!

Best Short Story

Crushed Gardenias by Heather Osborne

(Click on Above link to read my review.)

Worst Short Story

Murder at the Manor by C. T. Mitchell

(Click on Above link to read my review.)

Do you have a favorite or least favorite short story?

Three Apples Fell From Heaven: Unfamiliar Legends of the Trees by Natalia Belting

I purchased a used, 1953, hardback first edition of Three Apples Fell From Heaven: Unfamiliar Legends of the Trees by Natalia Belting with drawings by Anne Marie Jauss at the Lost Horizon used bookstore in downtown Santa Barbara in 2012.

Three Apples Fell From Heaven: Unfamiliar Legends of the Trees by Natalia Belting is in decent condition for being a 65 year old book! This book is 158 pages in length and contains a collection of eighteen folktales from around the world that focus on the theme of trees. 

My five favorite stories from Three Apples Fell From Heaven: Unfamiliar Legends of the Trees by Natalia Belting are as follows:

The Weeping Willow
The Wood Nymphs
The Blue Palm Tree
The Nightingale and the Cotton Tree
The Wonderful Bed

The drawings rendered by Anne Marie Jauss throughout Three Apples Fell From Heaven: Unfamiliar Legends of the Trees by Natalia Belting are simple and charming.

I'd originally planned to read Three Apples Fell From Heaven: Unfamiliar Legends of the Trees by Natalia Belting next month for Arbor Day, but I couldn't resist reading it this month.

I am giving Three Apples Fell From Heaven: Unfamiliar Legends of the Trees by Natalia Belting a rating of 3 stars out of 5 stars.

Until my next post, happy reading!!

The One Who Got Away edited by Kristina Wright

Erotica Anthology

Yes, on occasion, I do enjoy reading erotica and short story erotica anthologies are a great way to discover new to me authors... So, with that in mind, I chose to read The One Who Got Away edited by Kristina Wright, which is a collection of fourteen erotica short stories written by various authors.

I liked the theme/concept for this collection of erotica short stories of 'the one that got away'... It's what initially attracted me to this erotica anthology.

However, out of the fourteen erotica short stories presented in The One Who Got Away edited by Kristina Wright, I only enjoyed reading five of them... With 'Proof' and 'Danish Affair' being the best of the bunch. The rest of the short stories weren't all that great. 

The following is a plot summary for The One Who Got Away edited by Kristina Wright from Amazon:

We all have... that One, the one who got away. The one we fell for or simply were attracted to, but we never got. That One, but not necessarily The One, at least not the first time around. That One who slips into our fantasies late at night when we’re feeling melancholy or nostalgic. Maybe we took a chance once and it simply didn’t work out. Maybe we never took the chance... and we wish we had. We all have the name of the One Who Got Away tattooed on our heart, always with us, never forgotten. There is something hopelessly romantic about the idea of connecting with a long lost love. This luscious Cleis Press collection of second chance stories celebrates longing and loves that, whether by fate or by design, are at last requited and fulfilled.

I am giving The One Who Got Away edited by Kristina Wright a rating of 2 stars out of 5 stars.

Until my next post, happy reading!

Say You're One of Them by Uwem Akpan

Abridged Audiobook

I have been wanting to read Say You're One of Them by Uwem Akpan ever since it was selected as an Oprah Book Club pick in 2009. The thing is this for me... I've have discovered that for me personally, the books that are from Oprah's Book Club are usually very hit or miss for me. I either love the book (i.e. The Poisonwood Bible, East of Eden, White Oleander)  or hate it after reading it (i.e. The House of Sand and Fog) and sometimes the book falls somewhere in between each extreme. So, I've had my reservations about reading this collection of short stories by Uwem Akpan. I am glad that I finally listened to it the abridged audio version of this audiobook on compact disc. But for me, Say You're One of Them by Uwem Akpan fell somewhere towards the bottom end of the spectrum for me. I didn't love or hate this book. I think that Uwen Akpan is a good writer, but I mostly felt that the stories were sad and not quite as engaging as I would have liked them to be. The stories are ones I shall soon forget about altogether in a short while. The narrators for Say You're One of Them were really good. My favorite story in this collection was 'What Language Is That?'. I also enjoyed the author interview at the end of the book.

The following is a plot summary for Say You're One of Them by Uwem Akpan from Amazon:

Each story in this jubilantly acclaimed collection pays testament to the wisdom and resilience of children, even in the face of the most agonizing circumstances.

A family living in a makeshift shanty in urban Kenya scurries to find gifts of any kind for the impending Christmas holiday. A Rwandan girl relates her family’s struggles to maintain a facade of normalcy amid unspeakable acts. A young brother and sister cope with their uncle’s attempt to sell them into slavery. Aboard a bus filled with refugees—a microcosm of today’s Africa—a Muslim boy summons his faith to bear a treacherous ride across Nigeria. Through the eyes of childhood friends the emotional toll of religious conflict in Ethiopia becomes viscerally clear.

Uwem Akpan’s debut signals the arrival of a breathtakingly talented writer who gives a matter-of-fact reality to the most extreme circumstances in stories that are nothing short of transcendent.

I am giving Say You're One of Them by Uwem Akpan a rating of 2.5 stars out of 5 stars.

Until my next post, happy reading!!