An often engaging assortment of brief and bizarre tales.
Dillon presents a collection of 29 character-driven works of flash fiction.
The short stories that make up this work tend to be no longer than a page or two, and they present readers with a range of scenarios, many of them macabre. In “An Acquired Taste,” for instance, a zombie explains the difficulty in developing an interest in eating human brains, and when he tries to consume a perfectly good hamburger, he does so with “a spray of bright green bile.” “Clown Car” features a number of very small and very deceased clowns that are found in an automobile; the causes of death are varied, the origin of the clowns unknown. “Housemate” involves an eccentric and possibly dangerous roommate. Some works tune into more playful subjects; “The Anatomical Model,” for instance, which features a human model without skin, turns out to be not as serious as it might seem at first. The stories are accompanied by single-page illustrations from 15 different artists, which range from a cartoonish barroom image for “Only Feet” to a troubling drawing of a crow with a bloody human eye in its beak, which accompanies “The Juiciest Grapes.” Readers may find many of the narratives hard to predict, and some, despite their brevity, manage to tap into deep fears. “Housemate” will be relatable to anyone who’s ever questioned the safety of their living situation, and it’s strengthened by such details as the roommate’s “scratches and bruises on his torso and legs.” “Clown Car” maintains a dark sense of curiosity, helped along by a morbidly funny illustration of a deceased clown next to some tools. Other works generate less feeling, however; “The Fly Guy” involves a character who collects dead flies but offers little development beyond this setup. Nevertheless, the book as a whole shows that a lot can be done with a very limited word count.
An often engaging assortment of brief and bizarre tales.Pub Date: Aug. 22, 2022
ISBN: 978-2-9583843-0-2
Page Count: 132
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: Sept. 2, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A pleasant if not entirely convincing tribute to the power of art.
A French art historian’s English-language fiction debut combines the story of a loving relationship between a grandfather and granddaughter with an enlightening discussion of art.
One day, when 10-year-old Mona removes the necklace given to her by her now-dead grandmother, she experiences a frightening, hour-long bout of blindness. Her parents take her to the doctor, who gives her a variety of tests and also advises that she see a psychiatrist. Her grandfather Henry tells her parents that he will take care of that assignment, but instead, he takes Mona on weekly visits to either the Louvre, the Musée d’Orsay, or the Centre Pompidou, where each week they study a single work of art, gazing at it deeply and then discussing its impact and history and the biography of its maker. For the reader’s benefit, Schlesser also describes each of the works in scrupulous detail. As the year goes on, Mona faces the usual challenges of elementary school life and the experiences of being an only child, and slowly begins to understand the causes of her temporary blindness. Primarily an amble through a few dozen of Schlesser’s favorite works of art—some well known and others less so, from Botticelli and da Vinci through Basquiat and Bourgeois—the novel would probably benefit from being read at a leisurely pace. While the dialogue between Henry and the preternaturally patient and precocious Mona sometimes strains credulity, readers who don’t have easy access to the museums of Paris may enjoy this vicarious trip in the company of a guide who focuses equally on that which can be seen and the context that can’t be. Come for the novel, stay for the introductory art history course.
A pleasant if not entirely convincing tribute to the power of art.Pub Date: Aug. 26, 2025
ISBN: 9798889661115
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Europa Editions
Review Posted Online: June 7, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.
A lifetime’s worth of letters combine to portray a singular character.
Sybil Van Antwerp, a cantankerous but exceedingly well-mannered septuagenarian, is the titular correspondent in Evans’ debut novel. Sybil has retired from a beloved job as chief clerk to a judge with whom she had previously been in private legal practice. She is the divorced mother of two living adult children and one who died when he was 8. She is a reader of novels, a gardener, and a keen observer of human nature. But the most distinguishing thing about Sybil is her lifelong practice of letter writing. As advancing vision problems threaten Sybil’s carefully constructed way of life—in which letters take the place of personal contact and engagement—she must reckon with unaddressed issues from her past that threaten the house of cards (letters, really) she has built around herself. Sybil’s relationships are gradually revealed in the series of letters sent to and received from, among others, her brother, sister-in-law, children, former work associates, and, intriguingly, literary icons including Joan Didion and Larry McMurtry. Perhaps most affecting is the series of missives Sybil writes but never mails to a shadowy figure from her past. Thoughtful musings on the value and immortal quality of letters and the written word populate one of Sybil’s notes to a young correspondent while other messages are laugh-out-loud funny, tinged with her characteristic blunt tartness. Evans has created a brusque and quirky yet endearing main character with no shortage of opinions and advice for others but who fails to excavate the knotty difficulties of her own life. As Sybil grows into a delayed self-awareness, her letters serve as a chronicle of fitful growth.
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.Pub Date: May 6, 2025
ISBN: 9780593798430
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
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