Book Review: Masterpiece: The Best Science Fiction of the (20th) Century edited by Orson Scott Card

Masterpieces: The Best Science Fiction of the Century
edited by Orson Scott Card (813.08 Car)

This collection, released in 2001, was overseen by author/editor Orson Scott Card (Ender’s Game), and in addition to an introductory essay to open the book, Card contributes a biographical essay about each of the included authors before their stories. My Lincoln science fiction club recently read and discussed it for our 200th monthly book discussion.

 

There are 27 stories included in this moderately hefty volume (the trade paperback was 432 pages). Authors included are: Isaac Asimov • Arthur C. Clarke • Robert A. Heinlein • Ursula K. Le Guin • Ray Bradbury • Frederik Pohl • Harlan Ellison • George Alec Effinger • Brian W. Aldiss • William Gibson & Michael Swanwick • Theodore Sturgeon • Larry Niven • Robert Silverberg • Harry Turtledove • James Blish • George R. R. Martin • James Patrick Kelly • Karen Joy Fowler • Lloyd Biggle, Jr. • Terry Bisson • Poul Anderson • John Kessel • R.A. Lafferty • C.J. Cherryh • Lisa Goldstein • Edmond Hamilton. I had read several of the included stories previously, as I’ve been a life-long fan of science fiction, however quite a few in this collection were new to me. There were a few “clunkers”, which haven’t really held up well in the decades since they were originally published — either with regards to scientific developments or lack of good representation of female, or non-caucasian characters.

 

The collection is divided into thirds, roughly, with the first third featuring “classic” or “Golden Age” stories, the second third is New Wave (late 1960s to late 1970s) and the final third focusing on the “modern era” (the 1980s and 1990s). Some of the stories are incredible stand-outs! Oddly enough, the collection has a melancholy tone to it — a majority of the stories have sad or depressing endings.

 

None-the-less, enough of these stories are excellent, and highly representative of the times they were written in, and I have no problem giving this book a recommendation as a good introduction to short science fiction of the 20th century.

 

(If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try the multi-volume Science Fiction Hall of Fame series, where the selections were made from a survey of writers, editors, publishers and fans — unlike the Masterpieces collection, where Orson Scott Card was the sole selector.)

 

( Wikipedia entry for Masterpieces anthology )

 

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Public Service

 

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Book Review: Quick Fixes: Tales of Repairman Jack by F. Paul Wilson

Quick Fixes: Tales of Repairman Jack
by F. Paul Wilson (not in the libraries’ collection — but you can borrow it through InterLibrary Loan!)

This anthology contains every Repairman Jack short story ever written. These short stories originally were published in various other anthologies or horror magazines, but have finally been pulled together into this one edition.

 

Repairman Jack is a secretive individual who lives off the grid and battles supernatural beings and demons. He has no magical powers himself but is quick-witted, creative (see the story ‘Interlude at Duane’s’ where he battles potential robbers using only what’s available to him in the drug store), and deadly with his skills. Jack doesn’t go out of his way to encounter these creatures, but he doesn’t run from a fight either.

 

Each of the nine short stories includes an introduction by F. Paul Wilson.

 

For anyone not familiar with the Repairman Jack series, this would be a good introduction. Once you’re hooked, begin the full-length novels with “The Tomb.” Then move on to the Teen Trilogy with the first book “Secret Histories” and The Early Years Trilogy starting with “Cold City.” All of the novels are available at Lincoln City Libraries, “Quick Fixes” is available through Inter Library Loan for $2.50 to assist with postage.

 

(If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try the rest of the Repairman Jack series by F. Paul Wilson.)

 

( official F. Paul Wilson web site )

 

Recommended by Charlotte M..
Public Service — Bennett Martin Public Library

 

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Audiobook Review: The Man in the Black Suit by Stephen King

The Man in the Black Suit
by Stephen King (Downloadable Audio King)

This is a collection of short stories Stephen King has previously written, and they may or may not have been published elsewhere. However, they were all new to me. It’s hard to say if one was better than another, though I can definitely say with clarity that there were parts of ‘All That You Love Will Be Carried Away’ that really stood out to me and struck me in ways the other stories didn’t.

 

To be honest, they’re all great stories, and if you’re a fan of King’s, you’d enjoy each of these stories. Stephen King’s epic novels fill me with joy like few other things in the world can; but I am always happy to fill the time between big novels with a short story or two by my favorite author!

 

(If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try Different Seasons by Stephen King.)

 

( official The Man in the Black Suit page on the official Stephen King web site )

 

Recommended by Tracy T.
Anderson and Bethany Branch Libraries

 

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Book Review: Geektastic edited by Holly Black and Cecil Castellucci

Geektastic: Stories From the Nerd Herd

edited by Holly Black and Cecil Castellucci (YA PB (Non-Fiction) Black or j813.08 Bla)

 

I stumbled across a copy of this 2009 anthology a few years ago in a used bookstore and snatched it up for my own personal collection, and finally got around to reading it. I’m pleased to see it exists as both a physical book and E-book through the libraries as well!

 

Geektastic features 15 short stories and 14 interstitial 1- or 2-page comics that all explore the concept of “fandom” and “being a geek/nerd” -- all written by some of the hottest Young Adult authors at the time of publication, including Scott Westerfeld, Cassandra Clare, David Levithan, Garth Nix, Kelly Link, John Green, Libba Bray and more! In some cases, this might involve science fiction or fantasy — the characters may be huge Star Trek or Star Wars fans, but it can also involve intense fans of other types of things as well — fanfiction, gaming, devotees of an actor — anything where the person can “geek out” over their interests. These stories cover a broad range of styles and tones, and I didn’t necessarily love all of them. But, there were enough strong entries for me to feel comfortable recommending the collection.

 

Though it’s classified in the Young Adult section, I’m reviewing it as an “adult” item, for adult readers. Obviously, it’s appropriate for YA readership. My only real complaint — I got to enjoy some of the characters in the stories so much I was sorry the story was over in just 10-15 pages!

 

Strongly recommended — especially for anyone who’s ever felt ostracized for being overly devoted to an interest, or, conversely, for anyone who’s never really understood the mindset that can lead to that level of devotion. Truly, a celebration of being on the fringes of mainstream.

[ official Geektastic anthology page on the official Holly Black web site ]

 

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Public Services

 

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Book Review: Tiny Tales by Alexander McCall Smith

Tiny Tales

by Alexander McCall-Smith (Large Type McCall Smith)

 

Tiny Tales is like a dessert cart of incredible delicacies.

 

Each little story is worthy of savoring. My favorite group of stories is about “Pope Ron”, an average good guy who grows up to be Pope, and how he takes some time out from “Pope-ing” to enjoy life as a regular guy once again and how the people around him, who knew him from childhood, are both reverent of his status and familiar with him as folks who “knew-you-when” can be.

 

Dividing the groups of stories are little “Amuse-bouches”: Short illustrated cartoon stories which are light hearted and fun.

 

I think anyone who would like a break from real serious stories, and a moment of kindness and humor would enjoy these stories.

[ official Tiny Tales page on the official Alexander McCall Smith web site ]

 

Recommended by Carrie K.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Public Services

 

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Book Review: Sabrina & Corina: Stories by Kali Fajardo-Anstine

Sabrina & Corina: Stories

by Kali Fajardo-Anstine (Fajardo-Anstine)

 

The short stories here are tender and also impenetrable. Do not try to make friends with the women in these stories. These are the difficult women that Roxane Gay warned us about. Although we can read about the soft sides of the characters here, it is painful to do so as the vulnerability laid bare here could carve mountains. I cannot do this work justice, I can only say that the women here are women you know. Denver and the surrounding areas also play a major role in the stories here. This book gave me great appreciation for the region that I previously knew little about.

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try Difficult Women by Roxane Gay, Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado, There There by Tommy Orange, or Men We Reap by Jesmyn Ward.]

[ official Kali Fajardo-Anstine web site ]

 

Recommended by Naomi S.
Eiseley Branch Library

 

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Book Review: The Eighth Detective by Alex Parvesi

The Eighth Detective

by Alex Parvesi (Parvesi)

 

There are a lot of layers in this intriguing mystery novel by Alex Pavesi. At its core, it is about a young editor traveling to a remote Mediterranean island to interview a reclusive author. Grant McAllister is a professor of mathematics, who devised a mathematical model by which all mystery stories can be plotted. Decades ago, to illustrate his theory, he wrote a collection of 7 mystery short stories, entitled “The White Murders”, which has long been out of print. Julia Hart works for a small specialty press, interested in bringing “The White Murders” back into publication, but only if Julia can get some more information from McAllister about his mathematical mystery fiction formula and some answers about some seeming incongruities in his stories.

 

This novel has alternating chapters as Julia reads the stories back to Grant, then as they discuss them. And the further we go, the more obvious it becomes that not all is as clear and clean-cut as both Julia and Grant would have us believe. To say more would be to spoil the fun of discovering the rest of the details.

 

The Eighth Detective is a twisting, ebbing and flowing mystery novel, with a number of surprises. In the end, perhaps it is not as surprising as it wants to be, but it is still a fun and challenging read, and as the last few chapters lock into place, you’ll wonder if you read the earlier ones close enough to see all the clues.

[ publisher’s official The Eighth Detective web page ] | [ official Alex Pavesi Twitter feed ]

 

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Public Service

 

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Review: If You See Me, Don't Say Hi: Stories by Neel Patel

If You See Me, Don’t Say Hi: Stories
by Neel Patel

Oftentimes the only excuse I need to pick up a new book is that the title sounds unique enough. If You See Me, Don’t Say Hi sounds to me like a person’s passive cry for attention. I can appreciate that, despite its obnoxiousness. Most of the short story collections I have gotten into in the last few years have impressed me with their sincere intensity and depth of emotion. The title piece is about the ways in which two brothers have sometimes happily destroyed and over the years struggled to rebuild their relationship in their early adulthood. Many of the stories related romantic love, in all of its forms, and the ways in which it doesn’t last. Keeping up or failing to fulfill parental expectations, and the damage that can be done by parental gossip also played dramatic roles in this collection. I found that many characters had very “millenial” problems, such as using social media to their own detriment, and that worked well for me as a reader, but it might unfortunately date the book in a few years.

[ official If You See Me Don’t Say Hi page on the official Neel Patel web site ]

Recommended by Naomi S.
Eiseley Branch Library

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Hercule Poirot: The Complete Short Stories by Agatha Christie

Hercule Poirot: The Complete Short Stories
by Agatha Christie

During the course of her writing career, Dame Agatha Christie wrote 33 full-length novels featuring her iconic Belgian sleuth, Hercule Poirot, starting with The Mysterious Affair at Styles in 1920 and ending with Curtain in 1975. In the intervening years, she also wrote over 50 short stories that featured the detective, and which were collected in various smaller stories collections at various times. Hercule Poirot: The Complete Short Stories collects all of those shorter works in one large omnibus collection, placing them in chronological order according to their first appearances.

If you’ve only ever sampled Poirot before, or, perhaps, only read some of the more famous full novels to feature him, this collection gives you a perfect opportunity to fill in all the gaps in his long-running storyline. If you’re mainly familiar with the televised Poirot stories, in which he was played by David Suchet in 70 episodes over the course of 24 years, you will find the original source material for most of those episodes here in this collection. I will admit, even as a Christie and Poirot fan, that this is a dense volume — there are A LOT of stories to read in this collection. This is the type of book to savor over a lengthy period of time — pulling it out whenever you are in the mood for just a little Poirot, and then putting it away again for another rainy day.

None-the-less, if you are a Christie and Poirot complete-ist, as I am, this should be an essential part of your reading collection. Put your “little grey cells” to work and start catching up on this extensive body of mystery classics!

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try the 33 full-length Hercule Poirot novels by Agatha Christie. Check out this Hercule Poirot reading list on BookGuide.]

[ publisher’s official Hercule Poirot: The Complete Short Stories web page] | [ official Agatha Christie web site ]

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library

Special Event: Don’t miss “The Mystery of Agatha Christie”, a special 75-minute presentation at the Bennett Martin Public Library on the evening of, November 7th, 2018, 6:30-7:45 p.m. — a celebration of all things “Christie”, covering the author and her life (including her mysterious 11-day disappearance), her entire body of written work, and the stage, screen and television adaptations of her stories. But first, join fellow theater-goers in attending the play Black Coffee, not-so-coincidentally starring this very reviewer as Hercule Poirot, at the Lincoln Community Playhouse on October 19-21 and November 2-4 2018.

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Uncommon Type: Some Stories by Tom Hank (on CD)

Uncommon Type
by Tom Hanks [Compact Disc Hanks] 

I think I may hate Tom Hanks now. He truly is a renaissance man, with the golden touch — it seems that everything he tries, he’s successful at. I still remember him starring with Peter Scolari in the sitcom Bosom Buddies in 1980-1982, as an outrageous and desperate young advertising man who had to cross-dress in order to secure a room in a woman’s boarding house. Since then, he’s gone on to win multiple Oscars (Forrest Gump, Philadelphia) and Emmys (for producing mini-series and others), as well as dozens of other awards for his acting, voice work, producing and screenwriting. Now…he’s put out his first volume of fiction — a short story collection, including 17 stories, all featuring typewriters in one way or another (Hanks is enamored of these old-fashioned writing implements, and has an extensive collection of these classic machines). The typewriters may be integral to the plot of the story, such as in “These Are the Meditations of My Heart”, in which a young woman recovering from a break-up decides to buy a typewriter to put her thoughts down on paper but the shop owner has to match her up with the perfect machine just for her. But the typewriter element may also be very tangential to the plot of some stories. There are four stories told as folksy newspaper columns from a small town columnist who’s resisting the march of progress — these are perhaps the least successful entries in the collection. And there are three interlinked stories featuring the same group of young friends and their quirky adventures — these are perhaps the most fanciful of the stories included. The tone ranges from light and fluffy to dark and introspective, and the writing style runs the gamut from “newspaper column” to traditional prose fiction to press release to screenplay format.

Hanks does a good job of creating quirky characters, but none of them are particularly deep. In many cases, I felt like I was just scratching the surface of the character(s) in several of the stories, and they could easily have been expanded into novellas or novels. And other stories are just perfect at the length they are presented. Overall, this is a very enjoyable collection, and I particularly recommend it in the audiobook format, where Hanks reads his own stories. For the audiobook, Hanks convinced a bunch of his actor friends to help him read one of the longer pieces in the collection — the one written in screenplay format — which is an added treat.

[ publisher’s official Uncommon Type web page ] | [ official Tom Hanks Twitter account ]

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library

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#NotYourPrincess edited by Lisa Charleyboy and Mary Beth Leatherdale

#NotYourPrincess: Voices of Native American Women
edited by Lisa Charleyboy and Mary Beth Leatherdale [j 970.1 Not]

This book is for the young Native American woman who would like to see more of herself in print. It touches upon the stereotypes we have about Native American women and busts them. The poetry, short essays, and visual art are each thoughtfully placed for maximum impact. I would caution a reader to take their time and read pieces multiple times to absorb everything the authors are trying to impart with us. My favorite poem is “The Things We Taught Our Daughters” by Helen Knott. Aside from teaching us about some of the patterns that have perpetuated violence in our history, this book is critical because it also features role models (the authors and protagonists themselves) from many tribes around the continent. I would gift this to a young woman of color, even from another racial or ethnic background, because it reminds the reader that they have the strength they need inside themselves. I mean to say that those who do not have mainstream princess stories published about them yet *do* have incredible stories to tell, and I hope we continue to see more books and other works of art created by the folks who have historically been pushed too far into the sidelines.

[ publisher’s official #NotYourPrincess web site ]

Recommended by Naomi S.
Eiseley and Williams Branch Libraries and the Bookmobile

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"The Fortress Unvanquishable, Save for Sacnoth" by Lord Dunsany (a short story)

“The Fortress Unvanquishable, Save for Sacnoth”
by Edward, Lord Dunsany

A family member who has read the complete works of H.P. Lovecraft told me that Lovecraft was inspired by Lord Dunsany and they wanted to read some of his work. I found this in the library’s collection for them and after reading they thought I’d like it, so I gave it a try. It’s less than 20 pages long, so it is not a huge commitment. I thought it was pretty good and was reminded of J.R.R. Tolkien’s short stories such as “Farmer Giles of Ham” and “Leaf by Niggle”. Old, mystic and dreamy I think would best describe it. The story is about a village (Allanthurion) whose residents suddenly begin having nightmares from Hell and are afraid to sleep. The magician of the village determines the dreams are from Gaznak, the greatest magician, rider of a comet who visits Earth every few hundred years and feeds on the minds of men. The terrible dreams can only be stopped by defeating Gaznak and the only way to vanquish him is with a sword called Sacnoth. The sword is part of a dragon-crocodile named Tharagavverug, which can’t be slain because it’s made of metal and nothing can fell it save for hunger. So our brave village hero Leothric, starves the dragon, which takes a few days, gains the sword and sets off to destroy the wizard Gaznak. That’s sort of all there is to it, as it’s quite short, but I liked it more for how the story was told than some sort of complicated plot or character development. It’s a nice little story deserving of a read, even if you are not into Lovecraft and or Tolkien. Readers of fairy tales, fantasy, or fables will enjoy.

This is a short story available in several books the library owns including: The Mammoth Book of Fairy Tales, Edited by Mike Ashley, 398.2 ASH; The Oxford Book of Fantasy Stories, by Oxford University Press, 813.08 OXF; and The Fortress Unvanquishable, Save for Sacnoth, by Lord Dunsany, on Hoopla.

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try The Call of Cthulu, by H.P. Lovecraft, Farmer Giles of Ham, by J.R.R. Tolkien, Leaf by Niggle, by J.R.R. Tolkien, or Smith of Wooten Major, by J.R.R. Tolkien, all of which are short stories.] [ Article about Lord Dunsany and “The Fortress Unvanquishable” at Blackgate.com ] | [ Wikipedia entry on Edward, Lord Dunsany ]

Recommended by Kristen A.
Gere Branch Library

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The Labors of Hercules by Agatha Christie

The Labors of Hercules
by Agatha Christie

I’m not usually a fan, for some reason, of the Poirot novels that consist of short stories, even though I really enjoy the Sherlock Homes stories which are mostly all short. I did like this novel however and I think it was because there was a common thread running through; each story was a play on of the 12 labors of Hercules. At the start of the novel Hercule Poirot is chatting to someone who remarks on his first name, and how it reminded him of Hercules. Poirot admits to not having read the stories of Hercules before, so he sits down to and decides to set himself 12 tasks to mirror those of Hercules, thusly framing the book. As I’ve said before, this is a series you can read in any order, so no worries if you’ve never read Poriot before. I don’t think I’d use the word cozy to describe them, but they are light and non-graphic mysteries. I listened to the audiobook version narrated by Hugh Fraser, who does such a good job that when I listen to a Poirot book that’s not performed by him it just doesn’t sound right.

[ official Agatha Christie web site ]

Recommended by Kristen A.
Gere Branch Library

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The Big Book of Sherlock Holmes Stories edited by Otto Penzler

The Big Book of Sherlock Holmes Stories
edited by Otto Penzler [828 DoyYp] 

This massive anthology of shorter Sherlock Holmes works is merely the latest in a series of creative anthologies edited by Otto Penzler for Vintage Crime/Black Lizard books. Previous volumes have included The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries (previously reviewed here), and The Black Lizard Big Book of Locked-Room Mysteries). For this Sherlock Holmes collection, Penzler has gather 83 short works from authors both best-selling and obscure. He opens with two short-short works by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle himself (although he does not include the newly-discovered new story by Doyle that was unearthed in somebody’s attic in 2015. Stories included in this collection range from serious, written in classic Doyle Holmes style, to parodies and pastiches, having fun with the characters and tropes of the Holmesian canon.

There are many Holmes collections or anthologies out there, and often you see the same stories in many of those books. I can’t say I’ve ever seen this many different stories featuring Holmes in any collection previously, and Penzler has certainly included some of the rare, lesser-seen tales. If you are a true lover of the world of Sherlock Holmes, or even if you’re just a basic mystery fiction fan, I highly recommend this volume, although obviously nothing substitutes for Doyle’s 56 stories and 4 novels for authenticity!

[ publisher’s official The Big Book of Sherlock Holmes Stories web page] | [ Wikipedia page on Sherlock Holmes ]

Check out more Sherlock Holmes related titles in our Elementary booklist on BookGuide!

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library

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Faceoff edited by David Baldacci

Faceoff
edited by David Baldacci [813.08 Fac]

Eleven short stories that pair our favorite authors and their characters. I'm a Lincoln Rhyme (Jeffery Deaver) and Lucas Davenport (John Sandford) fan so was pleased to see a short story that put them together ("Rhymes with Prey" -- gotta love that title). In this case, the two of them cementing a friendship seemed to happen rather quickly for their natures but this is afterall a short story format. On the plus side, their mystery was interesting and believable, and most of the favorite series characters made an appearance. Other authors were paired with" like" characters, for example Repairman Jack (by F. Paul Wilson) is a paranormal series -- he "repairs" situations for people that involve curses, ancient evil, and demons. Jack is set in a short story in New Orleans with Heather Graham's series characters - Michael Quinn and Danni Cafferty - who also deal with old, supernatural evil. No need to read this book in order, pick and choose which authors you're interested in, or find a new author based on who they are paired with. Sit back and enjoy Harry Bosch, Aloysius Pendergast, and Jack Reacher, to name a few. If you haven't yet read some of these characters, these short stories will give you a quick introduction that might pique your interest enough to pick up a full-length novel starring that character. -- recommended by Charlotte K. - Bennett Martin Public Library [ see Charlotte's Reviewer Profile and more of her reviews ]

[ publisher's official Faceoff web site ]

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Customer Review: Games Creatures Play

Games Creatures Play
edited by Charlaine Harris and Toni L. Kelner [813.08 Har]

A fun collection of supernatural story telling! The stories follow the same thread in that they all revolve around games. The variety of play makes them all stand out on their own. A few authors that I?ve read before and really enjoyed in this book were Charlaine Harris, Scott Sigler and Laura Lippman. Harris brings Sookie Stackhouse into this short story not as the main character, but with a supporting role that helps create a really cool story. Sigler's "The Case of the Haunted Safeway" was a great piece of storytelling where the characters were made alive, even though some of them were ghosts. My favorite story of the bunch was "Jammed" by Seanan McGuire, which creatively combined roller derby and a chimera. The last tale of the bunch was also a favorite, "Bell, Book, and Candlepin" by Toni L. P. Kelner, which mixed together a werewolf, witch, and bowling alley. Overall, an engaging group of stories. -- review submitted by Liz H. - a customer of the Gere Branch Library

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New Customer Reviews appear regularly in the pages of the BookGuide web site, particularly during the Summer Reading Program. You can visit the Customer Reviews page to see them all and/or submit your own, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually as we receive them.

20th Century Ghosts by Joe Hill

20th Century Ghosts
by Joe Hill

Joe Hill presents himself with this collection as both a wonderful writer and as a story teller that possess that special touch. His works are sly and subtle, while some also manage to be so incredibly creepy and even touching. The stories vary in tone and subject manner, sometimes making it difficult to ascertain exactly what Hill is trying to accomplish in each of the tales presented. However, I give the author a great amount of credit for allowing a mode of thinking on the reader's part, making the stories all the more reader driven while allowing a sense of camaraderie with the author and his characters. It would be impossible not to compare Joe Hill's work with that of his father, Stephen King. When I say that they both write with a similar style and imagination, I mean to take nothing away from Hill. His stories and prose are all his own and while being similar to those of his father, Hill's books have a flavor of their own. Now in every collection there are stories that stand out to certain readers and those that just don't work. I believe that every reader will find "their story" in this collection and many may differ from those I liked the most. The opening story "Best New Horror" is an absolutely wonderful play on the cliched horror stories that are so often presented and the almost satirical nature made this one of my favorites. The title story, "20th Century Ghost" has a much more subdued approach and has the smoother and almost poetical writing that showcases Hill's skill at maintaining both creepy and beautiful. "Pop Art" was another favorite of mine. Highlighting not scares or darkness but the friendship between two boys. Initially in the story I thought it was unbelievable but the honesty and touching nature made a believer out of me. "Voluntarily Committed" was fantastic and I hold it as not only my favorite story in the collection, but as what I think a good short story should be. It is exper tly told and is both heartfelt and by far the biggest scare I had while reading this collection. By the end of the book Hill had proven himself as an exceptional writer and one that I am sure to follow. He is right up there on my list of favorites, right between Stephen King and Neil Gaiman. There are many other stories in this book that I did not reference above and I encourage everyone to read this excellent collection and find their favorites. -- recommended by Wyatt P. - Gere Branch Library

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try Fragile things: Short fictions and Wonders by Neil Gaiman, Night Shift by Stephen King, or Stories : all-new tales edited by Neil Gaiman and Al Sarrantonio.]

[Also available in book-on-cd format.]

[ Wikipedia page for 20th Century Ghosts ] | [ official Joe Hill web site ]

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Customer Review - Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark
by Alvin Schwartz [j398.2 Sch or jPB]

Awesome! Just scary enough. My friends freak when they read these. I love it!!! -- review submitted by Teresa G. - a customer of the Gere Branch Library

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New Customer Reviews appear regularly in the pages of the BookGuide web site, particularly during the Summer Reading Program. You can visit the Customer Reviews page to see them all and/or submit your own, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually as we receive them.

A Study in Sherlock

A Study in Sherlock: Stories Inspired by the Holmes Canon
by various authors, edited by Laurie King [823.08 Kin]

This series of short stories by various authors is a fun read. All stories are inspired by the Holmes Canon. Some very loosely, while others it helps to have read many of the original Doyle stories to solve the current mystery you are reading. A must read for any Sherlock Holmes fan. -- recommended by Jodene G. - Walt Branch Library

[ Publisher's official A Study in Sherlock web site ] | [ official Laurie R. King web site ]

Check out the libraries' extensive Sherlock Holmes booklist on BookGuide
 
Have you read this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually over the course of the entire month. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewers recommendations!

New Customer Review - Invasion of the Road Weenies and Other Warped and Creepy Tales

Invasion of the Road Weenies and Other Warped and Creepy Tales
by David Lubar [j Lubar]

This is a perfect book for someone who would rather listen to a bunch of different, smaller stories than one big one. Also if you are a fan of weird, creepy, or just plain strange. Prepare to feel bad for the antagonist as these short stories will change your point of view of the world forever. -- review submitted by Jonas S. - a customer of the Gere Branch Library

Have you read this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New Customer Reviews appear regularly in the pages of the BookGuide web site. You can visit the Customer Reviews page to see them all and/or submit your own, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually as we receive them.