"Bruise" by Stuart Dybek was a funny story for me to read... it reminds me that sometimes unexpected things can become a really pleasant fetish. This story was a bit weird in that pressing her bruise made her orgasm. But for me, wearing fuzzy toe socks to bed at night helps me sleep better than any other type of sock (it's a weird yet pleasant fetish).
A story that I randomly found, but LOVED was, "Butterfly Forever" by Chen Qiyou. It was pretty short, but every single sentence had so much meaning. I think it is difficult to make every sentence mean something important but the author did a fantastic job at it. I really enjoy stories that have a lot of imagery because it just makes the story more enjoyable to read. This story has a lot of imagery. With the combination of really meaningful sentences and imagery, I felt like I was there. I felt like even I was in love with Yingzi.
The story I really enjoyed was "The Egg Pyramid" by Nuala Ni Chonchuir. The story is about a woman who found out that her husband of seven years cheated on her with her sister. It goes on to discuss "things you can do" if this ever happened to someone. It then describes how she would look at her nieces and nephews if her husband got her sister pregnant even though she herself has miscarried three times. She also describes the unfaltering love she has for her husband of so many years and she describes how she tries to forgive him by simply ignoring the hurt and betrayal she is feeling. I really enjoyed this story because I felt for the woman. She was wronged in all the worst possible ways and yet her final sentence in the story reads, " The best thing that you can do is to take your brush in one hand, your palette in the other, and sit at your easel and paint. Yes, you can paint." This highlights the strength she has to be willing to look past this incident in order to save her marriage while also highlighting the weakness she has for taking him back.
Another quite interesting but yet unusual story from the book Flash Fiction is by Rubem Fonseca. It’s starts off by describing the typical family. A man who arrives home from work but he seemed very stressed out. You would think he’s living the happy life because he seemed rich. He describes a maid being there to serve them dinner, children asking him for money like its nothing and what not but, something strange happens. He tells his wife that he wants to go out for a drive but no ordinary drive. His wife tells him she does not understand what he gets out of driving around in the middle of the night but he continues on out. He describes his car in a way that is something very precious to him. There was a lot of use of imagery especially towards the end of the story. I had to re-read the story over just because the ending shocked me. The way he reliefs his stress is I guess by hitting an innocent person standing on the curb, then drives back home like nothing ever happened. The way this story describes how he hit this woman gave me the chills. Lots of dark imagery but really gave the story more depth. His wife asks him if he felt better after his spin but he replies back that he’s going to bed and that tomorrow was going to be a rough day at work.
The story I came to enjoy was titled Idolatry by Sherman Alexie. This short story is about a woman who auditions for something that requires her to sing. She is told that she is terrible at singing and worst of all that moment of rejection would be broadcasted. Then, she realized everyone she trusted told her she was a great singer, so they all lied. I really enjoyed this short story because it just goes to show that sometimes the people that are closest to you will lie because they think that they are doing what's best for you. Also, it really spoke to me because I am the opposite of her friends and family. I always tell people the truth because I figure its better to hear it from a friend or family member than a complete stranger.
A story I enjoyed from Flash Fiction was " Please Hold Me the Forgotten Way" by H.J. Shepard. Though the couple didn't break up their relationship, I felt sad. It can be sad. It was the process of change and seeing "it" happen right in front of you and preparing for it. She feels low-spirited because she's saying goodbye to something that's a part of him and accepting for what's going to happen. "Please Hold Me the Forgotten Way" spoke to me because situations like this happen all the time; it doesn't necessarily have to be a romantic relationship. It can be any relationship. You foreshadow situations that you know are going to happen and you become away, so you accept it. And once it does actually happen, it's sad to say goodbye. And that made me emotional.
Another story from Flash Fiction that I enjoyed was Reunion by Edward Mullany. I really enjoyed the element of ambiguity that was produced in this short work. It is about a dysfunctional divorced couple shopping with their new significant others, and it ends quickly with the woman retaliating against the new girlfriend so that she gets suspicious of something. I thought this was strange because it indicates that the woman perhaps wants something to do with her ex still, yet it was petty enough for me to believe that she probably only wanted to cause a little drama. The ambiguous part, though, was that the ex husband was described as having his hand in her shopping bag, which is what made his girlfriend upset. It makes me wonder what was in the bag, or if it was a metaphor for having his hand in her business despite the divorce.
An additional story that I found enjoyable amongst the collection of short works was "The Five New Sons" by Zakaria Tamer. The story line revolved around a couples short marriage ceremony. Sadly, the husband was put under arrest and was only set free ten years following his marriage day. Given that the honeymoon was very short he is surprised to hear that his wife has birthed five sons. Furthermore, the village from which the husband is from has commenced a large lavish celebration. Though many men would leave their wife instantaneously, the husband states that he is bound to his marriage by God and does not wish to divorce. I found the story interesting mainly because of the author's comedic approach to illustrating the dynamic events affecting the husband. A few laughs later and some re-reading and I began to understand the author's underlying message; love can only blind temporarily.
I really enjoyed Prisoner of War by Muna Fadhil. The story itself was ironic. It started off in the present where Sahira was watching her father at home, then turns to a flashback where Saleh was a prisoner for 18 years and Sahira was 5. Then moves along with the timeline to the day he was released. The author notes that he has not seen the sun nor sat in a seat with cushion, but when he was released, he experienced them. It then turns back to the present where Sahira goes to work and leaves her father in the house alone. The moral of the story is once someone is a prisoner of war for a long time, it is hard to adjust to life outside of prison. The author mentions his fascination with all thing electronic and the radio. However, when Sahira leaves for work, he closes the blinds and has to feel the cushion on his chair to know that it is real. Even though he is considered a free man, his isolation from the knowledge of the world has made him a prisoner once more. A prisoner of war is never really free.
Another story I liked from Flash Fiction was "Sleeping Habit" by Yasunari Kawabata. It is about two lovers that sleeping together and how they hate the idea of sleeping because they are not awake and spending time with one another. They try to sleep holding hands, but wake up with their fingers separated because they lost their grip while they were asleep. They try sleeping in each others arms, but discover that sometime during the night, they lose their hold on one another again. So the woman tries wrapping her hair around the man's neck. Eventually they discover their "Sleeping habit" and sleep with their hands touching. I liked this story because it encompasses the idea that the one you love isn't going anywhere, they'll always be right there beside you.
A story from Fiction that spoke to me was "Labyrinth" by Juan Jose Barrientos for cleverly creating his own story a labyrinth. His opening sentence explained that labyrinths were created to make an entrance and an exit difficult for wanderers. Through his descriptions, he used visual and auditory imagery to give the reader a sensation of what a labyrinth is. I started to imagine what his labyrinth looked like, and I lost myself in the images and sounds I envisioned. The characters were forced out the labyrinth which was described like a fancy party, and then I found myself, along with the characters, yearning to enter back into the labyrinth where all the twisted fun took place.
A short story from Flash Fiction that I found interesting was “Man Carrying Books” by Linh Dinh. This story described the life of a man who valued good appearances and impressions more than anything else. He would use books to make a good appearance as he walked around carrying books. I enjoyed this story since as the story progressed, the man’s routine began to show how obsessed he was with wanting more respect meant carrying more books and thicker ones. The story also adds a meaningful lesson towards the ends as the man was shown alone but content with his many books as well as ironic as his collection of stacked books were actually useful for once.
The story that caught my interest was "Sleeping Habit" by Yasunari Kawabata. This story seemed appropriate because it was about love and today is Valentine's Day. This poem is about two young kids who are in love. The girl doesn't like when she's with her lover and he goes to sleep because she thinks that they get disconnected. They are so loving and affectionate when they are awake but once they fall asleep, they naturally start to separate. The girl thinks that they should just stay awake because she doesn't want them to disengage and she thinks they don't need sleep. But as time goes on they start to stay connected when they sleep and wake up happy.
Virgilip Piñera’s short story “Insomnia” particularly spoke to me. I suffer from insomnia, as the man in the story does, and I understand how agonizing it can be. I empathize with the man in this story, however, I, personally, would never allow insomnia to lead me to commit suicide. This incredible act perhaps shows how great his insomnia was – so much so that he ended up killing himself. I also find the final lines of the short story, “The man is dead but still he is unable to sleep. Insomnia is a very persistent thing,” particularly profound.
Ron Carlson's "The Nihilist" peaked my interest as I was reading through these stories. I have found that I appreciate the internal conflicts a bit more so than dramatic situations. The short story continues to beat out the mentality of a nihilist (a personality trait that I seldom see), and then ends with a bit of irony, where he ultimately is peachy and content after he erupts. I think it would be a fun idea to play with as far as writing a short story of my own. One where you can sit in the passenger seat of an extreme mental vehicle you've never been in before. I think it's a cool concept
"Reunion" by Edward Mullany, was a short story that I found interesting. I appreciate the way the writer brings to life a situation that could happen to anyone. I found the use of irony in the situation to be effective and a tad bit humorous. For example, the speaker talks about how she gives a suggestive look at her ex-husband's wife and then she is annoyed with her own husband when he peaks in her shopping bag the exact same way her ex-husband just had. Although they are divorced for a reason, she finds more excitement in her ex than her husband. I feel that many people can relate to this situation, the normal being boring and familiar. This short piece touches on temptation and old feelings, which makes an interesting read.
I can’t say that I enjoyed “The Past” by Juan Carlos Botero but it definitely spoke to me. The story, about a man learning he has been cheated on, wasn’t actually what interested me. It’s the idea that our memories are not solidified by time, but may be altered once we learn more that struck a chord. History, for example, has been known to be fluid. Empires and governments rewrite events according to how they see fit and sometimes new evidence brings light to previously vague events. I don’t think about the past very often, so thinking about how an entire year’s worth of memories could be altered in such a negative way gave me a sinking feeling. -Michael Harp
Another story from Flash Fiction I enjoyed was "The Story, Victorious," by Etgar Keret. Even though it's the first story in the book, I've skipped over it the last few times I've gone through the books. But this time I actually stopped and read it and found that I really did enjoy it. I think the one thing that that sparked my interest the most was "The Story, Victorious, II." There was only one line in the a second but I hadn't expected it. I like the idea that the story isn't over as long as you want it to continue.
Another short story that interested me in Flash Fiction International, is "The Vending Machine at the End of the World" by Josephine Rowe. This story really sparked my interest because it gave the vending machine so much meaning, even once mentioning how "he had turned the vending machine into a time-traveling device". I think the vending machine is given all of this power by first giving some insight as to what the man had become (homeless, broke, minor criminal record, etc.). The vending machine gave him that one glimpse of the days when all was well, the mystery button supplied him with curiosity, hope, and dreams of a better life. However, when he receives a Sprite over the hopeful sodas of his childhood, the good days seem so intangible and lost. The story really sets you up for a happy ending, just to receive a "fucking Sprite". Though the ending was a twist for the story, it is a perfect example of what one might experience in real life, more often times than the happy, hopeful ending. This is why the story is so captivating.
In Flash Fiction International, I enjoyed the short story titled "The Lord of the Flies" by Marco Denevi. What first attracted to me to this story was the name because it is exactly the same as the book I read when I was in high school. However, it is the complete opposite because Denevi's version of "The Lord of the Flies" is literally a tale about a Lord Fly. It is very humorous the myths that are made up about this God like Fly. Some the myths contradict each other but that just adds to the ambiguity of the God like fly. On the flip side, there is an opposing Fly that reigns in a squeaky clean hell. I like this poem because it was just a literal play on words to a classic novel.
Another short story in Flash Fiction International that caught my interest is "Truthful Lies" by Frankie McMillan because of how accurate this is. Even though many people lie, there are those who lie for a good reason, and I find that funny and ironic because we, as children growing up, were taught that lying is very bad and that we should not do it; however, at some point, we do it anyway. You could hurt someones' feelings, but couldn't you do the same with truths? The character in the story tells a lot of lies, but I think that she might be too afraid or just don't want to tell people the real "truth" because of what the others may think. However, they really think she's an honest person with a sad yet believable story, but she's not. She is just like everyone else.
The story I liked from Flash Fiction was "Ronggeng" by Yin Ee Kiong. The beginning is so dark. He uses another language but then he translates it to English. He uses specific details on the items so the reader can get a visual on what he is talking about. I felt like I was there because he uses very descriptive details about the things that are happening. He doesn't use every day words he used big words to make the story even better.
In Flash Fiction International, another favorite short story was "Love" by Edgar Omar Avilés. This short story was one of the more shorter stories in the book, but was very powerful in its message. The author creates dramatic irony with the initial expectation of what the story will be like, with the title being "Love" and with the first couple opening lines. The story starts off with a little girl talking to her mother about God and love and quickly takes a turn for the worst with how her mother thinks what Love and God mean, and with how the mother stabs the daughter repeatedly with a knife. The underlying theme of this story is not violence, but that of how God's love, and living a good life in order to receive God's love, you have to live in a good environment that does not require great sacrifice in order to survive. For impoverished people, sometimes it requires sinful acts and sacrifices of humanity in order to survive and maintain well-being. Having to do this takes away hope from those who want to serve God to the best of their abilities, but cannot due to choices they make in terms of survival versus a Godly life.
A story I liked from Flash Fiction was "Truthful Lies" by Frankie McMillan. It was almost funny in a way because what lies are truthful? In a way I feel like this is how mostly everyone is in the world and they just say what other people want to hear. These days no one wants to stand out and be different from others. We live in a cookie cutter society and it is sad. This story has a lot of imagery like if you are actually there getting asked questions by others which makes it fun to read. I also like the ending because it is actually like if he is talking to you and telling you to lie instead of saying the truth, it is different from other endings I've read.
The story, "Appointment in Samarra" by W. Somerset Maugham caught my interest because of its folk tale nature. The story tells of a man who flees to a neighboring city in order to avoid the physical embodiment of Death, only to discover that Death was already intent on meeting him in the second city. Riddled with metaphor and allusion, the story holds a deep and profound moral that fate is often inevitable despite how much we try to avoid it. You can shake your fist at the heavens, run for the hills or even try to hide, but Death comes for everyone. There is a sort of macabre beauty in that notion, that we are all part of system or a cycle and the wheel will keep on turning with or without our say.
I liked "Truthful Lies" by Frankie McMillan. The story is about someone making up lies that are somewhat believable and somewhat outrageously unbelievable. Everyone lies whether big or small and I feel as if he is showing that by using an example. He also addresses the audience by "asking what we want to hear" because sometimes we don't want to hear the truth, we want to hear a good story (sounds like the news channels). --Rayna Gomez
I really enjoyed "Skull of a Sheep" by James Claffey. What appeals most to me about the short story is the lack of punctuation. It's like a stream of consciousness that really adds to the tone of the speaker's voice. --Kinlynn Austin
I really enjoyed "The Most Beautiful Girl" by Peter Stamm. What appealed to me the most was that the person found the word Alien written in the sand but the person's name is never mentioned. It's ironic though because the person found themselves feeling like an alien while outside in the sand themselves. At one point the person meets up with Web Jan and his girlfriend and discovers that Alien was a girls name in Dutch and that Alien Post was the most beautiful girl on the island. Another thing that catches my attention is why is the girl's name Alien? Or does the author refer to a lonesome person and that why he used the name Alien? Could he actually be referring to alien at the island? If it is a girl why does it matter is she finally found herself a boyfriend?
I liked the story "Arm, Clean Off," by Cate McGowen. It had a strange tone to it. The boy in the story acted strangely. I expected him to panic but he focused the whole time. Maybe he was in shock? He kept thinking of what to do, things his dad had said to do. He may have learned his lesson in the first paragraph, when he disobeyed his father although no one was around. Afterwards, he did not disobey even though he was alone. Only dreading having to tell his parents. It was interesting to see his thought process. -Iesha Clouden
Prisoner of War by Muna Fadhil was an interesting read. I had never before considered the adjustment period for POWs and how their lives have been affected for the rest of their days, essentially. It's tragic to consider these realities that POWs must face and how misunderstood they must be to the world. The wonder and curiosity the man faced in life after being free opened my eyes to how much has changed in just the past decade and how people that have even been in prison for a long period of time must feel once they get out. It must be like stepping into another world and feeling the cushions is proof of reality. I enjoyed this read. -Alee Gonzalez
I was a sort of mindblown with the story "love" by Edgar Omar Avilés. It's title can carry a wide array of concepts with any different type of love so what i read was completely unexpected. It spoke to me in a way, I don't know if that's a good thing. I have actually thought of something like this story before. In one of those moments where I'm bored and let my thoughts run wild with questions. I wondered once if a villains role of killing the innocent could ever be justified. Would killing the innocent be a good act in any way? Something like that. Since it kills a person while they are pure, before they are tainted with sin so they are sure to go to heaven but the killer takes the sacrifice in going to hell. I imagine this is what some murderers believe, but all in all I see that one horrible deed can not be justified in a simple sense like this. Killing takes away every piece of potential a person holds, it takes away their future and their everything..even if it may lead them to a paradise. Just a simple question of morals, it's somewhat comforting to know that I'm not the only one that thought about this but it's also a bit unsettling.
"Skull of Sheep." is the short story that I enjoyed the most. I really enjoyed the overall white structure of the piece. Not only that but the visual presentation of the story helps add to the emotion and feeling behind it.
My favorite short story is "an Ugly Man" by Marcela Fuentes. The reason why I ejoyed reading it is mainly because I like the message that Fuentes provides for her readers. Her message is essentially the idea that ugliness is not on the outside, but in the inside. I also really liked her use of similes and imagery. For instance, she used both similes and imagery in order to describe the ugly man, Daniel. She provides imagery as to why he is so ugly and even though she is making him seem ugly on the outside, the reader still finds him to be beautiful on the inside through the stuff that the character himself does.
The short story that caught my interest was, "Love," by Edgar Omar Aviles. The story is about a mother who murders her young daughter when her daughter tells her that she believes god is watching over her, and that he is good and loves her. The mother kills her so that she dies with that innocence in her heart, and doesn't eventually become disillusioned by god because of the hardships of life. I thought the twist in the story was very jarring and it caught me by surprise when i first read it. In a way, i found it sweet. The mother truly believes she is doing what's best for her daughter. She thinks the girl is doomed to be miserable in life and that she is bound to become a prostitute to survive. The mother was only trying to save her from that cruel fate, and she does so by destroying her own chance at salvation. It was a dark story all in all, but at it's core, it is about love, and the length one goes for love.
The story that caught my interest was Squeegee by James Norcliffe because it reminded me of my last job. we had to use a dinosaur mop to clean the store. you had to carry a bucket of water with you and squeeze the water out then clean the floors. It got irritating but defiantly gained respect for the mop i have at home.
The story that I found interesting was "Honey" by Antonio Ungar. It caught my attention because it reminded me of all the mischievous things my sister, niece, nephew, and I would do together when we were younger. It was never as intense as what she did in the story but it made me think about how much fun it was to do the things you weren't supposed to. Even now that we are older there is a sense of enjoyment in breaking the rules. It took be back to when I was younger and didn't have any serious consequences for the "bad" things that I did.
my new favorite story that caught my interest was Fire. Water by Avital Gad-Cykman. It took me back to my childhood memories with my brothers. Growing up the only girl in a house full of 3 boys was a lot growing up. I always had to fend myself from at least one of their constant harassment. Sometimes i would scream, and search for my parents and they were no where to be found. That is when things ended badly, for my brothers at least. Alicia Martin
"Bruise" by Stuart Dybek was a funny story for me to read... it reminds me that sometimes unexpected things can become a really pleasant fetish. This story was a bit weird in that pressing her bruise made her orgasm. But for me, wearing fuzzy toe socks to bed at night helps me sleep better than any other type of sock (it's a weird yet pleasant fetish).
ReplyDeleteA story that I randomly found, but LOVED was, "Butterfly Forever" by Chen Qiyou. It was pretty short, but every single sentence had so much meaning. I think it is difficult to make every sentence mean something important but the author did a fantastic job at it. I really enjoy stories that have a lot of imagery because it just makes the story more enjoyable to read. This story has a lot of imagery. With the combination of really meaningful sentences and imagery, I felt like I was there. I felt like even I was in love with Yingzi.
ReplyDeleteThe story I really enjoyed was "The Egg Pyramid" by Nuala Ni Chonchuir. The story is about a woman who found out that her husband of seven years cheated on her with her sister. It goes on to discuss "things you can do" if this ever happened to someone. It then describes how she would look at her nieces and nephews if her husband got her sister pregnant even though she herself has miscarried three times. She also describes the unfaltering love she has for her husband of so many years and she describes how she tries to forgive him by simply ignoring the hurt and betrayal she is feeling. I really enjoyed this story because I felt for the woman. She was wronged in all the worst possible ways and yet her final sentence in the story reads, " The best thing that you can do is to take your brush in one hand, your palette in the other, and sit at your easel and paint. Yes, you can paint." This highlights the strength she has to be willing to look past this incident in order to save her marriage while also highlighting the weakness she has for taking him back.
ReplyDeleteAnother quite interesting but yet unusual story from the book Flash Fiction is by Rubem Fonseca. It’s starts off by describing the typical family. A man who arrives home from work but he seemed very stressed out. You would think he’s living the happy life because he seemed rich. He describes a maid being there to serve them dinner, children asking him for money like its nothing and what not but, something strange happens. He tells his wife that he wants to go out for a drive but no ordinary drive. His wife tells him she does not understand what he gets out of driving around in the middle of the night but he continues on out. He describes his car in a way that is something very precious to him. There was a lot of use of imagery especially towards the end of the story. I had to re-read the story over just because the ending shocked me. The way he reliefs his stress is I guess by hitting an innocent person standing on the curb, then drives back home like nothing ever happened. The way this story describes how he hit this woman gave me the chills. Lots of dark imagery but really gave the story more depth. His wife asks him if he felt better after his spin but he replies back that he’s going to bed and that tomorrow was going to be a rough day at work.
ReplyDelete-Ahlam Khalid
The story I came to enjoy was titled Idolatry by Sherman Alexie. This short story is about a woman who auditions for something that requires her to sing. She is told that she is terrible at singing and worst of all that moment of rejection would be broadcasted. Then, she realized everyone she trusted told her she was a great singer, so they all lied. I really enjoyed this short story because it just goes to show that sometimes the people that are closest to you will lie because they think that they are doing what's best for you. Also, it really spoke to me because I am the opposite of her friends and family. I always tell people the truth because I figure its better to hear it from a friend or family member than a complete stranger.
ReplyDeleteA story I enjoyed from Flash Fiction was " Please Hold Me the Forgotten Way" by H.J. Shepard. Though the couple didn't break up their relationship, I felt sad. It can be sad. It was the process of change and seeing "it" happen right in front of you and preparing for it. She feels low-spirited because she's saying goodbye to something that's a part of him and accepting for what's going to happen. "Please Hold Me the Forgotten Way" spoke to me because situations like this happen all the time; it doesn't necessarily have to be a romantic relationship. It can be any relationship. You foreshadow situations that you know are going to happen and you become away, so you accept it. And once it does actually happen, it's sad to say goodbye. And that made me emotional.
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ReplyDeleteAnother story from Flash Fiction that I enjoyed was Reunion by Edward Mullany. I really enjoyed the element of ambiguity that was produced in this short work. It is about a dysfunctional divorced couple shopping with their new significant others, and it ends quickly with the woman retaliating against the new girlfriend so that she gets suspicious of something. I thought this was strange because it indicates that the woman perhaps wants something to do with her ex still, yet it was petty enough for me to believe that she probably only wanted to cause a little drama. The ambiguous part, though, was that the ex husband was described as having his hand in her shopping bag, which is what made his girlfriend upset. It makes me wonder what was in the bag, or if it was a metaphor for having his hand in her business despite the divorce.
ReplyDeleteAn additional story that I found enjoyable amongst the collection of short works was "The Five New Sons" by Zakaria Tamer. The story line revolved around a couples short marriage ceremony. Sadly, the husband was put under arrest and was only set free ten years following his marriage day. Given that the honeymoon was very short he is surprised to hear that his wife has birthed five sons. Furthermore, the village from which the husband is from has commenced a large lavish celebration. Though many men would leave their wife instantaneously, the husband states that he is bound to his marriage by God and does not wish to divorce. I found the story interesting mainly because of the author's comedic approach to illustrating the dynamic events affecting the husband. A few laughs later and some re-reading and I began to understand the author's underlying message; love can only blind temporarily.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed Prisoner of War by Muna Fadhil. The story itself was ironic. It started off in the present where Sahira was watching her father at home, then turns to a flashback where Saleh was a prisoner for 18 years and Sahira was 5. Then moves along with the timeline to the day he was released. The author notes that he has not seen the sun nor sat in a seat with cushion, but when he was released, he experienced them. It then turns back to the present where Sahira goes to work and leaves her father in the house alone.
ReplyDeleteThe moral of the story is once someone is a prisoner of war for a long time, it is hard to adjust to life outside of prison. The author mentions his fascination with all thing electronic and the radio. However, when Sahira leaves for work, he closes the blinds and has to feel the cushion on his chair to know that it is real. Even though he is considered a free man, his isolation from the knowledge of the world has made him a prisoner once more. A prisoner of war is never really free.
Another story I liked from Flash Fiction was "Sleeping Habit" by Yasunari Kawabata. It is about two lovers that sleeping together and how they hate the idea of sleeping because they are not awake and spending time with one another. They try to sleep holding hands, but wake up with their fingers separated because they lost their grip while they were asleep. They try sleeping in each others arms, but discover that sometime during the night, they lose their hold on one another again. So the woman tries wrapping her hair around the man's neck. Eventually they discover their "Sleeping habit" and sleep with their hands touching. I liked this story because it encompasses the idea that the one you love isn't going anywhere, they'll always be right there beside you.
ReplyDelete-- Sarana McDaniel
A story from Fiction that spoke to me was "Labyrinth" by Juan Jose Barrientos for cleverly creating his own story a labyrinth. His opening sentence explained that labyrinths were created to make an entrance and an exit difficult for wanderers. Through his descriptions, he used visual and auditory imagery to give the reader a sensation of what a labyrinth is. I started to imagine what his labyrinth looked like, and I lost myself in the images and sounds I envisioned. The characters were forced out the labyrinth which was described like a fancy party, and then I found myself, along with the characters, yearning to enter back into the labyrinth where all the twisted fun took place.
ReplyDeleteA short story from Flash Fiction that I found interesting was “Man Carrying Books” by Linh Dinh. This story described the life of a man who valued good appearances and impressions more than anything else. He would use books to make a good appearance as he walked around carrying books. I enjoyed this story since as the story progressed, the man’s routine began to show how obsessed he was with wanting more respect meant carrying more books and thicker ones. The story also adds a meaningful lesson towards the ends as the man was shown alone but content with his many books as well as ironic as his collection of stacked books were actually useful for once.
ReplyDelete- Mariela Andrade
The story that caught my interest was "Sleeping Habit" by Yasunari Kawabata. This story seemed appropriate because it was about love and today is Valentine's Day. This poem is about two young kids who are in love. The girl doesn't like when she's with her lover and he goes to sleep because she thinks that they get disconnected. They are so loving and affectionate when they are awake but once they fall asleep, they naturally start to separate. The girl thinks that they should just stay awake because she doesn't want them to disengage and she thinks they don't need sleep. But as time goes on they start to stay connected when they sleep and wake up happy.
ReplyDeleteVirgilip Piñera’s short story “Insomnia” particularly spoke to me. I suffer from insomnia, as the man in the story does, and I understand how agonizing it can be. I empathize with the man in this story, however, I, personally, would never allow insomnia to lead me to commit suicide. This incredible act perhaps shows how great his insomnia was – so much so that he ended up killing himself. I also find the final lines of the short story, “The man is dead but still he is unable to sleep. Insomnia is a very persistent thing,” particularly profound.
ReplyDeleteRon Carlson's "The Nihilist" peaked my interest as I was reading through these stories. I have found that I appreciate the internal conflicts a bit more so than dramatic situations. The short story continues to beat out the mentality of a nihilist (a personality trait that I seldom see), and then ends with a bit of irony, where he ultimately is peachy and content after he erupts. I think it would be a fun idea to play with as far as writing a short story of my own. One where you can sit in the passenger seat of an extreme mental vehicle you've never been in before. I think it's a cool concept
ReplyDelete"Reunion" by Edward Mullany, was a short story that I found interesting. I appreciate the way the writer brings to life a situation that could happen to anyone. I found the use of irony in the situation to be effective and a tad bit humorous. For example, the speaker talks about how she gives a suggestive look at her ex-husband's wife and then she is annoyed with her own husband when he peaks in her shopping bag the exact same way her ex-husband just had. Although they are divorced for a reason, she finds more excitement in her ex than her husband. I feel that many people can relate to this situation, the normal being boring and familiar. This short piece touches on temptation and old feelings, which makes an interesting read.
ReplyDelete--Ashlee DeMalade
I can’t say that I enjoyed “The Past” by Juan Carlos Botero but it definitely spoke to me. The story, about a man learning he has been cheated on, wasn’t actually what interested me. It’s the idea that our memories are not solidified by time, but may be altered once we learn more that struck a chord. History, for example, has been known to be fluid. Empires and governments rewrite events according to how they see fit and sometimes new evidence brings light to previously vague events. I don’t think about the past very often, so thinking about how an entire year’s worth of memories could be altered in such a negative way gave me a sinking feeling.
ReplyDelete-Michael Harp
Another story from Flash Fiction I enjoyed was "The Story, Victorious," by Etgar Keret. Even though it's the first story in the book, I've skipped over it the last few times I've gone through the books. But this time I actually stopped and read it and found that I really did enjoy it. I think the one thing that that sparked my interest the most was "The Story, Victorious, II." There was only one line in the a second but I hadn't expected it. I like the idea that the story isn't over as long as you want it to continue.
ReplyDelete-Kristin Galetano
Another short story that interested me in Flash Fiction International, is "The Vending Machine at the End of the World" by Josephine Rowe. This story really sparked my interest because it gave the vending machine so much meaning, even once mentioning how "he had turned the vending machine into a time-traveling device". I think the vending machine is given all of this power by first giving some insight as to what the man had become (homeless, broke, minor criminal record, etc.). The vending machine gave him that one glimpse of the days when all was well, the mystery button supplied him with curiosity, hope, and dreams of a better life. However, when he receives a Sprite over the hopeful sodas of his childhood, the good days seem so intangible and lost. The story really sets you up for a happy ending, just to receive a "fucking Sprite". Though the ending was a twist for the story, it is a perfect example of what one might experience in real life, more often times than the happy, hopeful ending. This is why the story is so captivating.
ReplyDeleteIn Flash Fiction International, I enjoyed the short story titled "The Lord of the Flies" by Marco Denevi. What first attracted to me to this story was the name because it is exactly the same as the book I read when I was in high school. However, it is the complete opposite because Denevi's version of "The Lord of the Flies" is literally a tale about a Lord Fly. It is very humorous the myths that are made up about this God like Fly. Some the myths contradict each other but that just adds to the ambiguity of the God like fly. On the flip side, there is an opposing Fly that reigns in a squeaky clean hell. I like this poem because it was just a literal play on words to a classic novel.
ReplyDelete-Pablo Casas
Another short story in Flash Fiction International that caught my interest is "Truthful Lies" by Frankie McMillan because of how accurate this is. Even though many people lie, there are those who lie for a good reason, and I find that funny and ironic because we, as children growing up, were taught that lying is very bad and that we should not do it; however, at some point, we do it anyway. You could hurt someones' feelings, but couldn't you do the same with truths?
ReplyDeleteThe character in the story tells a lot of lies, but I think that she might be too afraid or just don't want to tell people the real "truth" because of what the others may think. However, they really think she's an honest person with a sad yet believable story, but she's not. She is just like everyone else.
-Ashley Green
The story I liked from Flash Fiction was "Ronggeng" by Yin Ee Kiong. The beginning is so dark. He uses another language but then he translates it to English. He uses specific details on the items so the reader can get a visual on what he is talking about. I felt like I was there because he uses very descriptive details about the things that are happening. He doesn't use every day words he used big words to make the story even better.
ReplyDeleteIn Flash Fiction International, another favorite short story was "Love" by Edgar Omar Avilés. This short story was one of the more shorter stories in the book, but was very powerful in its message. The author creates dramatic irony with the initial expectation of what the story will be like, with the title being "Love" and with the first couple opening lines. The story starts off with a little girl talking to her mother about God and love and quickly takes a turn for the worst with how her mother thinks what Love and God mean, and with how the mother stabs the daughter repeatedly with a knife. The underlying theme of this story is not violence, but that of how God's love, and living a good life in order to receive God's love, you have to live in a good environment that does not require great sacrifice in order to survive. For impoverished people, sometimes it requires sinful acts and sacrifices of humanity in order to survive and maintain well-being. Having to do this takes away hope from those who want to serve God to the best of their abilities, but cannot due to choices they make in terms of survival versus a Godly life.
ReplyDeleteA story I liked from Flash Fiction was "Truthful Lies" by Frankie McMillan. It was almost funny in a way because what lies are truthful? In a way I feel like this is how mostly everyone is in the world and they just say what other people want to hear. These days no one wants to stand out and be different from others. We live in a cookie cutter society and it is sad. This story has a lot of imagery like if you are actually there getting asked questions by others which makes it fun to read. I also like the ending because it is actually like if he is talking to you and telling you to lie instead of saying the truth, it is different from other endings I've read.
ReplyDelete-Armando Contreras
The story, "Appointment in Samarra" by W. Somerset Maugham caught my interest because of its folk tale nature. The story tells of a man who flees to a neighboring city in order to avoid the physical embodiment of Death, only to discover that Death was already intent on meeting him in the second city. Riddled with metaphor and allusion, the story holds a deep and profound moral that fate is often inevitable despite how much we try to avoid it. You can shake your fist at the heavens, run for the hills or even try to hide, but Death comes for everyone. There is a sort of macabre beauty in that notion, that we are all part of system or a cycle and the wheel will keep on turning with or without our say.
ReplyDeleteI liked "Truthful Lies" by Frankie McMillan. The story is about someone making up lies that are somewhat believable and somewhat outrageously unbelievable. Everyone lies whether big or small and I feel as if he is showing that by using an example. He also addresses the audience by "asking what we want to hear" because sometimes we don't want to hear the truth, we want to hear a good story (sounds like the news channels).
ReplyDelete--Rayna Gomez
I really enjoyed "Skull of a Sheep" by James Claffey. What appeals most to me about the short story is the lack of punctuation. It's like a stream of consciousness that really adds to the tone of the speaker's voice.
ReplyDelete--Kinlynn Austin
I really enjoyed "The Most Beautiful Girl" by Peter Stamm. What appealed to me the most was that the person found the word Alien written in the sand but the person's name is never mentioned. It's ironic though because the person found themselves feeling like an alien while outside in the sand themselves. At one point the person meets up with Web Jan and his girlfriend and discovers that Alien was a girls name in Dutch and that Alien Post was the most beautiful girl on the island. Another thing that catches my attention is why is the girl's name Alien? Or does the author refer to a lonesome person and that why he used the name Alien? Could he actually be referring to alien at the island? If it is a girl why does it matter is she finally found herself a boyfriend?
ReplyDelete---Crystal Magana
I liked the story "Arm, Clean Off," by Cate McGowen. It had a strange tone to it. The boy in the story acted strangely. I expected him to panic but he focused the whole time. Maybe he was in shock? He kept thinking of what to do, things his dad had said to do. He may have learned his lesson in the first paragraph, when he disobeyed his father although no one was around. Afterwards, he did not disobey even though he was alone. Only dreading having to tell his parents. It was interesting to see his thought process.
ReplyDelete-Iesha Clouden
Prisoner of War by Muna Fadhil was an interesting read. I had never before considered the adjustment period for POWs and how their lives have been affected for the rest of their days, essentially. It's tragic to consider these realities that POWs must face and how misunderstood they must be to the world. The wonder and curiosity the man faced in life after being free opened my eyes to how much has changed in just the past decade and how people that have even been in prison for a long period of time must feel once they get out. It must be like stepping into another world and feeling the cushions is proof of reality. I enjoyed this read.
ReplyDelete-Alee Gonzalez
I was a sort of mindblown with the story "love" by Edgar Omar Avilés. It's title can carry a wide array of concepts with any different type of love so what i read was completely unexpected. It spoke to me in a way, I don't know if that's a good thing. I have actually thought of something like this story before. In one of those moments where I'm bored and let my thoughts run wild with questions. I wondered once if a villains role of killing the innocent could ever be justified. Would killing the innocent be a good act in any way? Something like that. Since it kills a person while they are pure, before they are tainted with sin so they are sure to go to heaven but the killer takes the sacrifice in going to hell. I imagine this is what some murderers believe, but all in all I see that one horrible deed can not be justified in a simple sense like this. Killing takes away every piece of potential a person holds, it takes away their future and their everything..even if it may lead them to a paradise. Just a simple question of morals, it's somewhat comforting to know that I'm not the only one that thought about this but it's also a bit unsettling.
ReplyDelete-James Dy
"Skull of Sheep." is the short story that I enjoyed the most. I really enjoyed the overall white structure of the piece. Not only that but the visual presentation of the story helps add to the emotion and feeling behind it.
ReplyDelete-Ivori Holson
My favorite short story is "an Ugly Man" by Marcela Fuentes. The reason why I ejoyed reading it is mainly because I like the message that Fuentes provides for her readers. Her message is essentially the idea that ugliness is not on the outside, but in the inside. I also really liked her use of similes and imagery. For instance, she used both similes and imagery in order to describe the ugly man, Daniel. She provides imagery as to why he is so ugly and even though she is making him seem ugly on the outside, the reader still finds him to be beautiful on the inside through the stuff that the character himself does.
ReplyDelete- Jeff Ice
The short story that caught my interest was, "Love," by Edgar Omar Aviles. The story is about a mother who murders her young daughter when her daughter tells her that she believes god is watching over her, and that he is good and loves her. The mother kills her so that she dies with that innocence in her heart, and doesn't eventually become disillusioned by god because of the hardships of life. I thought the twist in the story was very jarring and it caught me by surprise when i first read it. In a way, i found it sweet. The mother truly believes she is doing what's best for her daughter. She thinks the girl is doomed to be miserable in life and that she is bound to become a prostitute to survive. The mother was only trying to save her from that cruel fate, and she does so by destroying her own chance at salvation. It was a dark story all in all, but at it's core, it is about love, and the length one goes for love.
ReplyDelete- Stephanie Borges
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ReplyDeleteThe story that caught my interest was Squeegee by James Norcliffe because it reminded me of my last job. we had to use a dinosaur mop to clean the store. you had to carry a bucket of water with you and squeeze the water out then clean the floors. It got irritating but defiantly gained respect for the mop i have at home.
ReplyDeleteThe story that I found interesting was "Honey" by Antonio Ungar. It caught my attention because it reminded me of all the mischievous things my sister, niece, nephew, and I would do together when we were younger. It was never as intense as what she did in the story but it made me think about how much fun it was to do the things you weren't supposed to. Even now that we are older there is a sense of enjoyment in breaking the rules. It took be back to when I was younger and didn't have any serious consequences for the "bad" things that I did.
ReplyDeletemy new favorite story that caught my interest was Fire. Water by Avital Gad-Cykman. It took me back to my childhood memories with my brothers. Growing up the only girl in a house full of 3 boys was a lot growing up. I always had to fend myself from at least one of their constant harassment. Sometimes i would scream, and search for my parents and they were no where to be found. That is when things ended badly, for my brothers at least.
ReplyDeleteAlicia Martin