Cause
for burst appendixes? Flashes in the Pan!
Flashes in the Pan: Fifty Short Stories for the Impatient by Raymond Grant
has to be the quickest and funniest read I've come across in a while. Grant has demonstrated with his book of flash fiction
that there is no need for an extensive amount of wordage in order to delight, to touch, and to
transmit an enjoyable experience to a reader.
Just to give you a taste of what you are in for, here is one of
my top favorites:
Gardening
As an avid reader, I am always looking for odd stories and unusual
writings. Recently, I ran across a news release by the Opyt Foundation. It highlighted the awarding of annual grants
and was written by their new Publicist, Harriet Schafer.
What tweaked my curiosity was that Ms. Schafer had titled herself,
Pubicist. Being a logophile, I immediately went to my unabridged dictionary and discovered that no such word existed.
What an opportunity! I could be the first to define a new word that
was in vogue. After serious deliberation among well-reasoned candidates, I finally decided upon:
Pubicist: One who tends the gardens around the base of Mons Pubis.
As you can see, Ray's Flashes in
the Pan are exactly that, quick and fun reads for anytime of the day.
His flash fiction tales are perfect examples
of how flashes should be written. This book is not only entertaining, but the educational value attached to it as a learning
tool on how to write flash fiction surpasses the value of two for the price of one.
Not all of his tales are humorous. One in particular,
which gripped my sentimental side, was based on a dog named Daisy, my very own pup’s name. This was another perfect
portrait of this writer’s capability to transfer a range of emotions to his reader.
The book is divided into the following sections:
PART 1 FLASHES OF HUMOR
PART 2 FLASHES OF THE OLD WEST
PART 3 FLASHES ABOUT CATS AND DOGS
PART 4 FLASHES OF CHILDHOOD
PART 5 FLASHES IN THE DARK
PART 6 FLASHES OF COMMERCE
PART 7 FLASHES AMONG VENUS, MARS, AND OTHER PLANETS
Raymond Grant offers a reader a different area of interest
to poke fun at, to heighten its insanity, to bring the fight of ‘man against woman’ to the forefront, to tickle
your funny bone, Every Which Way But Loose as the Clint Eastwood movie title goes.
If you are searching for an antidote for ‘boredom’, then Flashes
in the Pan: Fifty Short Stories for the Impatient is your prescription. A Very Good Read.
Lea Schizas – Muse Book Reviewer
*GREAT RE
AD
