Author Archives: 9siduri

Review of “The Curse of the Werewolf” (1961)

A delayed Saturday night pizza and bad movie entry. The pizza was good. The movie was about as cheery as a sharing a bottle of absinthe with a French existentialist. (That is, the place is furnished in the style of the Second Empire, and the bell for the waiter doesn’t work. You just ‘fess upContinue reading “Review of “The Curse of the Werewolf” (1961)”

Review of “A Background Poorly Written” by William Mangieri

Plot: Hmmm…. Well, the narrator, who isn’t always sure he (?) speaks the words he hears, seems to be waking from a deep sleep. Or maybe’s coming into being. He’s with Debbie. He seems to know Debbie. There’s a scratching from outside, but neither he nor Debbie knows what it is. Thoughts: This reads likeContinue reading “Review of “A Background Poorly Written” by William Mangieri”

Review of “The Rest Stop” by Mike Sharlow

Plot: Mick can travel in time, but he doesn’t tell anyone. It’s the sort of thing that suggests mental illness. He doesn’t want to be studied, nor does he want to be locked up while others decide how his ability should be used. He keeps his secret and uses it when he decides to putContinue reading “Review of “The Rest Stop” by Mike Sharlow”

Review of “Intro to Intergalactic Conflicts 101: A Course Summary” by Robert Douglas Friedman

Plot: There is no plot to this story. There is merely an overview—in the form of a course outline— of a centuries-old conflict of uncertain origin. (“[W]e remain certain that our cause is just.”) The enemy “lacks common sense, courage, religion, and access to a decent dry cleaning service.” To make matters worse, the enemyContinue reading “Review of “Intro to Intergalactic Conflicts 101: A Course Summary” by Robert Douglas Friedman”

Review of “The Spiral Staircase” (1946)

Plot: In turn-of-the-century New England, a mute woman named Helen (Dorothy McGuire) attends a (silent) film shown at a local inn. While she’s there, an unnamed woman (Myrna Dell) who limps (“a cripple”), an inn resident, is strangled by a man who’d hidden in her closet. This follows the murder of another woman, a “simple-mindedContinue reading “Review of “The Spiral Staircase” (1946)”

Review of “Magical Delicacies for Birthday Girls” by Avra Margariti

Plot: For Holly’s twelfth birthday, her mother had taken her to the unicorn pen. Her mother went into the butcher shop to get Holly a delicacy.  Bored with adult talk, Holly goes to look at the unicorn on display in a glass case outside the shop. For years, she’d been begging her parents for aContinue reading “Review of “Magical Delicacies for Birthday Girls” by Avra Margariti”

Review of “U-Phone XV Presents Insta-Post” by James Rumpel

Plot: Rachel Shommer and her fiancé, Jeremy Nybor, eagerly await the release of U-Phone XV’s instant posting feature. It will allow the user to post thoughts without the hassle of typing. All anyone has to do is merely think, and their thoughts are posted. “My first insta-post will be one saying how much I loveContinue reading “Review of “U-Phone XV Presents Insta-Post” by James Rumpel”

Review of “Be Nice to the Butcher” by Danny Macks

Plot: The unnamed narrator describes the stranger who strikes up a conversation with him: “the friendly type, grey at the temples, with the stocky blue-collar build of a man who never lifted a barbell in his life, but could still bench-press me over his head.” They talk about this and that, discuss what brought themContinue reading “Review of “Be Nice to the Butcher” by Danny Macks”

Review of “Thirst” by K.N. George

Plot: The narrator tells the reader Danny Trank hanged himself in the garage three days earlier. People say you could hear his mother’s screams from across the neighborhood. It wasn’t a surprise, and after all, it wasn’t like the narrator and Danny were friends. Danny was just another sad sack. He and his buddy JayContinue reading “Review of “Thirst” by K.N. George”