At its heart, thats what ben loorys collection is though, stories that make you wonder, think, and occasionally leave you confused. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the best bizarro fiction of the decade. In a year crowded with excellent anthologies, the best bizarro fiction of the decade quickly rose to the top of my list of personal favorites. With his first book, ben loory proves hes already a master of the sleight of hand. This collection of wry and witty, dark and perilous contemporary fables and tales is populated by peopleand monsters and aliens and animals and inanimate objectsmotivated by and grappling with the fears and desires that unite us all. The woman returns from the store with an armload of books. The best bizarro fiction of the decade paperback october 1, 2012 by joe r. A boy meets a girl on a beach, and instantly falls in. To hear ben loory giving a great reading of his story the octopus, go here. Ben loory did not start off his career as an author.
The best bizarro fiction of the decade you are not logged in. Established in 2006, octopus books is committed to building a catalog of contemporary poetry by publishing four books each year. In 2008, loorys story photographs was a finalist in the glimmer train short story award for new writers contest. He also makes me feel like the world is moreand not lessabsurd than i had originally suspected, which always comes as a strange relief. Because it was a much better title than things that make you go hmmm. The best bizarro fiction of the decade kindle edition by bender, aimee, r. The octopus is a 2009 science fiction short story by ben loory. When i saw the description of ben loorys stories for nighttime and some for the day, i knew i had to. Lansdale author, aimee bender author, alissa nutting author, carlton mellick iii author, bentley little author, ryan boudinot author, ben loory author, amelia gray author. The postreading crowd about to forge their way to decent restaurantbar with some italian name. Since then his fables and tales have appeared online and in print in journals and. Montgomery discusses her book thursday, june 4, at town hall. Ben loorys short tales borrow from the fairytale traditionits abstraction, anthropomorphism, and absurdityto create tales that awaken the reader to forgotten lessons of community and inclusion. Like carver, king often populates his stories with bluecollar people who drink too much, worry about money, and mistrust everything and everyone.
Loorys collection of wry and witty, dark and perilous contemporary fables is populated by peopleand monsters and trees and jocular octopiwho are united by twin motivations. Stories for nighttime and some for the day the picky girl. Ben loory is the author of the collections tales of falling and flying 2017 and stories for nighttime and some for the day 2011, both from penguin books. The best bizarro fiction of the decade by cameron pierce. Your local cooperating library is always the place to start. Ben loory s career as a writer 1498 words bartleby. A cappella zoo, the literary magazine shared a link. Its lyrical and mythical and a break from the everyday. Stories for night time and some for the day cavalcade of whimsy. Books listed in this issue of talking book topics were recently sent to cooperating libraries. Ive been avidly following ben loorys fiction for awhile now, since his story the tv appeared in the new yorker appears in greater length in stories for nighttime in. Oct 25, 2019 stories for nighttime and some for the day by ben loory is a post written by jen thorpe on book of jen and is not allowed to be copied to other sites.
I read it first because i have always been intrigued by octopuses, and i just. Aug 01, 2011 stories for nighttime and some for the day. Each story is about 20 pages long, but is utterly absorbing. Tales of falling and flying by ben loory goodreads.
Ben loory author of stories for nighttime and some for the day. Speculative fiction, short fiction, literary fiction. The reading took place at book show in highland park. Stories for nighttime and some for the day by ben loory brings back the parable, the allegory, and the fable in an absurdist manner think animal farm meets the myth of sisyphus and paul particularly with its comedic attributes and alien encounters. Octopus books 116 third avenue ottawa, ontario, canada k1s 2k1 62332589 ottawa, ontario, canada k1s 2k1 62332589.
This was the first story i chose to read for the million writers award this year. Another cool million writers award story this was the first story i chose to read for the million writers award this year. Other critics suggest that the short fiction of ben loory shares characteristics with the work of lydia davis. June 16, 2017 by day, brian kesinger is a story artist at walt disney animation studios and by night hes an author and illustrator of walking your octopus. Lily and the octopus came about when you began jotting down memories of your own dear dachshund. More true tales of animal intrigue, intelligence, and ingenuity by eugene linden and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. Robin mclean was a lawyer, then potter in sutton, alaska for 15 years before attending the mfa program at umass, amherst.
Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Apr 30, 2010 the octopus is a 2009 science fiction short story by ben loory. In simple language and with as few words as possible, loory weaves these fables with unnamed. I particularly enjoyed hearing ben loory read the writer from tales of falling and flying. Jul 31, 2011 when i saw the description of ben loorys stories for nighttime and some for the day, i knew i had to read the book. Stories for nighttime and some for the day is that rare finda book that excites the reader. Stewart onan, author of last night at the lobster if mother goose and philip k. He can have an octopus serving tea and from that wtf.
Is there oneor a dozen, or a thousandwhere he quit smoking, lived to be 70, and wrote another half a dozen books. Many of our titles are selected through our open reading period held each april. Clocking in at 40 stories in 200 pages, this singleserving approach reads like grimms fairy tales filtered through george. Loory, without resorting to elaborate wordplay or narrative sleightsofhand, creates tension just from the simple combinations of character and situation surreal as many of these are.
Octopus books is a small poetry press in portland, or. Ben loorys debut collection, stories for nighttime and some for the day is not at first glance evocative. In stories for nighttime and some for the day there are 40 stories on 200 pages, appended with some nonsense before and after. Stories for night time and some for the day cavalcade of.
He was born in dover, new jersey, and is a graduate of harvard college. Jul 16, 2014 50 excellent fabulist books everyone should read. Now, it is possible that stories for nighttime and some for the day is a real innovation. Stories for night time and some for the day, ben loory im going to be honest. Articles featuring ben like winesburg, ohio, but in the twilight zone. Lansdale, aimee bender, alissa nutting, carlton mellick iii, bentley little, ryan boudinot, ben loory, amelia gray, jeremy robert johnson, cameron pierce on. Six months after my dog died of cancer, i wrote what became the first chapter of lily and the octopus as a short story to help process my grief. Lily and the octopus by steven rowley, paperback barnes. The short short story above is just that, a threesentence story. At its heart, thats what ben loory s collection is though, stories that make you wonder, think, and occasionally leave you confused.
Ben loorys collection of short stories has unnamed charactersincluding an octopus. In his recent collection, stories for nighttime and some for the day penguin, the short stories of ben loory 93 often begin with a direct, declarative sentence. Stories for nighttime and some for the day by ben loory is a post written by jen thorpe on book of jen and is not allowed to be copied to other sites. But when she opens the last one, the woman frowns in surprise. Ben loory is a writer who makes me feel less alone in the world. Once upon a time, the man, the boy, the woman, the octopus, the moose went on a journey, stayed in its apartment, saw something horrible. I picked up this book, a collection of short stories, because there is an octopus tentacle and a ufo right there on the front. Sy montgomerys the soul of an octopus does for the creature what helen macdonalds h is for hawk did for raptors. Stories for nighttime and some for the day book, 2011. His book stories for nighttime and some for the day is coming july 26 from penguin books. Dapatkan bukubuku terjemahan berkualitas di, baik fiksi maupun nonfiksi, dari penerbitpenerbit terbaik di indonesia. A cappella zoo, the literary magazine home facebook. May 28, 2015 in the soul of an octopus, new hampshire naturalist sy montgomery recounts the life and times of a fantastically complex animal. Ben loory is a screenwriter whos done project work for jodie foster and alex proyas, so it seems appropriate that his debut shortstory collection, stories for nighttime and some for the day, brings the thrifty, breezy storytelling of the screen to prose fiction.
He seems to write in the simplest of fashions, with simple, direct sentences that has more in common with hemingway than with maupassant or other prolix short fiction writers. Stories for nighttime and some for the day ebook, 2011. New statesman, uk starred booklist and library journal editors spring pick one of the best science books of the year science friday, npr a huffington post notable nonfiction book of the year. For general information and to order books, call 1888nlsread 18886577323 to be connected to your local cooperating library. The best bizarro fiction of the decade kindle edition by. Oct 07, 2019 stories for night time and some for the day, ben loory im going to be honest. All of this is another way of saying that loory is an original, and a good one, and someone well worth reading. When i saw the description of ben loorys stories for nighttime and some for the day, i knew i had to read the book. She reads them quickly, one by one, over the course of the next few weeks. Ben loory this collection of wry and witty, dark and perilous contemporary fables and tales is populated by peopleand monsters and aliens and animals and inanimate objectsmotivated by and grappling with. Very few fiction works capture the surreal as well as ben loorys book stories for nighttime and some for the day. Stories for nighttime and some for the day by ben loory the. Meanwhile, in california the nervous breakdown at book. In november 2008, his story photographs was a finalist in the glimmer train short story award for new writers contest.
Talking book topics julyaugust 2018 national library. Goodreads librarything and for the kids a sweet, surprisingly deep story about balancing responsibilities with pursuing dreams. Dick had a love child, and richard brautigan raised him in watermelon sugar, he might write stories like ben loory. I drank the best white russian ive ever had, ate bread, and talked to patterson about comic books. In stories for nighttime and some for the day there are 40 stories. This was described as sort of disturbing or slightly strange fairy tales a description which. At the rumpus, we know how easy it is to find pop culture on the internet, so were here to give you something more challenging, to show you how beautiful things are when you step off the beaten path. Jan 24, 2012 stories for nighttime and some for the day by ben loory brings back the parable, the allegory, and the fable in an absurdist manner think animal farm meets the myth of sisyphus and paul particularly with its comedic attributes and alien encounters.
But loorys collection, returning to the subject at hand, is not only my favorite book of this year, but easily among my favorite books all time. If you enjoyed this blog post please consider supporting me on paypal. Aug 16, 2011 this entry was posted in design, fantasy, fiction, picky, sci fi, violence and tagged aesops fables, ben loory, fables, netgalley, penguin, short stories, stories for nighttime and some for the day, the picky girl, the twilight zone on august 16, 2011 by pickygirl. 1,711 followers, 889 following, 821 posts see instagram photos and videos from ben loory @ benloory. Ben loorys stories for the nighttime and some for the day is the kind of book that is deceptively simplistic. Speculative fiction, short fiction, literary fiction publisher.
Loory graduated from harvard university in 1993, where he concentrated on visual and environmental studies. Named one of the 10 best fiction books of the year by the hudson booksellers retail chain. This entry was posted in design, fantasy, fiction, picky, sci fi, violence and tagged aesops fables, ben loory, fables, netgalley, penguin, short stories, stories for nighttime and some for the day, the picky girl, the twilight zone on august 16, 2011 by pickygirl. Oct 01, 2012 the best bizarro fiction of the decade joe r. If you create a free account and sign in, you will be able to customize what is displayed. As i read the first couple of stories, i began to sense loorys style, which i might sum up as short and abrupt. Lansdale, joe, mellick iii, carlton, little, bentley, nutting, alissa, gray, amelia, pierce, cameron. Free tin house and octopus books celebrate their new collaborative poetry seriesand the release of several outstanding new titleswith a night of poetry, prose, drinking, carrying on, etcetera, etcetera, so.
Ben loory writes short, quirky stories harvard magazine. Stories for nighttime and some for the day by ben loory. I am not a particularly fast reader, so short stories provide the opportunity for me to finish a story or two or three in one evening. The complete collection contains a wide range of fiction and nonfiction books, including biographies, classics, westerns, mysteries, romances, and others. As i read the first couple of stories, i began to sense loorys. Jul 01, 2011 ben loory is the author of the collections tales of falling and flying 2017 and stories for nighttime and some for the day 2011, both from penguin books.
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