Margo Lanagan

Three books of short stories have been on my repetitive read list for the past year now, Margo Lanagan's Black Juice, White Time, and Red Spikes.

It is hard for me to assign these collections into a genre; while the basis is fantasy and/or sci-fi, it is rare that any setting or theme ever shines above the personal conflict that is impacting the lead character. I truly can't think of a writer who can, in the short span of a paragraph, create an foreign environment, assign a person to it, and tell a story that uses the sometimes completely unique situation as a mere backdrop for conflicts that expose the simplest fears and anxieties.

I don't always find the stories to be the easiest of reads. Sometimes a setting can be so unusual that I feel like I missed something critical after my first read and return to consume the story again. I'm rarely disappointed by the need and usually happy to find something new upon my second scanning of the text.

Like most short story collections, a few tales will stand above the rest. The title tale of White Time combines the anxiety of the scientific unknown with the equal anxiety of choosing a future career. Red Spikes' A Feather In The Breast of God, by contrast, is a compelling tale of an unusual savior. Finally, Black Juice's Singing My Sister Down is a horrific tale in its seemingly commonplace setting and possibly one of the best short stories I've ever read.

I'm anxiously awaiting the October release of Tender Morsels. And, to amusingly plug my never-ever-ever-accessed Amazon Associates links, one can find these books in the Marketplace for literally pennies.