International Short Story Month Reading Wrap-Up

Over the past few years I've celebrated International Short Story Month (May) by exclusively reading short fiction all month long.

In 2019, I read 54 short stories in total. Here is the list of everything I read in the order in which I read them.

"Afraid" by Clive Barker
"Unhappiness" by Franz Kafka
"The Other Gods" by H. P. Lovecraft
"Itsy-Bitsy" by John Ajvide Lindqvist
"The Substitute" by John Ajvide Lindqvist
"Moved" by Clive Barker

"The Carousel Horse" by Curtis M. Lawson
"The Future Looks Good" by Lesley Nneka Arimah
"I Imagine You" by Clive Barker
"Martha" by Clive Barker
"Tit"by Clive Barker
"Freaks" by Clive Barker
"Dollie" by Clive Barker
"The Collection" by Clive Barker
"What May Not Be Shown" by Clive Barker
"Two Views from a Window" by Clive Barker
"A Blessing" by Clive Barker
"Driving to Geronimo's Grave" by Joe R. Lansdale

"Rivering" by Elizabeth Engstrom
"What It Means When a Man Falls from the Sky by Lesley Nneka Arimah
"At the Mad Mountains" by Joe R. Lansdale
"Unrequited" by Clive Barker
"Another Genesis" by Clive Barker
"Inside Out (Wasteland)" by Clive Barker
"Auroroa" by Clive Barker
"Whistling in the Dark" by Clive Barker
"The Common Flesh" by Clive Barker
"Mr. Fred Coady Professes His Love for His Little Sylvia" by Clive Barker
""The Phone Call" by Clive Barker
"The Multitude" by Clive Barker
"An Incident at the Nunnery" by Clive Barker
"The Genius of Denny Dan" by Clive Barker
"Skeleton" by Ray Bradbury
"Wrestling Jesus" by Joe R. Lansdale
"Sockdolager" by Paul Cain
"A Friend in Me" by J. Peter W.
"Sinister Swan Song" by Curtis M. Lawson

"The Nose" by Nikolai Gogol
"Robo Rapids" by Joe R. Lansdale
"The Projectionist" by Joe R. Lansdale
"Mugger" by Richard Christian Matheson
"Border" by John Ajvide Lindqvist
"On Seeing the 100% Perfect Girl One Beautiful April Morning" by Haruki Murakami
"The Obsession of Chloe Chambers" by Curtis M. Lawson
"Demons of Manzanar" by Curtis M. Lawson
"Davarion" by Curtis M. Lawson
"Pinocchio & The Black Pantheon" by Curtis M. Lawson
"Irretrievable Data Loss" by Curtis M. Lawson
"The Labyrinth of Winter's End" by Curtis M. Lawson
"Heaven's a Gamble, Hell's an Investment" by Curtis M. Lawson
"I Was A Teenage Sex Demon" by Curtis M. Lawson
"Paramnesia" by Curtis M. Lawson
"I'm Always Here" by Richard Christian Matheson
"Everything Sparkles in Hell" Joe R. Lansdale

Bleeding Shadows by Joe R. Lansdale

This guy by the name of Dan Schwent lent me this book, and I must say I'm mighty grateful. This is an excellent collection of short stories.

I've gotten to the point where I can't say much more about Lansdale's short fiction than 'I just love it.' I don't think I've read a bad story by the man. All of his stuff fits somewhere between 'good' and 'great.'

This is a big, fat collection of shorts that'll give you your money's worth.

Which stories did I like best?

A Visit with Friends

Mr. Bear

Soldierin’

Hide and Horns

The Folding Man

Dread Island

Thank you, Mr. Dantastic!

Read this book!

Big Trouble in Little Ass by Wol-vriey

Calling for a revision of the MMPI-2-RF!

I think it's possible that one day a psychiatrist will give a name to the peculiar disease of the mind that makes one predisposed to truly enjoy Wol-vriey's books. Until then, I'll just have to live knowing that I'm afflicted with an as-yet-to-be-named mental disorder that, if I had to guess, impacts about 0.001 percent of the human population. But I don't mind, really.

Really, I don't.

And it's not like I'm looking for a cure.

Here's a little test to see if maybe you're a sufferer of this rare mental illness.

Would you like to read a book that features:

-strange, and yet quite useful, genital mutations?
-horrible puns?
-taboo sexual practices which have magical healing properties?
-impaling, decapitation, and dismemberment (all played for laughs)?
-cringe-worthy dialog written in the most insulting dialect imaginable?
-sex scenes that raise interesting philosophical questions on the subject of bestiality in fantastic literature?

If you answered 'yes' to ALL of the above, then you and I likely suffer from the same mental disorder, and you should read this book.

To those who answered 'no' to ANY of the above: you've been warned.

Note: I received a sticky electronic copy of this filthy book from this smutty author in exchange for an honest (non-reciprocal) review.

Read this book!