Monday, October 14, 2024

Fairy Tale Spotlight: Two Stories by Janet Kuypers [Short Story Reviews]

The two stories I am referring to in the title are "Christmas at the Old House" and "Driving to Champaign." They were both written by Janet Kuypers and published in 2012. By the way, Janet Kuypers is also the editor of "Down in the Dirt" magazine. These two stories came from issue 107 (June 2012). I did not really care for much in this issue at all, aside from a few exceptions and a story by my friend Donald C. White Jr.

The two final stories in the book were surprisingly off the dark themes of the magazine, and they were very enjoyable, I thought. Say what you will about Janet's choice in contributed works, she has one of the most enjoyable writing styles I have ever come across. I might even look up some more of her works in the future.

"Christmas at the Old House" is a very short little anecdotal story about being the youngest child at a family Christmas get-together. There's no real plot or intrigue to it. It was just a cute story about a little child not able to pronounce the the name of her new electronic toy properly. That was it... and I kinda loved it.

"Driving to Champaign" was a bit different and slightly more in line with the magazine's theme. It was the same person, although much older, sitting in the back of a car, while the driver was being a tad reckless. The author decides that she should write something down incase they end up dead. A lot of it is just rambling about musical choices and stuff, but then it slips into good life advice that made me smile.

The rambling nature of Janet Kuypers is relaxing and quaint. It made these stories very enjoyable, and I really do wish the best for her. Janet, if you are out there, I loved these two stories. Keep up the good work!

This blog was written on July 29, 2024.

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4 comments:

  1. Good to hear her style appealed to you. I write "slice of life" scenes in stories that are about adventure or horror. They are not about the plot of the story but rather to humanize the characters, to show them having a life beyond the narrative. Some people are confused when I do this, but it seems you may appreciate it.

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  2. It is truly special when a writer can draw you in merely with their style. In that case, you hang on every word hoping there will be more. When characters become people, you have succeeded in making something real.

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    1. Kind of a surprise that it happened at all in this collection.

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