Review: Stories for Nighttime and Some for the Day by Ben Loory

Isn’t the cover of Stories for Nighttime and Some for the Day by Ben Loory just gorgeous? I wanted to love this collection of stories about odd characters, talking TVs, an apartment dwelling octopus, houses who long for the sea, but it just didn’t work for me. I enjoy short stories, so that wasn’t it, and I liked the off-beat, rather dark fantasy feeling that pervaded the book, but none of the stories made me say, “Wow!” I even tried reading a couple out loud, but still they were just okay, interesting, but not compelling. Maybe I read them too quickly, maybe I should have slowed down and savored them, but I just didn’t care enough to. I read each, said “oh” or “that’s it?” or “okay,” and moved onto the next one. Out of the 39 or so very short stories, I think I only remember about 5 and it’s only been a little over a week since I finished it. They just weren’t compelling. They didn’t touch me, didn’t give me those chills down my spine.

It just wasn’t the book for me, but a lot of other folks have been raving over it. I don’t think it’s that the stories were so short or that the characters were mostly “he” and “she” with no names, neither is necessarily an issue for me. The writing style was simple, almost like fables.

It’s a book of dreams and imagination, but I just wasn’t sucked in. You may be though. You can purchase Stories for Nighttime and Some for the Day from Amazon or an Indie bookstore.

2½ out of 5 stars

Category: Short Stories (Single Author)

Published July 26, 2011 by Penguin
208 pages

Book Source: For Review

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