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Six Impossible Things
A new father is visited by his childhood imaginary friend. A woman falls in love with a cartoon character. The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse show up at a big-box retail chain. Sometimes humorous, often poignant, and always memorable, the six short stories in this collection may just make you believe impossible things.
- GenresFantasy
62 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 27, 2012
39 people are currently reading
58 people want to read
About the author
Renee Carter Hall
42 books56 followersRenee Carter Hall writes fantasy and science fiction for adults who never quite grew up, with occasional excursions into dark fantasy, poetry, and stories for children and teens. Talking animals slip into her stories whenever they get a chance, and her work has been influenced by storytellers from a range of media, including Steven Spielberg, Ray Bradbury, and Jim Henson. Her most recent book, the anthropomorphic fantasy Huntress, received the 2014 Cóyotl Award for Best Novella.
Renee lives in West Virginia with her husband, their cat, and more books than she will ever have time to read. She can be found online at reneecarterhall.com and on Twitter as @RCarterHall.
Renee lives in West Virginia with her husband, their cat, and more books than she will ever have time to read. She can be found online at reneecarterhall.com and on Twitter as @RCarterHall.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
July 2, 2021
A freebie read on Amazon for Kindle. Quick, whimsical short stories as you could tell from the cover. My favorite was about Norma the Wal-Mart greeter--such a calm person!
The last story In The Garden reminded me of the old joke about planting cheerios and waiting for donuts to come up.
The last story In The Garden reminded me of the old joke about planting cheerios and waiting for donuts to come up.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 6, 2020
The ONLY reason I didn't give this little collection of short stories 5 stars was because I didn't love every single story in the book. But the ones I did love, I read twice or more. It was free on Kindle, can't argue with that! If you like whimsical, magical stories that might make you cry a little bit, read this immediately.
Addendum: I read this in 2015. It is now 2020, and I have to say, I still remember some of these little stories like old friends. I think that deserves 5 stars.
Addendum: I read this in 2015. It is now 2020, and I have to say, I still remember some of these little stories like old friends. I think that deserves 5 stars.
October 10, 2013
This is a cute, whimsical collection of well-written short stories that titillate the imagination. If you've ever had a beloved imaginary childhood friend or longed to meet your favourite cartoon characters in person, these tales are for you.
November 16, 2013
I found two of Ms Hall's books posted in the free SFF group a while back. One of them, Real Dragons Don't Wear Sweaters, looked fluffy and cute. That turned out to be largely accurate, so I turned to this collection with mild optimism, despite the ... basic cover.
Well, you know what they say about books and covers. This is a collection of surprisingly good stories in a substantially more adult voice.
"Childish Things" starts off serious. It takes an abrupt and surprising turn early on, and I was pretty sure that what had seemed a confident hand had made a serious error. But the story works, and if it's not quite the story I was anticipating, it's a good one.
"Moon, June, Raccoon" is a light, off-beat love story that's just the right mix of funny and touching.
"Norma the Wal-Mart Greeter Meets the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" is just what it sounds like. Small, but just the right size.
"Swear Not By the Moon" I didn't like as much. A little too bloody, perhaps, though the ending is nice.
"Drawn From Memory" is again about a topic that's foreign to me, but Hall pulls it off very nicely.
"The Garden", the last story in the collection, is short but beautiful.
In brief (and the book was short), this is a nice collection of very good stories. Ignore the cover and pick this up. I'll definitely be checking out more of Ms. Hall's work, and trying to figure out why I hadn't heard of her before.
Well, you know what they say about books and covers. This is a collection of surprisingly good stories in a substantially more adult voice.
"Childish Things" starts off serious. It takes an abrupt and surprising turn early on, and I was pretty sure that what had seemed a confident hand had made a serious error. But the story works, and if it's not quite the story I was anticipating, it's a good one.
"Moon, June, Raccoon" is a light, off-beat love story that's just the right mix of funny and touching.
"Norma the Wal-Mart Greeter Meets the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" is just what it sounds like. Small, but just the right size.
"Swear Not By the Moon" I didn't like as much. A little too bloody, perhaps, though the ending is nice.
"Drawn From Memory" is again about a topic that's foreign to me, but Hall pulls it off very nicely.
"The Garden", the last story in the collection, is short but beautiful.
In brief (and the book was short), this is a nice collection of very good stories. Ignore the cover and pick this up. I'll definitely be checking out more of Ms. Hall's work, and trying to figure out why I hadn't heard of her before.
October 12, 2012
A short, sweet and FREE e-read which I completed while waiting for a gig to start, and will undoubtedly revisit.
As someone who spent their childhood in love with various cartoon characters, my favourite was 'Drawn from Memory', set in a world in which cartoon heroes are real, but 'blink out' of existence when their star wanes. A young woman interviews her childhood hero Terrence Tiger, and they both get more out of the meeting than they were expecting.
Other highlights of this short to very-short story collection include a talking raccoon named Krispy Kreme and a moving study of the relationship between father and son werewolves.
As someone who spent their childhood in love with various cartoon characters, my favourite was 'Drawn from Memory', set in a world in which cartoon heroes are real, but 'blink out' of existence when their star wanes. A young woman interviews her childhood hero Terrence Tiger, and they both get more out of the meeting than they were expecting.
Other highlights of this short to very-short story collection include a talking raccoon named Krispy Kreme and a moving study of the relationship between father and son werewolves.
May 17, 2015
Super fun read!!!!! Talented writer!
March 8, 2017
While taking a break from creating worlds, I decided to peruse others’ creations. Being frugal by both nature and necessity (Insert your own comment about the provincial government here) I was delighted to find an e-book by acclaimed author Renee Carter Hall, a fellow FWG member.
First things first, this is a FREE EBook, available on Smashwords for download.
Do I recommend it? If you are looking for a collection of short stories and flash fiction that can act as literary Prozac, then $#@! Yes, I recommend this collection. Not only is it well written, the characters feel alive, are relatable, and each story is just long enough to give you an impact in the feels, or just enough of a break to help relax you emotionally before the next big hit. Each story can be quickly read through, and some are just a single page, quick enough to skim over while sitting on the can. (Hey! Don’t judge. At least I don’t do Sudoku there) Best of all, the stories are clean. There is no gore for shock value, and the little nudity is natural, not thrown in for simple titillation.
I would feel more than safe handing this collection to a middle-grade class
Is there any flaw with the overall collection? I had a small bone to nitpick on, but it’s so slight who really cares? There is an occasional word repeated so close together, either in the same sentence or next, where a glance at a thesaurus could have easily one without losing meaning, for example, “The white one was so white that it almost glowed.”, but it happens so infrequently I’m certain it is just me being a stick-in-the-mud.
So, now I’m going to dive in a little further. For starters, the cover. It is simple, easy, looks inexpensive, but it’s a joke on its own. The single, tiny piece of artwork fits the mood, and considering the price you’re paying for it, it’s more than we deserve.
The first story revolves around a father, who’s nervous and anxious for reasons anyone who has ever had a child would be. I instantly connected with the character, and I felt his pain. It brought back memories to me of waiting when you want to see your child, know they are alright, needing to protect them, but know that you have to put their lives, and your faith, in someone else, and just wait.
I almost put the book down right there, not because of the story, but because I felt the anxiety. Relief comes in something beautiful, a childhood friend in a long forgotten comfort, and just like the main character, I became more relaxed, able to continue, able to enjoy and remember, forever briefly, visits to Narnia or Eamon with my siblings, escapes to my own worlds, losing myself in childhood fantasies, that as an adult, I wish I could escape to.
For the second story, Renee switches genders, bringing a lonely lady to the forefront. I worried briefly when I read that she wrote poetry, and thought that the author may just be pretentious enough to toss in a main character who is an author. I LOATHE when story-tellers do that. It feels like a selfie, a form of personal gratification. That, thankfully, was not the case.
A simply cast spell to call for love has unexpected results. This one is fun, charming, and in the end, predictable, but that’s part of the goodness of this short. It made me smile, gave me what I expected, and left me satisfied.
The next short is a flash fiction, a single page long, and a break from happiness. It’s exactly where it needs to be. A woman at a banal job as a Walmart greeter unwittingly allows the four horsemen of the apocalypse into the store, and that’s it. She takes note of them from time to time, and I wondered what was going to happen. The end leaves you wondering if it was a final fling before the destruction of humanity or just a day in their lives. It’s quick, easy, and exactly long enough to break for the next, which helped to make Swear Not by the Moon all the more poignant.
Swear Not By The Moon. My favorite in this collection. A son cares for his ailing father, who was once the strongest and proudest of his kind. You can tell there is love between them, and its sorrowful look at aging was only part of what kept me going.
This is an example of what a short story should be. It’s small enough to read through, to get the characters, to have a beginning and an end that both touch your heart in different ways, but the WORLD, the lore, could be expanded into a full novel, adventures could be had, such a universe is created, and yet, you realize, that’s it, there doesn’t need to be a single word more written. You understand it all, but you WANT more all the same.
Drawn from memory might seem peculiar to some. It’s not unlike Who Framed Roger Rabbit. The world itself is easy to understand, and the story is bittersweet, but triumphant. If I had to choose a blemish though, it would be in the romance that develops. I always find it odd when a father or mentor figure becomes an intimate partner. It always strikes me as a marrying your uncle scenario, but the story is good, and considering that its lead narrator is a fangirl and I’m a guy, I could be missing something. Strangely enough, I didn’t laugh where I thought I should, instead, I found the moments all touched by grief and tenderness. It would be a good story to read when coping with the loss of something precious.
Lastly, Renee concludes her collection with another Flash. It is brief, and the story is simple. A young girl begins a task, continues it when it seems fruitless, stubbornly obsessed with her actions, but the ending makes it all worth it. You too, feel both relief, understanding, and satisfaction at the conclusion.
In short, this anthology is going straight onto my digital bookshelf. I’m keeping a PDF on my hard drive from now on, and I encourage you to check it out too. It’s a good book, short, simple, sweet, and just what might be needed to lift your spirits or remind you that magical moments do exist.
First things first, this is a FREE EBook, available on Smashwords for download.
Do I recommend it? If you are looking for a collection of short stories and flash fiction that can act as literary Prozac, then $#@! Yes, I recommend this collection. Not only is it well written, the characters feel alive, are relatable, and each story is just long enough to give you an impact in the feels, or just enough of a break to help relax you emotionally before the next big hit. Each story can be quickly read through, and some are just a single page, quick enough to skim over while sitting on the can. (Hey! Don’t judge. At least I don’t do Sudoku there) Best of all, the stories are clean. There is no gore for shock value, and the little nudity is natural, not thrown in for simple titillation.
I would feel more than safe handing this collection to a middle-grade class
Is there any flaw with the overall collection? I had a small bone to nitpick on, but it’s so slight who really cares? There is an occasional word repeated so close together, either in the same sentence or next, where a glance at a thesaurus could have easily one without losing meaning, for example, “The white one was so white that it almost glowed.”, but it happens so infrequently I’m certain it is just me being a stick-in-the-mud.
So, now I’m going to dive in a little further. For starters, the cover. It is simple, easy, looks inexpensive, but it’s a joke on its own. The single, tiny piece of artwork fits the mood, and considering the price you’re paying for it, it’s more than we deserve.
The first story revolves around a father, who’s nervous and anxious for reasons anyone who has ever had a child would be. I instantly connected with the character, and I felt his pain. It brought back memories to me of waiting when you want to see your child, know they are alright, needing to protect them, but know that you have to put their lives, and your faith, in someone else, and just wait.
I almost put the book down right there, not because of the story, but because I felt the anxiety. Relief comes in something beautiful, a childhood friend in a long forgotten comfort, and just like the main character, I became more relaxed, able to continue, able to enjoy and remember, forever briefly, visits to Narnia or Eamon with my siblings, escapes to my own worlds, losing myself in childhood fantasies, that as an adult, I wish I could escape to.
For the second story, Renee switches genders, bringing a lonely lady to the forefront. I worried briefly when I read that she wrote poetry, and thought that the author may just be pretentious enough to toss in a main character who is an author. I LOATHE when story-tellers do that. It feels like a selfie, a form of personal gratification. That, thankfully, was not the case.
A simply cast spell to call for love has unexpected results. This one is fun, charming, and in the end, predictable, but that’s part of the goodness of this short. It made me smile, gave me what I expected, and left me satisfied.
The next short is a flash fiction, a single page long, and a break from happiness. It’s exactly where it needs to be. A woman at a banal job as a Walmart greeter unwittingly allows the four horsemen of the apocalypse into the store, and that’s it. She takes note of them from time to time, and I wondered what was going to happen. The end leaves you wondering if it was a final fling before the destruction of humanity or just a day in their lives. It’s quick, easy, and exactly long enough to break for the next, which helped to make Swear Not by the Moon all the more poignant.
Swear Not By The Moon. My favorite in this collection. A son cares for his ailing father, who was once the strongest and proudest of his kind. You can tell there is love between them, and its sorrowful look at aging was only part of what kept me going.
This is an example of what a short story should be. It’s small enough to read through, to get the characters, to have a beginning and an end that both touch your heart in different ways, but the WORLD, the lore, could be expanded into a full novel, adventures could be had, such a universe is created, and yet, you realize, that’s it, there doesn’t need to be a single word more written. You understand it all, but you WANT more all the same.
Drawn from memory might seem peculiar to some. It’s not unlike Who Framed Roger Rabbit. The world itself is easy to understand, and the story is bittersweet, but triumphant. If I had to choose a blemish though, it would be in the romance that develops. I always find it odd when a father or mentor figure becomes an intimate partner. It always strikes me as a marrying your uncle scenario, but the story is good, and considering that its lead narrator is a fangirl and I’m a guy, I could be missing something. Strangely enough, I didn’t laugh where I thought I should, instead, I found the moments all touched by grief and tenderness. It would be a good story to read when coping with the loss of something precious.
Lastly, Renee concludes her collection with another Flash. It is brief, and the story is simple. A young girl begins a task, continues it when it seems fruitless, stubbornly obsessed with her actions, but the ending makes it all worth it. You too, feel both relief, understanding, and satisfaction at the conclusion.
In short, this anthology is going straight onto my digital bookshelf. I’m keeping a PDF on my hard drive from now on, and I encourage you to check it out too. It’s a good book, short, simple, sweet, and just what might be needed to lift your spirits or remind you that magical moments do exist.
September 7, 2020
Oh my goodness, what a strange and beautiful set of stories these are! I was initially confused by the first as it didn't quite work for me, and worried that it was going to be a collection that went flying off on slightly trippy tangents. But everything that came after was so imaginative and beautiful it was hard not to be enchanted by these magical realist vignettes.
Childish Things - a man waits in hospital, worried for his premature child's life. But he's visited by a vision from the past that helps sooth his soul. I wasn't 100% sure about this one; while I liked the idea I didn't feel the two scenarios (anxiety over the child vs the trippy childhood visions) really gelled. I expected more drama from the hospital section, but it evaporated and went someone really weird instead. Cute, but weird.
Moon, June, Raccoon - a lovelorn aspiring author casts a spell to bring her a soulmate. It doesn't quite pan out how she'd expected. Basically, a talking raccoon instigates the most ridiculously cute love story ever. Very strange, but beautifully done in such a short time - and I don't even care much for romance!
Norma the Wal-Mart Greeter Meets the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse - No description needed. One of those flash fictions which can actually make you smile.
Swear Not By the Moon - a man worries for the health of his ailing... wolf. This is an utter heartbreaker of a paranormal tale, one that hit me pretty hard. Fantastical the scenario may be, but it's so down to earth with all the emotions that it hurts.
Drawn From Memory - in a "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" world where toons exist alongside people, a journalist goes to interview a fading star. Another love story, and again it's so beautifully written in so short a space of time you can forget how silly the idea is because you can believe these characters. Urgh, dang, right in the feels.
The Garden - another flash fiction, but it flew over my head a bit.
TL:DR; I think it's safe to use the terms whimsical, beautiful, emotional and stunning when describing the majority of these little tales. Perfect short reads that really make you feel something.
Childish Things - a man waits in hospital, worried for his premature child's life. But he's visited by a vision from the past that helps sooth his soul. I wasn't 100% sure about this one; while I liked the idea I didn't feel the two scenarios (anxiety over the child vs the trippy childhood visions) really gelled. I expected more drama from the hospital section, but it evaporated and went someone really weird instead. Cute, but weird.
Moon, June, Raccoon - a lovelorn aspiring author casts a spell to bring her a soulmate. It doesn't quite pan out how she'd expected. Basically, a talking raccoon instigates the most ridiculously cute love story ever. Very strange, but beautifully done in such a short time - and I don't even care much for romance!
Norma the Wal-Mart Greeter Meets the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse - No description needed. One of those flash fictions which can actually make you smile.
Swear Not By the Moon - a man worries for the health of his ailing... wolf. This is an utter heartbreaker of a paranormal tale, one that hit me pretty hard. Fantastical the scenario may be, but it's so down to earth with all the emotions that it hurts.
Drawn From Memory - in a "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" world where toons exist alongside people, a journalist goes to interview a fading star. Another love story, and again it's so beautifully written in so short a space of time you can forget how silly the idea is because you can believe these characters. Urgh, dang, right in the feels.
The Garden - another flash fiction, but it flew over my head a bit.
TL:DR; I think it's safe to use the terms whimsical, beautiful, emotional and stunning when describing the majority of these little tales. Perfect short reads that really make you feel something.
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July 18, 2018For the full review, head on over to my blog: https://matthewsbookshelf.blogspot.com
I had never heard of this book before, I was just browsing through iBooks one day and happened to come across this and thought I'd give it a try. I'm so glad I did because I loved it so much! All of the stories were cute, magical, full of imagination and just so fun to read.
Based on how great these stories were, I will definitely be checking out more work from Renee Carter Hall. I'm still trying to figure out why I didn't read her work sooner. What's wrong with me?
In short, this is a wonderful collection of stories that I would gladly recommend checking out. I found myself rereading a couple of them just for the sheer joy of it!
I had never heard of this book before, I was just browsing through iBooks one day and happened to come across this and thought I'd give it a try. I'm so glad I did because I loved it so much! All of the stories were cute, magical, full of imagination and just so fun to read.
Based on how great these stories were, I will definitely be checking out more work from Renee Carter Hall. I'm still trying to figure out why I didn't read her work sooner. What's wrong with me?
In short, this is a wonderful collection of stories that I would gladly recommend checking out. I found myself rereading a couple of them just for the sheer joy of it!
June 12, 2012
Stellar in every way, it's a crime that Renee isn't charging more for these stories. Each one is vibrant and beautiful, emotional, whimsical and funny. The stories include "Childish Things" about a new father visited by his childhood imaginary friend when his newborn daughter is struggling in a hospital. "Moon, June, Raccoon", a story about a young woman desperately seeking love and how an attempt at magic brings her a witty raccoon matchmaker. And "Swear Not by the Moon" which examines a father and son relationship and having to deal with the fact that everyone grows old and dies--even werewolves. A fantastic collection everyone should read.
June 1, 2012
Every story in this collection is top notch.
August 21, 2012
As a big fan of fairytales and fiction I was ecstatic when I found this book. Though, now having read it.. All I can say is WTF?!
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews