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Bed Bug Stew: Tales and Poems of Roots, Revenge, Redemption and Baseball
BED BUG STEW is two books in one volume! First is a compilation of short story fiction and poetry on a wide range of subject matter: science fiction, messages from the heart, and a little terror thrown in. You will laugh out loud and shed a tear, and you will remember all the characters and their flaws, strengths, motivations, and sometimes the depths of their souls. You will meet a senior citizen who hears other people's thoughts through his hearing aids, a football coach who shuns interviews, a widow who changes her life for one that she loathed, a mason whose soul has been crushed, a man who claims to have been in thousands of movies, and a ballplayer whose best moments were off the field. And many many more... The second book is the author's first person account of his attendance at the New York Yankees Men's Fantasy Camp in January 2023. Yes, it is hilarious. Lies that we tell ourselves, caressing the thought, Deeds that we never do, nor what we ought. It's tempting to tell others what they must do, I see the injustice. These rules are for you. Kevin Horgan served as an infantry officer in the USMC from 1979 - 1984. He tells everyone his service was the great privilege of his life; he was never downrange and he is nothing special. He has authored two US Civil War historical novels, one modern day suspense novel, and has co-authored three illustrated children's books with his sister-in law, Stephanie. Bed Bug Stew is his fourth completed book. Kevin and his wife, Maureen, reside in Georgia.
244 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2023
1341 people want to read
About the author
Kevin Horgan
9 books42 followershttps://www.kevinhorganbooks.com
https://anchor.fm/kevin-horgan
www.corps2corporate.com
www.ourcultureinchoate.com
Kevin has a BA in English from St. Bonaventure University ('79) and a JD from Seton Hall University School of Law ('88). From '79 to '84 he served as a USMC infantry officer, who deployed but was never "downrange." Kevin spent 33 years with a little company known for delivering packages out of brown trucks (UPS) and is now retired. He spends his t+ime reading, writing, blogging, and podcasting (see above).
https://anchor.fm/kevin-horgan
www.corps2corporate.com
www.ourcultureinchoate.com
Kevin has a BA in English from St. Bonaventure University ('79) and a JD from Seton Hall University School of Law ('88). From '79 to '84 he served as a USMC infantry officer, who deployed but was never "downrange." Kevin spent 33 years with a little company known for delivering packages out of brown trucks (UPS) and is now retired. He spends his t+ime reading, writing, blogging, and podcasting (see above).
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October 5, 2023the full introduction to the collection of stories and poems...
Introduction
“Bed Bug Stew” comes from a ditty my father had us four kids sing on car trips in the 1960’s.
It is sung to the melody of The Star-Spangled Banner:
“Oh, say can you see? Any bed bugs on me?
If you do, pick a few; and we’ll have Bed Bug Stew!”
I have sung this inside my head and out loud every day, since forever, and I will continue to do so. It can’t be helped. If there are other verses, I have never heard them.
Everything in Book One is fiction, a product of my dreams.
Sometimes we have a thought that compels us to get up and write it down. Not all of them are productive or funny or moral. In the darkness and quiet of early morning we hear a whisper to get up and do, to write. Many words and pages are stricken, many others are developed, and a precious few are like locomotives, impossible to stop.
This whisper is not a distraction for us. It’s the best friend we have. Henry Miller said, “Work on one thing at a time until finished.” I am the contradiction of that advice. Would that I may just write one thing at a time.
Novels can be read in one sitting, like eating a meal, light or heavy, and can fill us or bloat us or satisfy a hunger or satiate a craving or cut to a buried memory. Sometimes we can’t finish at one time and come back to it later, and sometimes we just push it aside and say, “enough.”
The reader is making an investment in his or her time and brain function and I hope I have respected that. Reading is not a passive activity. In this book, I believe that you may want to read only one or two submissions here at a time, over time; a well-worn book that is kept on the nightstand can be another friend that helps us sleep… or keeps us awake.
Most of this book was written and polished in 2023. There are a couple exceptions: Killing Bill O’Reilly was penned 10 years ago and languished in a notebook until now. It is dated, but I had to include that fictional conversation. O’Reilly’s books (thank you, Martin Dugard!) are fast and fun and informative, but a couple of his titles are obnoxious, much like the author.
The Talisman was put to paper in 2020, a collision of a couple outlines and potential novels from before 2015. They Don’t Think I Hear Them was a Grand Prize Winner in the Fall 2021 Christian Writers Awards Short Story Contest, presented by Xulon, my publisher, and that prize has paid for this publication.
The poems Good Shoes, Illumined, and Hickory I wrote in 2021 about the time I started going to mass every day – nearly every day, as location and availability can sometimes be out of synch. Like the professional who yearns to find meaning in his work, I have found mine in the rhythmic comforts of my faith.
I am a sinner floating in an ocean of regrets, large and small, and I pray that I have the grace to forgive all and am granted the reward of the forgiveness of others. I believe in the Resurrection and life everlasting.
Enjoy this book, one bite at a time.
Introduction
“Bed Bug Stew” comes from a ditty my father had us four kids sing on car trips in the 1960’s.
It is sung to the melody of The Star-Spangled Banner:
“Oh, say can you see? Any bed bugs on me?
If you do, pick a few; and we’ll have Bed Bug Stew!”
I have sung this inside my head and out loud every day, since forever, and I will continue to do so. It can’t be helped. If there are other verses, I have never heard them.
Everything in Book One is fiction, a product of my dreams.
Sometimes we have a thought that compels us to get up and write it down. Not all of them are productive or funny or moral. In the darkness and quiet of early morning we hear a whisper to get up and do, to write. Many words and pages are stricken, many others are developed, and a precious few are like locomotives, impossible to stop.
This whisper is not a distraction for us. It’s the best friend we have. Henry Miller said, “Work on one thing at a time until finished.” I am the contradiction of that advice. Would that I may just write one thing at a time.
Novels can be read in one sitting, like eating a meal, light or heavy, and can fill us or bloat us or satisfy a hunger or satiate a craving or cut to a buried memory. Sometimes we can’t finish at one time and come back to it later, and sometimes we just push it aside and say, “enough.”
The reader is making an investment in his or her time and brain function and I hope I have respected that. Reading is not a passive activity. In this book, I believe that you may want to read only one or two submissions here at a time, over time; a well-worn book that is kept on the nightstand can be another friend that helps us sleep… or keeps us awake.
Most of this book was written and polished in 2023. There are a couple exceptions: Killing Bill O’Reilly was penned 10 years ago and languished in a notebook until now. It is dated, but I had to include that fictional conversation. O’Reilly’s books (thank you, Martin Dugard!) are fast and fun and informative, but a couple of his titles are obnoxious, much like the author.
The Talisman was put to paper in 2020, a collision of a couple outlines and potential novels from before 2015. They Don’t Think I Hear Them was a Grand Prize Winner in the Fall 2021 Christian Writers Awards Short Story Contest, presented by Xulon, my publisher, and that prize has paid for this publication.
The poems Good Shoes, Illumined, and Hickory I wrote in 2021 about the time I started going to mass every day – nearly every day, as location and availability can sometimes be out of synch. Like the professional who yearns to find meaning in his work, I have found mine in the rhythmic comforts of my faith.
I am a sinner floating in an ocean of regrets, large and small, and I pray that I have the grace to forgive all and am granted the reward of the forgiveness of others. I believe in the Resurrection and life everlasting.
Enjoy this book, one bite at a time.
February 17, 2024
Loved the poems
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews