AVOID SEEING A MOUSE: AND OTHER TALES OF THE REAL AND SURREAL

by James Dorr, Alien Buddha (contributor)

195 pages, Paperback

Published January 8, 2024

About the author

James Dorr is a short story writer and poet with more than five hundred individual appearances in magazines and anthologies. Dorr has worked a number of jobs, including technical writer, city editor on a regional magazine, full time non-fiction freelancer, and semi-professional musician. He resides in southern Indiana with his Goth cat Triana, named for Triana Orpheus in the Cartoon Channel's VENTURE BROS series.

Reviews

[Christine Rains · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection of speculative fiction is marvelously written and nabs your attention right away with a great storm. There are stories that play on old tales and ghouls and vampires. It's dark and humorous, and meant to be read with a light on. Highly recommended.

I've read stories from this author before, and I loved to see ones that centered around his bleak futuristic world introduced in one of his previous books, Tombs. A dark world of radiation and ghouls. "The Last Dance" takes place in that realm, and it's one of my favorites of this collection. One more party for the dead. "Crow and Rat" also swept me away, taking the reader where we haven't been in the Tombs world before: into the sewers. A powerful love, even after death.

A few other standout stories for me are "Bottles," which starts off slowly with Maria who is wanting to make her way in the world. A good girl, though carrying the superstitions of her the old world. What exactly is her new employer up to? I love the way the story unfolds and wraps up so wonderfully. "The Dark Call of the Sea" is a Lovecraftian tale of music and art, twined together in harmonic madness. The final story of the collection, "Avoid Seeing a Mouse" is a modern piece featuring the pyramid in Memphis, Tennessee. Henry has dreams he believes are from the Goddess Sekhmet and she has him do small tasks. What for? Only the goddess knows.

[Marge Simon · Rating 5 out of 5]

What surprises await the reader in every tale! I have enjoyed Dorr’s sense of hubris – quixotic, often ironic-- having read his stories for a number of years. This collection doesn’t disappoint. I was glad to find several stories from his Tombs collection. One, loosely based on the Pied Piper, another about the time when ghouls almost died off, which left the populus of a certain planet in dire straits. Beautiful vampires being interviewed for a future film are the subject of “Girls Gone Dead”. In another tale, meet a girl named Ipanema, a beauty from Tombs, who witnesses the death of all the lower animals. The collection is packed with juicy stories, all highly entertaining. The title story is last, and possibly the most fascinating fun. “Avoid Seeing A Mouse” set in contemporary times, is an adventure that begins in a magnificent exhibit of ancient Egypt. It prompts a young man’s dreams of the goddess Sekhmet. A mouse is spotted early on, but why should he avoid seeing it? You’ll need to read the book to find out what happens next. Trust me, you’ll never find a story like this one anywhere. The collection is highly recommended, it’s a keeper!

[Antonia Matthew · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Avoid Seeing a Mouse” by James Dorr.

The title of this short story collection right away piques your curiosity. “Why, surely mice aren’t scary?” you ask yourself. Then reading through the titles of the stories, such as, “The Last Dance,” “Girls Gone Dead,” “Crow and Rat,” “The Dark Call of the Sea.” you realize what a rich variety of tales awaits you. Discussing the pieces in detail would take away the suspense and the sometimes chilling endings. Suffice it to say, we meet, ghouls, zombies, animals and humans, friendly and not so, and unexpected heroes in situations as varied as the Memphis pyramid, an east coast beach, a plague-ridden city, an interview in a café, sewers, and deep underground cellars There are tempestuous storms, searing droughts, thick darkness and hidden away in these tales, echoes of myths and old folk tales. I recommend reading this book, just not alone late at night.