Sonja Uncaged

by Amanda Linsmeier

A short story about a lonely young woman riddled with panic attacks and agoraphobia. Sonja's only friends are her fat cat Louie, and her new bird Phinny. Despite her crush on her mailman Ben, she is unable to form relationships because of her crippling anxiety. And then one day, everything changes. Sonja wakes up inside her canary’s cage. She and her bird have switched bodies. Sonja is now a human in a bird’s body, unable to speak, barely able to fly. Phinny is mute as a human, even more terrified to leave the apartment than Sonja was, and fascinated and yet still terrified of fat Louie the cat. But before long, the story shifts even odder, and Ben the mailman and Louie find themselves in their own conundrum.

Can a cat and a bird fall in love? Can a woman stuck inside a bird’s body learn to love her life in a cage of her own making, or will she force herself to leave it and truly fly beyond what she thought ever possible? Sonja Uncaged is a story of longing, of fear, and the kind of love that makes us spread our wings, and fly.

28 pages, ebook

About the author

Amanda Linsmeier has been a book nerd as long as she can remember, and it was that great love of reading—especially R.L. Stine novels and fairytales—that eventually brought her to writing her own stories. In high school, she won the senior class vote for “Most Romantic Girl”, a title she’s still ridiculously pleased with. She feels most joyful when writing, scream-singing her favorite songs, playing in the water, and laughing with her beloved family. She lives in a magical place with a man who smells like maple syrup and woodsmoke, their wonderfully wild children, a dog, and an assortment of half-feral cats.

Reviews

[Kelly Cain · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really cool and different story. The author definitely kept the tension throughout the story starting from the "date" through the other stuff (don't want to spoil) and if it would be reversed. I think she captured anxiety well and what that must feel like to someone who's crippled by it. I really enjoyed this short story.