Ten Tales of Transformation

by Gareth Howells

This is a short story collection based around the theme of transformation, with the stories being predominantly written with a science fiction setting. Stylistically, the stories vary, from philosophical high concept themes, to farcical adventures with a humorous narrative voice. The influences that fed into the stories range from Harry Harrison, Robert Sheckley and Douglas Adams, to the more serious writing of Harlan Ellison, Ray Bradbury and Richard Matheson. If you are interested in stories like the ones you would expect from The Twilight Zone, you will enjoy this book.

319 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 25, 2018

Reviews

[Cliff's Dark Gems]

Ten wonderfully unique, imaginative tales You will find stories that are philosophical, thought-provoking, poignant, moving and some that are hilariously entertaining. My favorites were Whatever Happened To Ethel Pinchworthy, Miss Audacity and We Need To Talk.

[Read by Fred]

This was an enjoyable read. As the title implies this novel has ten stories, and each story is unique and quirky. I particularly enjoyed "Whatever Happened to Ethel Pinchworthy", "Cooking for One", "We Need to Talk", and "The Drums of the Irikai".

Some were quite funny as was the case with the story of Ms. Pinchworthy (loved it!). Others had much deeper meaning ("We Need to Talk"), leaving you contemplating on the transformation and the implication within the story.

Overall, an enjoyable series of short stories on transformation.

[Pax]

What a delightfully weird collection! I really loved this. An excellent set of stories with just enough strangeness to them to keep you really engaged!

[Onia Fox]

Ok, so I’m not a sci-fi buff, nor a short story fan. But this book of sci-fi short stories came recommended on a radio interview I heard.
Ten Tales of Transformation by Gareth Howells made me howl with laughter (see what I did there? I bet Gareth has never heard that one before). Seriously witty and clever - Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett funny/clever. There is also a lovely economy of language, befitting a song writer and poet.
Each plot revolves around a simple sci-fi or worldly physics theme, but extrapolates the effects to the silly nth degree - whether it be a bit of time management or alien probing.
Keep an eye out for my favourites - Ethel Pinchworthy and Lenya.
Very clever, very funny, very recommended.

[TJ]

Gareth Howell’s Ten Tales of Transformation offers ten short stories that range from fun and light to more serious and socially focused. Not every story hit the same for me, but taken together, it was an enjoyable collection. The writing kept me interested, and I found myself wanting to keep reading, which is always a good sign. I did notice that the formatting was a bit distracting in places, and that sometimes took me out of the moment. With stronger editing and a cleaner layout, the book could really shine. That said, once I pushed past those issues, the stories were strong enough to hold my attention. Overall, it was a good reading experience and one I’m glad I picked up.

[Samuel Passingham]

Loved this volume of stories, excellent balance of both humour and poignancy. Intended to read 1 story per night before bed but ended up reading 5 in one go. Howells' addresses many of the philosophical and theological questions we all have in a witty and entertaining fashion.