neXt

by Lance Manion, Andira Dodge (Editor)

A collection of short stories isn’t really a book. It’s more like dozens of ideas that could have been books if they were thought of by someone with a better attention span. To put it another way; if you took an infinite number of Shakespeares and put them in front of an infinite number of typewriters with an infinite amount of time they still wouldn’t come up with the complete works of Lance Manion. To put it yet another way; you throw down manure to feed crops. Just imagine this book as manure (not too great a stretch) and your imagination is the crops. If you don’t understand this metaphor then this book probably isn’t for you.

287 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 3, 2019

About the author

Lance Manion was not born a poor black child. That was Navin R. Johnson. Neither was he born to run, to be wild and the last thing he needs is to be born again. I'm certain his mother would have none of it. and pardon him if he got it right the first time (as did Dennis Miller who I must credit with that line).

Reviews

[Sheila · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lance Manion’s fast-moving, quirky collection of short stories blends fascinating spins on words and ideas with odd philosophical musings, creating a book that’s both easy to read and curiously absorbing—even haunting—like haiku in prose. There’s a childlike delight to my favorite story—She don’t fade—where a character is advised to remember what pufferfish do when they’re scared. And there are plenty of scares. Procreation is another frequent topic, handled amusingly as people are compared to trees in A Wonderful Thought… Ruined. Excellent titles entice the reader throughout, fascinating science intrigues, curious humor amuses (and sometimes confuses), and together it’s a cool blend of real, impossible, imaginary tales told with self-deprecating humor, cool wordplay and worldplay, and happy delight. Then there’s the cover—okay, that’s definitely odd; it fits the book perfectly.

Disclosure: I was given a copy and I enjoyed it.

[Doug Lewars · Rating 4 out of 5]

*** Possible Spoilers ***

It isn't actually worth four stars but I was feeling generous.

This is described as a book of short stories but vignettes might be a better description. Each entity is about the size of a blog entry and although I haven't checked, I wonder if perhaps the author has been writing a blog for some time and decided to take a bunch of his posts and recycle them in book format. Plots are thin to non-existent and characters are sparse at best. Having said that, I enjoyed some of them, but I would have been just as happy had the book been half its size. The problem for me is that because there are so many small entries I never became involved. I could have walked away at any time without finishing but I did finish it because it is very seldom I mark a book DNF.

In addition, this book is categorized as humorous. I found three or four stories worth a chuckle and since humor is difficult to write I suppose that's good but I was hoping for better.

The reason I selected this particular book is because it's April and April is inde authors' month - a time to support inde authors so I thought I'd select one and read it. It helped that on Smashwords, this book was free and although I can't claim it's a fantastic work, it's certainly worth every penny I paid for it.

If you're looking for a novel or a book of short stories with a plot and characters this one isn't for you. On the other hand, if what you like is short off-the-wall, mildly-humorous blog posts that you can open anywhere without losing the thread of the story then this is perfect. I don't regret spending the time to read it and I did like the author's ability to think outside the box. Had I read this back when I was in university I'd have awarded it five stars and a rave review.

[Jennifer Tooker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Humorous shorts that are not for the easily offended

neXt is a series of short ideas gathered into a collection of short stories by author Lance Manion. Writing under a pen name and for the benefit of nobody but himself, Manion is unapologetic with the variety of content that he has packed into this book. From the cover graphic to the introduction and every word thereafter, the reader is treated to the unique perspective that Manion brings. With some shorts being shocking, others hilarious, and a few thoughtful, Manion’s take on each subject will either have you wiping tears of laughter or clutching your proverbial pearls and seeking a priest.
neXt strikes me as a book that you will either love or hate – I just do not see an “in-between” option with this and that’s perfectly fine. In this age where people are too quick to find things to be upset or offended about it is refreshing to find an author who uses his gift to poke fun at anything under the sun without running it through the “politically correct -o- meter” first. If you cannot tell that by looking at the cover alone, then there must be something wrong with you.

I’ll admit due to the format of the book being one that required a very short attention span I used it as a way to break the tension, reset a bad mood, or just something to read when I only had a few minutes to spare.

If you have a twisted sense of humor and are not easily offended, I would recommend picking up a copy of neXt. I myself am looking for more titles from Manion to gross me out, crack me up and provide me with moments of hilarity in a world that appears to have gone absolutely batshit crazy.

[Gordon Long · Rating 4 out of 5]

The concept of the “fourth wall” comes from the theatre, where an actor breaks out of the play and speaks directly to the audience, severing their emotional connection to the story. Lance Manion, by his own proud admission, is a “bubble breaker from way back.” He glories in stepping out of his behind-the-scenes role as author and becoming a performer in his own little drama.

As you might expect with consciously off-the-wall humour, some of the stories fall rather flat, and some of the ideas don’t go anywhere that hasn’t been dredged before. And then along comes one called (for no apparent reason) “The Sterile Variety,” and all is well again.

A story with the uninspiring title of “Overheard Baggage” demonstrates a skillful juxtaposition of — if you can believe it — orbital physics and social interaction to explain the party pickup attempt. “The Car” could be a normal poem, metaphoric as it is. And in “Father’s Day” Manion is downright touching in spite of himself.

On the other hand, the author should perhaps think about the Big Lie technique as he tells us over and over what a poor writer he is; that schtick gets tired fast enough we might start to believe it.

And don’t forget to read the “About the Author” at the end. It contains the most truthful premise in the whole book.
If he means it.

Quirky, creative humour. Recommended for people tired of all the usual stuff they read.