Misadventures

by Talmadge Walker

Nineteen short stories by Talmadge Walker, some sci-fi, some historical, some humorous, some sad. In "Independent Study" an English Lit student travels in time to meet Geoffrey Chaucer. A dinner menu creates havoc for interstellar diplomats in "Dinnertime." Two people manage to beat the system in a futuristic corporate police state in "On Ice." And in "In the Air" a hermit tries to cope when the earth is invaded by bumbling bureaucrats from out space. A poorly-named ladies' man can't seem to stay out of trouble in "The Timely Disappearance of Van Dorn Sickles Smith." In "Kunu-Ri" two buddies from Turkey try to stay alive in Korea. Bob Marley's ghost helps a reggae star avoid temptation in "A Christmas Carol in Kingston." In "Gilead" a young woman seeks to find meaning after a tragic auto accident. An age-old struggle is re-enacted in a boxing ring in "The Title." In "Desert Vision" Antoine de Saint-Exupery finds inspiration in desert hallucinations. In "Incident along the Somme" a British soldier struggles to survive between the trenches. And some deacons are confronted with an unspeakable confession in "Confession." In "William Wiley Prickett" Confederate prisoner-of-war tries to find a way home. A father-to-be covers up a sad secret in "Love and Little White Lies." In "Grandmother" an aging woman in Alabama rejects racism. And a grandmother in Virginia seeks a way to reach out to her husband suffering from dementia in "Calling Ruby."

178 pages, Paperback

First published September 9, 2013

Reviews

[Todd Barwick · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would rank this just under 3.5 stars, so it goes as a 3. I really did enjoy most of the stories in this book. The first few grabbed my attention and kept me wanting to read more. They were quick reads that didn't need me to invest a lot of time. The only reason I did rank this as a 3.5, is the stories in the beginning, in my opinion, were so attention grabbing, that the last few seemed a little anti-climactic. They were more poignant. If I were to read this book again, I would probably skip the last chapter of stories. But that is not to say the last stories were bad, they just weren't for me. I am sure there are a lot of people out there who not only will like this book, but they will like the last chapter more than I did. It was a good solid read, with something for almost everybody.

[Sherry · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this book during a goodreads giveaway. I am glad I did. I like books that are easy to read and make you think and guess where it is going.

Since these were short stories they had to move fast. I have to admit with some of them, I thought they could go on a little further and I would have been better satisfied with them. Isn't that always the way with these kind of stories.

But, overall, this is a nice book to just pick up a the end of the day to wind down to.