Jason’s Comments (group member since Aug 22, 2011)

Jason’s comments from the Apex Publications group.

This story does a great job evoking imagery to enhance its emotional resonance. Well done, Richard!

Kind of a be careful what you wish for thing. Ignorance is bliss!

Probably not many don't know about my predilection for Jen Pelland fiction (*points at two Pelland books and a dozen published stories from Apex*). This story is a prime example of why. She knows how to write an edgy story that isn't insulting or hostile. Like with Ghosts of New York, she expertly writes about the pain of tragedy and loss.

Lesley nails it with "In this story, they were both wrong and it made an impossible situation even harder."

Glad to have you participating, Alma. The devotional mess up was unintentional, I promise. For some reason, you weren't on our list of emails, and since there are 26 contributors, it wasn't noticed.

I really enjoyed your story. It explored the side of faith (faith in self) that is one of the big draws of the series for me (as its publisher). I read the story to be stating that faith can be manufactured via necessity. Now that the protag was having a baby, she had to have faith in herself for the sake of her child. An interesting statement, a true one I believe, but not anything I had thought about before!

Alma wrote: "Thanks, Lesley!

I think that even with my protag the "new faith", that through the unborn child she carries, is borrowed, hers only so long as she and that child share a heartbeat, as it were. Onc..."

Lots of Matt's writing has a intellectual, philosophical tilt to it. I found the style quite effective for this story. Some amazing imagery... one that comes to mind is the metaphor of the institution showing as much as a glacier.

Something like Prometheus Possessed would make for an excellent short film.

I found it interesting in the commentary Lavie seemed to be making about how we desire proof of God (or signs of God and being in His light), yet it is withheld from us and drives us batty in the process or pushes us to seek alternatives.

Lavie gets a lot of critical praise, and to me, this is one of his very best. Many layers of meaning, not a word is wasted, and an emotional punch at the end.

And come on, ANY STORY with a leviathan automatically earns a dozen cool points. :)

A fascinating story... can't say I've read another quite like it. Beautiful imagery. Powerful ending (I'm a sucker for cute, needy animals).

I think Alma is on to something with her read of the story's point.

Unfortunately, that point is difficult to suss out because "Kill the Buddha" needed more room to breathe. Everything happens too quickly.

Or maybe I enjoyed the story too much and wished there were more. :)

I find the "Cancer Catechism" to be utterly fascinating and frightening at the same time. A poetic and painful ode to the way cancer breaks down your faith, family, and health.

I don't know Jay personally, but I've interacted with him for 6+ years, and have followed his battles with colon cancer. Having that knowledge makes this a brutal read. For someone as awesome and nice as Jay having to deal with this business is plenty enough to make a person question his or her faith.

I've read this story at least five times (counting last night). I'm still not certain what's is what. I think the story is open to most interpretations. I'll share mine.

This story is Tom's statement regarding the arbitrary and irrational nature of many tenets of Christian belief. It isn't an attack against religion, but because we simply DON'T KNOW for sure if any of the rules that are followed are true to God's on desires, prescribing to the beliefs of any organized system will do nothing but cause headaches.

Or severe indigestion!

What makes me think of this particular interpretation? Eddie is given access to the big book and he is amused/confused by the different things that are sins and that are okay. And at the end, when Eddie asks Jesus what's next and the Jesus gives us the answer we all dread: I have no idea. If the Son of God doesn't know, then there is no way humans can know. Ya know?

A wonderfully bizarre story from Pic. Unlike anything of his I've read (and I've read nearly all his output).

Heck yeah, I'm ready!