Book Review: STORIES. Edited by Neil Gaiman and Al Sarrantonio. *** and a 1\2 out of *****

I fell out of love with short story anthologies a long time ago. There are dozens of them published every year, and only a handful that are worth the paper they are printed on. The deciding factor, always, is the editor. Stories, an anthology of tales that span many genres, but with a special focus on the fantastic, and edited by author Neil Gaiman and author and veteran editor Al Sarrantonio, is, for the most part, one of the better ones.

In his introduction to the collection of stories, Neil Gaiman says that all good stories, regardless the genre, have to have this one factor: While turning the pages, the reader has to keep asking him/herself, "And then what happened?". Out of the 27 stories included here, 16 had me asking that question as I lost myself in the tales. 16 out of 27 ain't bad, right? So, in my book, that makes this collection a success.

Out of these 16 stories, stand-outs include "The Truth Is A Cave In The Black Mountains" by Neil Gaiman, a thrilling story of revenge and magic; "Unbelief" by Michael Marshall Smith, a clever little tale about a hitman, with a neat twist; "The Stars Are Falling" by the incomparable Joe R. Lansdale, a touching and highly atmospheric story about a man who returns from a war to discover that the life he left, including a loving wife and a son, no longer exists; "Polka Dots And Moonbeams" by Jeffrey Ford, a wonderfully weird tale about two lovers stuck in time, that hops genres with astounding ease; "Leif In The Wind" by Gene Wolfe, a disturbing Sci-Fi tale that manages to pull off in 13 pages what many writers fail to achieve in a novel; "The Therapist" by Jeffrey Deaver, a clever tale about a psychopath who thinks he's possessed; "Parallel Lines" by Tim Powers, an entertaining ghost story; "The Cult Of The Nose" by Al Sarrantonio, a superb psychological horror story, and the best tale included here; "Stories" by Michael Moorcock, a touching and compelling tale about the lives of writers; "The Maiden Flight of McCauley's Bellerophon"  by Elizabeth Hand, a wonderfully moving story about a group of friends who set out to recreate a film for a dying friend; and "The Devil On The Staircase" by Joe Hill, a frightening tale about a boy from a poor village who comes face to face with a devil, and how that encounter changes him forever.

So if you are in the mood for a bunch of good short stories, some of them true examples of the art form, then look no further. Stories is it.

Text © Ahmed Khalifa. 2013 - 2021.

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Ahmed Khalifa is a filmmaker and novelist. He is the writer/director of several short films and a feature, which was released on Netflix, and the author of a number of novels and short stories, including the YA horror novel, Beware The Stranger, available on Amazon. Find him on Twitter @AFKhalifa and on Facebook @Dark.Fantastic.AK·Writer

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