Giraffes [Paperback]

Steven Gillis (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 2007

In his debut collection of short stories, Gillis brings to life a world of lost souls and beautiful losers searching for grace in the cosmic joke that is suburban life. All of these stories have previously appeared in leading literary journals.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Gillis' stories are illuminatingly strange, filled with power, electric, and will stay with you long after you think you've gone to sleep. -- Stephen Elliott, author of HAPPY BABY

Gillis' work is unflinchingly human, full of surprisingly familiar details. The uniqueness of his narrative lens is as undeniable as the quality of his writing. -- Diane Goettel, Editor, ADIRONDACK REVIEW

In this uncommon collection of short stories, one of Steven Gillis' characters says: "Just not into normal, is that it?" Yeah, that's it exactly. Steven Gillis' strength and virtue as a writer is that he's just not into normal. -- Ellen Parker, Editor, FrGG

About the Author

Steven Gillis is the author of the novels WALTER FALLS and THE WEIGHT OF NOTHING, both finalists for the Independent Publishers Book of the Year and ForeWord Magazine Book of the Year 2003 and 2005.) Currently at work on a new novel, TEMPORARY PEOPLE, Steve's stories, articles and book reviews have appeared in over two dozen journals. A 6 time Pushcart nominee and 3 time Best Of... Notable Stories, Steve teaches writing at Eastern Michigan University. - in partnership with Dan Wickett, a non-profit created to aid literary journals, place writing programs into public schools and publish great works of novel-length fiction. All proceeds from Steve's writing goes to his nonprofit programs.

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Atomic Quill Press (January 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0976053578
• ISBN-13: 978-0976053576
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.1 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,180,927 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Diversity, February 9, 2007

By 

Daniel E. Wickett "EWN and Dzanc Books" (Westland, MI United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Giraffes (Paperback)

Steven Gillis' collection is extremely well written - the stories are interesting - the characters worth knowing - and they stick with you long after you've had the opportunity to enjoy them.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Unique Collection, February 15, 2007

By 

Katrina Denza "KatDenza" (NC, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Giraffes (Paperback)

Steven Gillis must be one part sorcerer, one part mad scientist and one part romantic. I'm not sure any other kind of writer could have delivered such a unique group of twisted stories of love and fortitude. Gillis unifies the collection with threads of science and the absurd, but what really unites is the compassion Gillis shows toward his characters--even those that are not destined to escape the reader's judgment. Inside this book you'll find children as human pendulums, a man with a tail, a community of shared spouses, a lonely runaway, a Little Person in love with Cinderella, and young boys who risk their lives to mark their passage into adulthood.

The strongest stories are the ones which navigate in weirdness and the absurd, and those pregnant with metaphor. In "Korematsu Love," a man copes with strange changes in his body brought on by the emotional challenges of a serious relationship. In "Coveting," a man struggles between his obligation to his odd community and his love for his wife. In the title story which begins "M.E. hung the children in the yard...," M.E. is obsessed with proving his scientific theories while his girlfriend simply wants him to surrender to the inexplicable: love.

Perhaps my favorite is the last story, "Lift," in which boys are expected to take a Rite of Passage exam: to build their own contraption and achieve flight. The story is a brilliant metaphor for what we do to our young men (and women) by sending them to war, essentially to pay for the sins of their collective fathers, while the rest of us carry on "nibbling on wafers and jelly sandwiches, oohing and ahhing with each new crash."
So what happens when a sheltered boy of privilege, exempt from this peculiar Rite of Passage, decides to prove himself? You'll have to read this unusual collection to find out.