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75 of 75 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Christopher Meeks: He just gets better and better, May 1, 2008
For those readers fortunate enough to have read Christopher Meeks' first short story collection - THE MIDDLE-AGED MAN AND THE SEA - and discovered the idiosyncrasies of Meeks' writing style and content, rest assured that this new collection - MONTHS AND SEASONS - not only will not disappoint, but also it will provide further proof that we have a superior writer of the genre in our presence! Meeks is an observer of the human condition, and that does not mean his view is lopsided or focused on only one realm of characters. True, he does create characters that have strangely vulnerable aspects that alter the way they interact with those around them. But in the end, these are people we pass in the street or sit next to on the bus, or notice in the strange places of Southern California like malls, funky parties - or just 'around' the neighborhood or cities. But his strange creations have just the right amount of 'normalcy' that in our eyes could make them part of the unnoticed woodwork: in Meeks' eyes (and pen) they become extraordinary seeds for terrific stories.
In the opening story 'Dracula Slinks into the Night' a dysfunctional couple attends a silly Halloween party where the husband's aversion to dancing leads to a fall that oddly mutates the couple's differences. 'Why not dance?' Meeks writes, 'We're merely blobs of water and minerals procreating to create what? It was a world run over with gas-guzzlers and pollution and cattle prods for semen.' In "The Sun is a Billiard Ball' we watch the interaction of two couples' lives: one couple is dealing with the husband's discovery of bloody stools while the other couple is facing the spectre of HIV testing, and the manner in which their lives intersect is one of the examples of the Chaos Theory. In 'The Holes in My Door' a recently 'separated' man finds gunshot holes in his garage door and reacts by investing in his own gun and shoots himself in the foot - much the way his bonding with his ex-wife (an obsession that colors all of his thoughts) was punctured by his own behavior.
There are other stories of infidelity and the remorse of cheating and regretting. The title story concerns movie extras and their cruising. Cody, the lead character, is looking for the perfect match (such as girls with names like Summer or May). 'Cody believed in belief. He was like the late Danish philosopher Soren Kirkegaard, except he was working in America on a movie set with giant power cables and topless women. He and Soren were awed by faith. Cody couldn't explain why he believed names were important, for example, but they were. He just knew. There were things beyond science'. In 'The Wind Just Right' Meeks dives into a mother/daughter relationship that has more similarities in fears and phobias than either understands. In 'Breaking Water' we meet fashion model Merrill, post op for obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy that changes her career options, but delivers other opportunities. '"We're just 'beings toward death', right? Martin Heidegger said we're all looking for an authentic life before the inevitable happens. We're supposed to face death and have a healthy anxiety towards it'."
In excerpting little passages from this book this reader hopes to convey the spectrum of experience gained from reading Christopher Meeks. He writes with a blend of hilarious humor, significant angst, philosophical bents in the manner many people inhabit 'beliefs' to continue their lives in this somewhat discombobulated world, and offers us fresh views of ordinary people whose lives for even a few moments become extraordinary. Other readers will find personal favorite stories and passages - it is that kind of book, one that has little chunks of life to which we call all relate and find both kindred spirits and avoidable folks with suggestions on how to cope with them. There are twelve stories that expand the spectrum begun in THE MIDDLE-AGED MAN AND THE SEA and each is a polished gem from a gifted artist. Highly recommended for a very broad audience base. Grady Harp, May 08
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A showcase for the author's marvelous short stories, November 2, 2009
NOTE: I orginally posted this review as a guest reviewer on Red Adept's Kindle Book Review Blog on November 2, 2009. I used the same 0-5 star review format that Red Adept uses.
"Months and Seasons," by Christopher Meeks, is a short story collection with eleven stories, including a chapter from the author's novel "The Brightest Moon of the Century." Having enjoyed the author's first short story collection, "The Middle-Aged Man and the Sea," I was looking forward to reading "Months and Seasons." Three of these stories were previously published as Amazon Shorts.
Overall: 5 Stars
Plot/Storyline: 4 1/2 Stars
As with "The Middle-Aged Man and the Sea," most stories involved relationships between people. Several stories were about how people dealt with life-changing or unexpected events, such as the death of a loved one, serious illness, or natural disaster.
One of my favorite stories, "The Farms at 93rd and Broadway," was about an empty-nest married couple's attempt to liven up their predictable lives by the impromptu act of going uptown to a show. I won't give away the outcome, but think of the old vaudeville joke that begins with "Doctor, my wife thinks she's a chicken..."
"A Whisker" showed how useful a cat can be around the house, especially in helping its owner to regain a lost love.
"Dracula Slinks into the Night" was a marvelous story, but if for no other reason, it was worth reading to learn how sperm is extracted from a dead man. No, I'm not telling, but you wouldn't believe me if I did!
Perhaps the best story was "Breaking Water." What happens to a top supermodel when a serious medical condition threatens her career? This is the longest story in the collection, and it's the most complete story in terms of character development and plot. This story was substantial enough that it could have been expanded to a novella.
The title story, "Months and Seasons," depicted a cast party after a movie has completed shooting. Why does the set electrician only date girls who are named for months or seasons, and will sparks fly when he finally meets the right girl?
As a bonus, the last story, "The Hand," is actually the first chapter of the author's novel "The Brightest Moon of the Century." It works well as a standalone story, and it served to pique my interest in reading more about Edward, the story's protagonist.
Character Development: 5 Stars
Characters were developed to an extent commensurate with a short story. The author did a fine job of giving the reader enough background information to understand the motivations and feelings of the principal characters.
Writing Style: 5 Stars
The author displayed considerable writing skills in his use of the language, the realistic dialogue, and keeping the reader's interest. Situations and settings were described succinctly and clearly with no wasted words.
Most stories are narrated from the third person point of view, but the author showed equal skill at using first person in three of the stories.
Editing/Formatting: 5 Stars
The formatting was nearly perfect in my Kindle version, and a linked table of contents was a very nice touch. The book had clearly been professionally edited, and I found no grammar, punctuation, or spelling errors.
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I have to say that my interest in short stories leans more toward plot-driven stories and those with a lot of action. Generally, I'm not overly fond of modern short stories that emphasize character development or begin in the middle of a story. However, I've enjoyed both of the author's short story collections very much.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Infinite inside the Finite, September 7, 2008
While reading Months and Seasons, I recalled Socrates' dictum "The unexamined life is not worth living," for the characters inhabiting Christopher Meek's short stories are either experiential zombies, on whom everything is lost, or in serious need of a wake-up call. Fortunately, for them, and for us as readers, they get it. The twelve stories hover around that mysterious black hole in our lives: the "what" everyone else but you knows, but won't tell you; and which you must discover in time, or die deprived of a secret whose revelation could, both in the present and retroactively, give meaning to your life. Meeks' tales are polished keys crafted to unlock nothing; rather, to reflect the already-open treasure surrounding us. Even if the "I"'s within these stories suffer blindness of insight, what meets the reader's eye is endless, the surface bottomless, and the stories taut as piano wire in an assassin's hands. Whether describing the epiphany of a man who must dress as Dracula to discover his own blood line or a woman experiencing the art of creation in the creation of Art, Meeks' words evince one magic show after another. Step inside the tent of his cover, and awe.
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