Customer Reviews

Prom Night

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

You think with theme anthos that it will be just another collection around the same tired cliche, and prom night, at least in mainstream "American" culture screams Carrie. Not so with Prom Night, a total surprise--reading it, I was jealous that I hadn't had such a wonderfully chaotic and sad experience as those led in PM--especially Lorelei Shannon's ironic and wildly humorous look at who's the real dog at the local high school in "Peggy Sue Got Slobbered," Fred Saberhagen's hauntingly sad "The Senior Prom" where sex is the only thing that keeps you safe from the rest of your life, and A.R. Morlan's mesmerizing changing colors of language in "That Dress", a short story shorter than any miniskirt and ten times as sexy.

The writing is topnotch; the viewpoints are horrifying,creative, always a surprise; I'll buy the next novel anyone in this collection puts out.

I found many of the stories to be fun and witty. Some were even touching. Overall, an intriguing collection of stories! I'm really glad I stumbled on this anthology!

Any anthology will have big names for marquee value-Fred Saberhagen here-but the reason to read them is to get a first glimpse of new talents you'll be seeing again, and this is a great collection for that. The idea of a SF/fantasy anthology themed around the prom is a kick, and these writers rebuff what you might call the "Carrie syndrome," the stereotype of bookish types that never got invited to their proms and can only think about it in terms of bitter sarcasm and bloodshed. There are some gently funny and truly sweet stories here. Be sure not to miss Jenn Coleman-Reese's "Memory and Reason" in particular.

Oh my goodness, I hated high school. Haha. Oh dear. I am SO glad that the nightmare has ended. This book was dreadful, a mess, a wreck, a disaster, a farce...the editor should have aborted the concept after the 1st tale. Haha. Oh, dear Lord, this is a terrible book. What a great reminder of the undeniably ludicrous and insignificant nature of high school. The prom. Haha. This book is a collection of every single reason that I didn't go. Hahahahaha Nancy Springer, you really REALLY tried, but this was plain silly.

There were one or two enjoyable stories in this anthology, but most of them were a waste of time. A few were actually offensive, with done-to-death or tasteless themes, senseless endings and improbable situations.

These stories were ho-hum, nothing new or innovative. A few insulted our intelligence in this household. Better you should read the Heinlein juveniles over again--they're not really for kids. Or go find something by Connie Willis; she has collections of stories that are worth your time.