Ten Tales of Spotty Ruin (Ten Tales Series) [Kindle Edition]

Alex Carrick (Author)

Book Description

Ten Tales of Spotty Ruin is the second in a series of short story compilations by Alex Carrick. Sometimes serious but more often light-hearted and almost always insightful, these pieces are sure to entertain and surprise. Skillfully crafted and mainly written to be fun for readers, they can also bring a tear to the eye when the narrative warrants.

Mr. Carrick is a critically-acclaimed author whose story "The Size of the Skip" - found in "Three Scoops" Is A Blast! - was short-listed for the 2010 Lorian Hemingway Short Story Award. In 2011, he received another Honorable Mention in the world-renowned Hemingway competition for "Caboose Follies", which appears in "Four Scoops" Is Over The Top.

Chapter titles: (1) One Thousand Years of Baked Goods; (2) Giving a Finger to the Moon; (3) A Father and Son Explore Some Grey Areas; (4) Herb Green Discusses His Finances in Four Letter Words; (5) Saved by a Hare's Breath; (6) Two Men Who Thought They Knew People; (7) The Weatherman, the Economist and the Gypsy Lady; (8) Fuzzy on the Details; (9) Witness to a Backyard Execution; (10) Queen's Jester to King's Betterment.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Praise for "Two Scoops" Is Just Right:

• 5 Stars... A choice pick for short fiction fans. ~ Midwest Book Reviews.
• Really funny... If you want a good laugh (and who doesn't) you MUST pick this book up. MUST. ~ The Book Journal
• A fun read... If you want a good laugh buy this book, read this book, then buy one for a friend. ~ Barbara Kent, Success Books
• Who knew an economist could have a sense of humour? ~ PaulTheBookGuy Podcast

 Praise for "Three Scoops" Is A Blast!

• "Just like your first book, this is a hit. Everyone should grab a copy!"
• "Alex Carrick has surpassed himself and brought back the charm of the perfect short story. You will not be disappointed."

About the Author

In July 2010, Alex Carrick's "The Size of the Skip" received an honorable mention in the prestigious and world-wide Lorian Hemingway Short Story Competition (based in Key West, Florida). For the second year in a row, he was short-listed in 2011 for "Caboose Follies". But this is getting ahead of ourselves.

Alex carried out his undergraduate work at the University of Western Ontario (UWO), then received an M.A. in Economics from the University of Toronto (U of T). He also completed the first year towards a Doctorate while living at U of T's Massey College.

The pull of the job market was too strong and Alex went to work for the Canadian Institute of Steel Construction (CISC) in 1972. The CISC is a trade association representing structural steel fabricators in Canada. Mr. Carrick eventually became the Secretary-Treasurer as well as the Economist for the CISC.

Since 1985, Alex has held the position of Chief Economist/Editor with CanaData, a division of Reed Construction Data (RCD), where he has acquired an in-depth knowledge of the Canadian construction industry. He is often quoted in the media and has delivered presentations throughout North America on the Canadian, United States and world construction outlooks.

Many of Alex's award-winning short stories have been compiled in the Scoops series of books as well as the Ten Tales series. The former is comprised of "Two Scoops" Is Just Right, "Three Scoops" Is A Blast! and "Four Scoops" Is Over The Top. The latter has seven titles (i.e., too numerous to mention here) and all of the books are set out on the Carrick Publishing website.

Alex is married with three children, plus a lazy dog and crazy cat that round out the household. Much of the family's life revolves around the cottage on Georgian Bay. He resides in Toronto. His wonderful wife Donna is a well-known author in the crime and intrigue fields.

Product Details

• File Size: 181 KB
• Print Length: 67 pages
• Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
• Publisher: Carrick Publishing (March 16, 2011)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B004SHFKWY
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Not Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #950,747 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing November 3, 2011

By R. Nicholson TOP 1000 REVIEWER

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

"Ten Tales of Spotty Ruin" is a collection of short stories by author Alex Carrick. This KIndle e-book was 150 Kb download and was free from Amazon.com at the time of writing this review.

I saw this book offered while browsing the Kindle e-book store looking for some potential reading material. It was free, plus it had an intriguing title...despite truly unappealing (even ugly) cover art. (Update Nov. 29, 2011. Cover art changed...much better!)

In the 'Foreword' the author describes this work...'These latter tales...consist of made-up conversations that take amusing, ironic or unexpected turns.' AND 'It pleases me very much to think of you possibly traveling to work by subway or bus getting a chuckle out of something I've written.'

I went into this book with hopeful expectations of finding an entertaining, maybe even a fun read. However, there was just nothing amusing about this collection...nary a chuckle to be had. I forced myself to finish this work...I could have given up anytime after the first few stories once I began to realized how mundane and plain they were. Basically uninteresting short pieces written with questionable skill.

Conclusion:
A disappointing collection of short stories
A book that I was sorry I downloaded...even though it was free.
The author has written a couple other short story books that apparently have received numerous accolades. But based on this book, I'd be hard press to consider getting them.
It's one of those books that leaves me wondering who this book would appeal to...who was the intended audience? Is there one?

As it is...1 Star

Ray Nicholson

P.S.
BTW, I never did figure out who or what 'Spotty Ruin' was.

More About the Author

Alex Carrick has been a professional economist covering the construction industry for the past 39 years. He writes extensively on economic matters for several newspapers, newsletters, journals and the Internet, dealing with both Canada and the United States.

He is currently enjoying his 26th year of employment with Reed Construction Data - CanaData. When asked how he has managed to achieve such career longevity, he is fond of replying, "I've done it one day at a time."

Mr. Carrick received an M.A. in Economics from the University of Toronto (U of T) in 1971. He also completed the first year towards a Doctorate while living at U of T's Massey College.

He has delivered presentations throughout North America on the Canadian, United States and world economic and construction outlooks. Mr Carrick has also made videos on various topics for Reed Construction Data web sites. This has required the development of a whole new skill set.

Mr. Carrick lives in Toronto, Canada and is married with three children, plus a lazy dog and a crazy cat that round out the household. Much of the family's life revolves around the cottage on Georgian Bay. Mrs. Carrick (Donna) is also an author, mainly in the crime-writing field.