Review: Short and Sweet, Times Twelve!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 09 18, 2012
"1 Dozen Short Tales" by Milo James Fowler is a short anthology of flash fiction (500-1,000 words) tales, each of which has previously been published individually in one of several magazines. It has been my experience that flash fiction anthologies often include a few not-so-interesting tales. However, I found all the tales in this collection to be entertaining.Considering how difficult it is to compose a complete story that makes sense in as few as 500 words, Mr. Fowler has accomplished a rather remarkable feat. The tales in this book run the gamut from pure science fiction to horror to fantasy, and none of them left me feeling like something was missing. The stories are complete, with introduction, body, and conclusion fully presented within the requisite number of words.I was impressed with this collection, and was particularly surprised to find myself at the end of the book, without having encountered a single story I didn't like. I happen to know that Mr. Fowler has published a rather large number of books; I will be obtaining more of his work, based on my enjoyment of this book.Most of the tales in this collection are better suited to intermediate or better readers, and likely would not hold the interest of younger children. I see no reason, though, why middle grade students would have difficulty reading and comprehending any of these stories. On the contrary, I am confident they would find that they enjoyed reading them. These stories should even maintain the interest of the so-called "reluctant" reader, which will then have a positive influence on that child's subsequent interest in reading. I don't hesitate to recommend "1 Dozen Short Tales of the Strange and Spectacular" for anybody with a modicum of reading ability.