Review: More essays and author commentaries than stories.
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 07 21, 2014
The concept behind this book—that of stories that take the same time to read as it takes to soft boil an egg—is a good one, and I expected a series of short snappy stories to fit the bill. I got short, but I wouldn’t, in general, call the stories snappy.If you like the Edgar Allen Poe style of story—not the scary part, the rambling, telling-rather-than-showing writing style that relies for its impact on the oddity of the story and the author’s point of view as expressed through the narration—then you may really like these stories. But if you’re looking for stories that drag you into the moment and don’t let go, you’ll find few of them here. Though some deal with interesting ideas and many will enjoy the travel stories—which are quite good for that genre—many of the stories are fairly bland, and some I can’t see why they were written at all, e.g., “I spy another castle.”The stories that didn’t grab me are told to us rather than shown as part of the action and often in a rather passive fashion.  Though a stylistic choice, which was popular in Poe’s day, ‘telling’ rather than ‘showing’ is not recommended for today’s readers because it keeps them remote from the story, thus limiting their engagement, and when there is so much highly engaging entertainment vying for their attention, this style of writing tends not to hold the average modern reader. Wonderful twists at the end would have redeemed the stories, but, alas, that was not a common element.The second section of Through the Book to Alice indicates that the author can write in a more immediate fashion, and I would have liked to have seem more like that. This story is also conceptually stronger than the previous ones. Hitching across the Armstrong-aldrin road is another one written in a more immediate style. These are the stories that should have been at the start of the book.As with Po, much of the interest comes from the author’s commentary in the telling, and Bunning has a wry sense of humour that is often more interesting than the stories themselves. In all the stories, the teller is very much present, and the stronger the author’s observations, the more effectively he pulls off this style.Not all on the menu is fiction. The collection includes true stories, creative non-fiction, and what are really essays on various topics that simply share the author’s opinion. For example, Bunning unashamedly uses one ‘story’ to share his views on the importance of writing our stories, no matter who we are or whether they are relevant to anyone else or not. What he neglects to say, however, is that though all stories have value, that doesn’t mean that they should all be published and added to the general marketplace.Where Bunning excels is in the area of metaphysical fiction especially when coupled with science fiction, and his metaphysically inclined stories are his best, for example, Dissociated Consciousness and Hope. It’s a pity that his best stories aren’t up front. But then others may enjoy the travel and historical ‘stories’ better.Though grammatically correct and generally cleanly copy-edited—I disagreed with a few comma placements—were I boiling an egg, few inspired me enough to want to read them while waiting for the timer to go off. It’s worth a read if you’re happy with what is essentially the author’s wry commentary on life events and an occasional metaphysical sci-fi gem.I received this book free of charge from the author in return for an honest review.