Review by Kaylawallace523 -- A Second, Less Capable Head

[Kaylawallace523]

[Following is a volunteer review of "A Second, Less Capable Head" by James Hanna.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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I have just finished reading A Second Less Capable Head and Other Rogue Stories written by James Hanna. All of the short stories in this collection were either dark or unsettling, and ironic, which I must admit is my preferred kind of tale. Most of them were superbly written and sparked my intrigue from the first page to the best part, the twisted conclusion. I gave it a 3 out of 4 stars instead of 4 for one reason, and that was my disliking for one particular short story, which unfortunately irritated me greatly.

First, I will tell you about my favorite story out of these, which was the 2nd story in, called The Guest. I love a good fairy story and although the Thumbelinas in the story do not have wings, their temperament and likeness was enough to satiate my craving. The narrative is about a "boorish old barfly" and his daughter who take in a tiny woman of an alien race, complete with her own tiny house and tiny commodities. The daughter and the Thumbelina take very well to each other, but it is the man and his oafish ways that do not impress the tiny, fickle visitor. I really enjoyed this story. With writing crystal clear in its imagery, and raw with emotion, James Hanna holds nothing back, yet wraps everything up perfectly in just a few pages. It was over before I knew it, and I was on to the next one. I recommend, however, taking them in slowly and savoring each one rather than devouring them as I, myself, did.

There are plenty of stories worth noting out of the nineteen this book is comprised of, but I will try to pick only a few. All were memorable. In fact, some were so eerie I had the distinct feeling I would never be able to forget the state they put me in. Beware, once read you cannot unread. The one story that begins them all, which this collection is rightly named for, A Second Less Capable Head, left me both rattled to my core and actually laughing. Virgil, a sourpuss with some headstrong political opinions, suddenly finds himself developing a second, burdensome head, with half the brains as his first. The style of satire that Hanna has created here is so original you'll wonder if it is satire or something else not yet named. You'll find it hilarious, I assure. Then you'll wonder if there might be something wrong with you for thinking so. The dialogue is especially fun in this one, as well.

Now, past the praise portion of this review. If the review was all praise than the book would have been all 4 stars by my own account. One story out of them, I could barely get through all the way. It's called The Outback. Perhaps it's merely me, possibly others will like it. Personally, I could barely understand it, which I found annoying. It is set in Australia and is written as though by a native of the actual outback. It seems every sentence is an exercise in using unfamiliar slang. I could see the use of words like dingo, or plock, but to a lesser extent. That is, unless this story was entirely meant to be read by a very particular sort of person, in which case it still shouldn't be among the others in this otherwise excellent book. To be fair, this one only takes up about 6 pages, so maybe I would really only take away half of a point. Nevertheless, I believe this book would be better if The Outback was just omitted.

Each one of Hanna's short stories is complete on it's own. Each is so unique a perspective and different in writing that it could have been composed by someone else. Each gets so deep into the psyches of the characters that they become as real as the reader. When characters such as Ryan O'Shaughnessy (Hunter's Moon) - an aging criminal stuck in a loony bin with his ghostly hallucinations, come alive and tell you their story, you are left feeling horrified and closer to humanity at the same time. This book is filled with stories, meant to shake you. It is so well executed in most of them, it's easily one of the best of it's kind. I must add that it was very well edited and I did not detect any spelling errors or mistakes. I am really pleased to have had the opportunity of reading and reviewing this book. I would unquestionably recommend this book to anyone who, like myself, enjoys things of a twisted nature.

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A Second, Less Capable Head
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