Review by BWHarold -- Illustrated Short Fiction of Willi...

[BWHarold]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Illustrated Short Fiction of William H. Coles: 2000-2016" by William H. Coles.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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I was not aware of the work of William H. Coles before I picked up a copy of Illustrated Short Fiction by William H. Coles 2000-2016. Now that I have read some of his work, I can understand why he is an award-winning author. His achievements include The William Faulkner Creative Writing Competition and the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction. Illustrated Short Fiction by William H. Coles 2000-2016 is a broad spectrum of his talent and creative range.


The book contains one novella titled Sister Carrie, two graphic novels of short stories already told earlier in the book and 33 short stories total. The characters range from desperate mothers to human traffic victims. Each piece is illustrated to mark the beginning and the end of the story. The artwork was done by commissioned artists and has an “e-zine” type aesthetic that I didn't mind it but it did distract me regarding some of the formattings of the book.


In fact, the only reason I gave this book 3 out of 4 stars is because of formatting. I noticed a couple of typos and grammar issues but it's common to see that in a digital copy of a book. The paragraph spacing in this book is varied. Some stories had no space between paragraphs and some were doubled or tripled spaced. I like an even and consistent format throughout the books I read. However, I didn't go as low as a 2 stars rating because the stories are engaging.


I found myself caring about certain characters and even relating to most by the time their narrations were done. There is a wonderful theatrical quality to Mr. Coles' work. His best pieces read like stage monologues. The stories I recommend are Homunculus, Sachin's Escape (beware of graphic and upsetting content with this one though, I almost stopped reading because I was so affected.) The Gift (I had an Agnes in my life, it touched a chord with me,) Speaking of the Dead, Reddog (the actual short story, the graphic novel is well done but the story loses something in the media change,) and The 13 Nudes of Earnest Goings (seriously, read the book for this one if nothing else!)


The stories I just mentioned felt like complete pieces to me. Some of the other stories felt rushed or like treatments for larger novels. Mr. Coles is very good at characters, they range from highly intelligent doctors to obvious “white trash” survivors. He has a keen interest in the human condition and it shows. The book is laced with heavy profanity depending on what character you are visiting at the time. There is also some racial and sexual content that could turn a reader off (see my note about Sachin's Escape.)


If you enjoy short fiction about modern subjects and issues, you'll love this book. If you enjoy theatre and character studies, you will probably enjoy this collection's diversity. If you are easily offended or just have a sensitivity to the difficult subject matter, then you might want to skip this book. I personally, had a rich cultural experience with it.

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Illustrated Short Fiction of William H. Coles: 2000-2016
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