Review of Tales of the 70's

[Grace-Essien]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Tales of the 70's" by David Done.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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Tales of the 70’s by D. Done is a fiction anthropology of seven short stories and a novella. As implied by the title of the book, the stories were first drafted in the 70’s, particularly between the years 1970 and 1975. The author rewrote the book in recent times, after his retirement. The stories portray how people lived in that era without technology and modernization. The book covers relatable experiences of people and how they dealt with real life issues such as illness of loved ones, relationships with other people and so on.

The book covers a broad range of themes under different topics and stories. The first story is titled Point to Point After. It is a story about Zhen Hua, a bookstore owner, who had a seriously ill wife. The Blind San Franciscans is the title of the second story. This is the story about Don, a good man who had once been a rising star in a San Francisco ad agency before he was victimized for trying to expose his biggest client who was using him to commit fraud. The third story, and my favorite, is titled The Cat Burglars. This is a humorous and adventurous story of how two friends and accomplices, Mark and Lee connived and advanced to steal an Ocelot from the zoo. I particularly liked this story because the characters are funny and the story is crafted in a way that engages the readers’ psyches in anticipation for what is next.

The stories in Tales of the 70’s are generally fascinating, simple, relatable and short. The book is really easy to read and understand. I appreciate that the scenarios are explained in details in a way that paints pictures in the minds of the readers and I commend the fact that there are notable lessons and values that can be picked from the stories in the book.

What made the book less appealing to me however, is the abrupt and inconclusive way that some of the stories ended. I occasionally felt disappointed from reading the short stories because I kept feeling that there should be more to the story than what the writer presented.

All things considered, the book is interesting and although there are few grammatical errors, I would still say that it is professionally edited. So, I give the book a 3 out of 4 stars rating. I hold back one star because I do not appreciate the way some of the stories ended and because of the grammatical errors. I recommend the book to teenagers and adults who enjoy reading short stories.

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Tales of the 70's
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