In her third collection of short stories, Lanagan again presents a challenging set of short stories.

If you're the kind of reader who needs a lot of world building, Lanagan will probably drive you crazy, as she's not much for set up. Her stories just start, and in the space of a few pages, creates a vivid, thought-provoking, occasionally stomach-churning piece of perfection. (cross-posted from MeriJenBen) ( )

Lanagan, Margo. (2007). Red Spikes. New York: Knopf, Random House. 167 pp. ISBN 978-0-375-84320-4 (Hardback); $16.99

Like previous Lanagan short story collections, these stories are not for the reluctant reader or anything less than a patient reader who will work to puzzle out meaning in a world that, as Dorothy might say, isn’t Kansas anymore! I have affectionately labeled these the midwife stories, but they are more likely to be about flying monkeys and evil creatures than something cute and cuddly. For example, “Baby Jane” is about the birth of boogeyman or, in this story, the jibber jabbers. “Monkey Paternoster” deals with the alpha monkey male and how "Our Father" fails to protect but provides the culture for continuing on. “A Good Heart” has that marvelous line about looking babies into her. "I were looking babies into that girl's eyes, even if I weren't putting them into her below." (p.30). But what happens if you really love the stork girl? Can you be happy if the babies aren't yours and she chooses other “fathers”? “Winkie” is a story that features Wee Willie Winkie as a monster that eats babies. Yet for all the grizzly content in these twisted fairy tales, readers will find that hopeful note carefully hidden in the red slipper that bring us home, hinting at the possibility of love.

In her third collection of short stories, Lanagan again presents a challenging set of short stories.

If you're the kind of reader who needs a lot of world building, Lanagan will probably drive you crazy, as she's not much for set up. Her stories just start, and in the space of a few pages, creates a vivid, thought-provoking, occasionally stomach-churning piece of perfection. ( )

According to the sticker on the front, Red Spikes is winner of some Children's Book award or other. While this is fine for that, for a book that is supposed to be supernatural fantasy/horror you are going to automatically get sex, violence, style and other artificial limitations on the content. For me, never going to be as good from that point of view. Contrast to 'A Fine Magic', perhaps.

So, I think a lot of people would be disappointed from that point of view.

Red Spikes : Baby Jane - Margo Lanagan
Red Spikes : Monkey's Paternoster - Margo Lanagan
Red Spikes : A Good Heart - Margo Lanagan
Red Spikes : Winkie - Margo Lanagan
Red Spikes : A Feather in the Breast Of God - Margo Lanagan
Red Spikes : Hero Vale - Margo Lanagan
Red Spikes : Under Hell Over Heaven - Margo Lanagan
Red Spikes : Mouse Maker - Margo Lanagan
Red Spikes : Forever Upward - Margo Lanagan
Red Spikes : Daughter of the Clay - Margo Lanagan

Bearly born yet, Queenie.

3.5 out of 5

Shafted to buggery. Rootys are nice too.

3.5 out of 5

Girl ruin.

3 out of 5

Like a wee infant? No problem, got piles of dead ones over here. Help yourself.

3.5 out of 5

Birdbrain deficiencies.

3 out of 5

Bullyboy cakewalk comedown.

4 out of 5

Purgatory point scoring.

3.5 out of 5

Rodney kill easy.

2.5 out of 5

Dolls, gods, boys, it just makes me cry.

2.5 out of 5

Zithering.

3 out of 5

http://notfreesf.blogspot.com/2007/10... ( )