Jeremy Ray

Wow, I’m blown away by this little story! I know my account trends toward horror predominantly, but I swear I like all kinds of stories. THE HOUSEPLANT is more of a drama, but it manages to capture a wide range of emotions in very few pages. I laughed, I empathized, and I may have even shed a tear.

Who knew a story told solely through the lens of a plant could be so entertaining and sincere?! It’s focus on personification and heartfelt storytelling reminds me of the best of the Pixar show more movies. It’s about a plant whose owner has rescued it from the plant store and lovingly cared for it over the years. No spoilers, but there is dramatic tension when something happens to the owner. Though the plant is the protagonist of the story, we also get to see how the humans in the story interact with and are affected by him (his owner-given name is George).

Again, to say more would be to ruin the experience for you. Just know that this story packs a lot into a little, and is very much worth your time! I will certainly be looking forward to reading more of what this author puts out in the future!!

Thank you to @jeremyraystories for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review! show less

Reread: October 2024.

Nothing much new to add. No change in opinion or rating. An enthusiastic 5 stars!
I forgot to mention in my original review the mini poem and the author's dedication at the start of this work - loved them both!
If you still haven't read this short story, what the heck are you waiting for?

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Originally read and reviewed in May 2022:

A short but stunning read!

George is a fern who stays reluctantly with Brenda and her family. He doesn’t show more appreciate being the only plant in the house, he doesn’t like her over-zealous attention to him, and does his best to thwart her “evil intentions”. But with time, he realises that Brenda genuinely likes him and there’s no ulterior agenda to her attention. However, soon after he accepts his fate and looks forward to knowing Brenda better, tragedy strikes and George’s life turns upside down. Will this be the end of the road for George in Brenda’s house?

I simply loved this little story. Having such an unusual lead character is a great starting point anyway. But to take a plant and make it communicate and emote the way we never think is an astounding move on author Jeremy Ray’s part. You see George not just as a plant in one corner of the room but as a living, breathing creature with feelings.

Within just 32 pages, this short story delivers a whammy of emotions. It covers grief, insecurity, acceptance and unconditional love much better than even some full-length novels do.

The Goodreads blurb ends with the line: “You'll never look at houseplants the same way again.” I agree wholeheartedly. I do have plenty of plants in my house though I don’t have much of a green thumb. (My plants grow despite and not because of my ministrations.) You bet I am going to have a nice, gratitude-filled chat with them tomorrow. show less

Reread: October 2024.

Nothing much new to add. No change in opinion or rating. An enthusiastic 5 stars!
I forgot to mention in my original review the mini poem and the author's dedication at the start of this work - loved them both!
If you still haven't read this short story, what the heck are you waiting for?

-----------------------------

Originally read and reviewed in May 2022:

A short but stunning read!

George is a fern who stays reluctantly with Brenda and her family. He doesn’t show more appreciate being the only plant in the house, he doesn’t like her over-zealous attention to him, and does his best to thwart her “evil intentions”. But with time, he realises that Brenda genuinely likes him and there’s no ulterior agenda to her attention. However, soon after he accepts his fate and looks forward to knowing Brenda better, tragedy strikes and George’s life turns upside down. Will this be the end of the road for George in Brenda’s house?

I simply loved this little story. Having such an unusual lead character is a great starting point anyway. But to take a plant and make it communicate and emote the way we never think is an astounding move on author Jeremy Ray’s part. You see George not just as a plant in one corner of the room but as a living, breathing creature with feelings.

Within just 32 pages, this short story delivers a whammy of emotions. It covers grief, insecurity, acceptance and unconditional love much better than even some full-length novels do.

The Goodreads blurb ends with the line: “You'll never look at houseplants the same way again.” I agree wholeheartedly. I do have plenty of plants in my house though I don’t have much of a green thumb. (My plants grow despite and not because of my ministrations.) You bet I am going to have a nice, gratitude-filled chat with them tomorrow. show less

“If only these woman-humans knew the real story: how a houseplant came to tolerate its human.”

Like Jeremy, for most of my life I’ve never really been able to keep a plant alive. The only one that seems to be alive is this one cactus that my grandmother gave to me after I killed one that my friend gave me*.

I won’t include any spoilers, because I loved the foreword and the story. I’m also in a sentimental mood, and I got really sad reading this. It’s a really great story about how show more we can find love, and how different people deal with loss differently.

I really loved that the author told this story from the point of view of a little fern. I really appreciate how he gave these plants more power than normally expected and how they use that to communicate with humans. It’s a nice way of remembering that plants also live and sometimes they might just grow better if they’re surrounded by love. show less