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What the Statue Thinks: A Collection of Short Stories
A recovering alcoholic must face his demons in the ‘land of the dead.’ Two actresses become dangerously consumed by an experimental approach to making theatre. A married couple travels to their old vacation spot in search of everything they’ve lost. A neighborhood’s misguided efforts to remove a gaggle of domestic geese lead to the transformation of a young boy. Two lifeguards wrestle over thorny questions of guilt and accountability in the long shadow of 9/11. The owner of a local bike store and a misjudged teenager enter onto a tragic collision course one fateful night. Set principally in the Jersey Shore area, these eleven stories portray people who somehow manage to wrest a strange and singular beauty from the ordeals that define their lives.
214 pages, Paperback
Published January 5, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
June 1, 2024
For someone who isn't really into short stories, I enjoyed this book immensely. For every story that that didn't resonate with me, there were two that moved me deeply. Loved this book, can highly recommend!
January 15, 2024
The best short stories capture emotion in a compact space. Unlike longer fiction, which has the ability–and the requirement–to build out worlds, plots and characters, a good short story gives you a snapshot of a person’s state of mind. It’s all about packing emotional impact into 10-15 pages.
Michael Goodwin Hilton does exactly that in “What the Statue Thinks,” a new collection of 11 contemporary fiction short stories from Wild Ink Publishing. All of the stories are set in New Jersey and revolve around a single character, or a small group of 2-3 characters at most, who are at a moment of crisis.
In each of these stories, we experience what the main character is feeling—and usually isn’t pleasant. Guilt, shame, anger. Hilton does a masterful job in making us feel something powerful.
Probably my favorite story is “Long Grass,” a story in which two actresses take method acting to new—and dangerous—levels. I won’t spoil anything, but this one had some twists that hooked me. Another gem is “Blind Spots,” a story of a misunderstood teen who undeservedly becomes the target of a local business owner who can’t see beyond his own bitterness and prejudices.
But every story in this collection is enjoyable and thought-provoking. One of the best things about short fiction is that you can read a complete story in one sitting, and each of the stories in this collection is well worth that time.
Michael Goodwin Hilton does exactly that in “What the Statue Thinks,” a new collection of 11 contemporary fiction short stories from Wild Ink Publishing. All of the stories are set in New Jersey and revolve around a single character, or a small group of 2-3 characters at most, who are at a moment of crisis.
In each of these stories, we experience what the main character is feeling—and usually isn’t pleasant. Guilt, shame, anger. Hilton does a masterful job in making us feel something powerful.
Probably my favorite story is “Long Grass,” a story in which two actresses take method acting to new—and dangerous—levels. I won’t spoil anything, but this one had some twists that hooked me. Another gem is “Blind Spots,” a story of a misunderstood teen who undeservedly becomes the target of a local business owner who can’t see beyond his own bitterness and prejudices.
But every story in this collection is enjoyable and thought-provoking. One of the best things about short fiction is that you can read a complete story in one sitting, and each of the stories in this collection is well worth that time.
April 26, 2024
Devastating and hauntingly beautiful
How does he do it? I asked myself this question with story after story. The writing is stripped of extraneous details. Michael Hilton reveals his characters with just the right words, and they are devastating. They reveal worlds beneath the first meanings. Hilton is also a playwright, which shows in the masterful way he crafts conversations. But his settings as well are so perfectly delineated that I could vividly imagine each place. The author writes characters fighting against inner and outer demons. Just when all seems bleak, he uses the story to describe the larger world in language that took my breath away and left me close to tears. How does he do it, I asked, and the answer is, with talent that has no limit.
How does he do it? I asked myself this question with story after story. The writing is stripped of extraneous details. Michael Hilton reveals his characters with just the right words, and they are devastating. They reveal worlds beneath the first meanings. Hilton is also a playwright, which shows in the masterful way he crafts conversations. But his settings as well are so perfectly delineated that I could vividly imagine each place. The author writes characters fighting against inner and outer demons. Just when all seems bleak, he uses the story to describe the larger world in language that took my breath away and left me close to tears. How does he do it, I asked, and the answer is, with talent that has no limit.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews