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Kiss Kiss

Paul Beckman

4.53 · Rating details · 17 ratings · 10 reviews

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Paperback, 149 pages

Published March 2018 by Truth Serum Press

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Jun 21, 2018 Kathy rated it it was amazing

Paul Beckman’s most recent collection of stories, Kiss Kiss, published by Truth Serum Press, is arguably his best to date. If I counted right, there are no less than 78 new flashes compiled here and each one is a tiny, glowing gem of a story, with characters you'll not soon forget.

Not included in this collection, Paul's story, "Healing Time" is illustrative of his craft and was one of the stories most often called out and admired in reviews of Best Small Fictions 2016, edited by Stuart Dybek. Th ...more

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May 11, 2018 Nod Ghosh rated it really liked it

Kiss Kiss by Paul Beckman

Paul Beckman has peppered many online flash fiction publications with his spicy stories. It's good to see these come together, along with some new pieces in the collection Kiss Kiss, published by Truth Serum Press.

The book opens with a With a Wink and a Nod, where the narrator sheds body parts in random places. But wait; are the appendages still part of him even though they have been separated? This sets the tone for other stories with a surreal setting.

In Lemon Pledge, ...more

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Sep 19, 2018 Jesse Heels Rawlins Crime Writer-Editor rated it it was amazing

As a writer who's been penning published flash and crime stories for the past year, I had the honor of meeting flash fiction writer Paul Beckman in an online writing group. In my role as Book Reviewer for southern crime mag Story and Grit, I later had the privilege of interviewing Mr. Beckman -- as well as reading and reviewing an advanced copy of KISS KISS.

I've awarded this fun and quirky collection of bite-sized stories 5-Stars. Anyone interested in learning more about Mr. Beckman and his KIS ...more

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Dec 30, 2018 Ray rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2018

Another collection of ultra short tales by Paul Beckman, author of Peek & Maybe I Ought To Sit In A Dark Room For A While. Some of my faves: 'I Am Not the Marathon Man', 'TSA: Here to Serve', 'The Woman with the Juicy Fruit Breath', 'Deal or no Deal', 'Sand', 'Epilgue', 'Jimbo', & 'Dental Floss Debate: Good vs. Not So Good'. This is a must-read. Paul is an exceptionally talented writer. Read this. Buy it now! ...more

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Dec 29, 2018 Nancy Stohlman rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Paul Beckman has a new collection of flash fiction! Aren't familiar with Beckman's work? Here's a taste: drunk mothers at weddings, grandmas who play strip poker, "Too Many Uncles", a man whose body parts are falling off, a man whose right hand is battling his left, and "Goodbye, Already", where dead family members are still showing up to family functions. These and so many more make up the delightful, dark smorgasbord that is Kiss Kiss. ...more

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Jun 20, 2018 Ray rated it it was amazing

Shelves: read-in-2018

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Mar 04, 2019 Alison McBain rated it it was amazing

The first thing that I have to note is that my review of Paul Beckman's flash fiction collection Kiss Kiss will be longer than most of the stories in his book! A master at the ultra short form, Beckman can say as much with twenty words as most authors take a whole novel to reveal. While many of his stories are written in a literary style, most of them also contain comedic elements, with one or two chuckle-out-loud moments of humor.

There are some common themes that run throughout the tales. Very The first thing that I have to note is that my review of Paul Beckman's flash fiction collection Kiss Kiss will be longer than most of the stories in his book! A master at the ultra short form, Beckman can say as much with twenty words as most authors take a whole novel to reveal. While many of his stories are written in a literary style, most of them also contain comedic elements, with one or two chuckle-out-loud moments of humor.

There are some common themes that run throughout the tales. Very serious problems are at the heart of almost every story, and it's interesting how Beckman can turn these situations on their head. Some of the darker themes include living in the projects, alcoholism, poverty, physical and mental abuse, prostitution, hunger, murder, sexual problems, infidelity, marital and relationship difficulties, bizarre families and neglected children.

These are hardly subjects that would make you laugh when written as a list like this, are they? But Beckman manages to find the humor in most situations, and give the reader a glimpse into his unique perspective. No subject is taboo in the stories, with everything from a penis that falls off but is still useful to its owner, peeping toms, facial ass hair, grandma's sexual escapades, a woman with an arachnid fetish, incest, role reversals, a deadly ball of dental floss, and urine as a medical cure.

While each story is a standalone, there are a few reoccurring characters throughout the book. Two central characters are Mirsky and his wife Elaine, who seem to have more problems than a country song. Many of the stories are written in first-person point of view, and while most of the main characters are male, there are also a few forays into the woman's perspective.

Despite a strong humorous element to many of the pieces, there are a number of more serious works included that give balance to the book as a whole. Some are written in an experimental or surreal style, some as vignettes, and some with the slow pacing and gravity of literary fiction. All are fascinating to read, and the variety and breadth of Beckman's writing will allow readers of all backgrounds to find something to enjoy.

The stories I enjoyed the most, though, were the twisted ones. Not necessarily the twist endings, although there are a number of those, but the ones that illuminated some dark ethos of society and brought it to light. For example, Beckman's "Discussion of My Night Patrol With the Guys from the Station While Having Drinks." In the flash story, Beckman brilliantly highlights the dysfunctional nature of unchecked authority, bad relationships, drug abuse, sexual coercion and power abuse/powerlessness, among other themes. He makes the narrative comedic in the way the story's told, and also stark due to the ideas behind the characters' actions. And he does so in under two hundred words.

Flash fiction has always been one of my favorite forms to write, and the difficulty in creating effective flash stories is that so much has to be left out to meet that word count goal. It's what's not said, more than what is. That can make it difficult to create a complete story arc at times, or to convey a mood or feeling strongly enough to keep a reader on the same page as the writer. After all, it's a short ride from start to finish, and yet the author has to form the same connection with the reader as the author of a longer work.

Beckman is highly skilled at creating this depth of emotion in the reader, whether the emotion be light and comedic or dark and profound – or sometimes both at once.

Often irreverent and sometimes heartbreaking, Kiss Kiss is an enthralling and entertaining read from start to finish. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

This review was originally published in the magazine Bewildering Stories, Issue # 752 ...more

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Nov 16, 2018 Anne rated it it was amazing

Review of Kiss Kiss: Flash Fictions by Paul Beckman | Truth Serum Press, 2018

This review will tightly focus on one story from Paul Beckman's marvelous recent collection of Flash Fictions, Kiss Kiss.

"The Only Hope of the Jews" is heartbreaking, tough, and its sentences pack the punch of a welterweight. Its swagger can be parsed via voice and syntax. Structurally, it's one breathless paragraph, a visceral prose-poem weighing 336 words -- a lean count given the narrative density of its seven sente Review of Kiss Kiss: Flash Fictions by Paul Beckman | Truth Serum Press, 2018

This review will tightly focus on one story from Paul Beckman's marvelous recent collection of Flash Fictions, Kiss Kiss.

"The Only Hope of the Jews" is heartbreaking, tough, and its sentences pack the punch of a welterweight. Its swagger can be parsed via voice and syntax. Structurally, it's one breathless paragraph, a visceral prose-poem weighing 336 words -- a lean count given the narrative density of its seven sentences. Tonally, it does all the things I love a Beckman story to do.

The speaker is direct and confrontational. All but two sentences begin with 'you,' and while the story front-loads verbs of being, the (literally) stooped and angry narrator quickly transitions to action verbs. If one were to examine only the verbs in the exposition, the chain is: are, hate, scrub, want, scrub, live, do need, are, are, are, is. When the narrator, a 14-year-old both isolated in a new home in the projects and targeted by gangs, has to stand and face his bullies? The verb tense morphs into action with him: look, see, reach, grab, scrape, go. In the aftermath of his noble beatdown, the narrative deftly transitions to future progressive tense, indicating that the punches, lessons, taking and telling will continue long into the future.

The sentence structure -- average length about 50 words! -- propels the narrative forward via polysyndeton. The relentless, sinewy 'and's mirror the speaker's driving desire to own a car and propel himself "as far away from that stoop" as he can, were he'll never "have to carry a jagged rock" in his pocket again. Check out this sentence:

"You know you'll never learn your lesson and when your mother comes home she'll take one look at you and punish you for fighting and you'll never tell her you're the only hope of the Jews and she thinks you've gotten to be a ruffian since you had to move to this neighborhood and that unlike your brother and sisters you're hanging out with the wrong crowd."

Man, that voice is radiant with life. I am a fan of Beckman's work. His themes of familial bonds and social conflict pinball throughout this collection of 78 stories in 143 pages (averaging less than 2 pages each) and his characters are idiosyncratic and persuasive. This is a collection worthy of gift-giving and is an essential addition to the flash aficionado's bookshelf.

Reviewer's full disclosure. I received an advanced review copy from the publisher. In addition, Paul is a good friend, and we have workshopped flash fiction together. He hosts the F-Bomb NYC literary reading series, a monthly showcase, and has invited me to read there. Our writing styles are dissimilar, but I learn a great deal by studying his work and admire what he accomplishes with words. That said, I not only read a lot of flash fiction, but also have lots of chances to hear it spoken aloud, and this collection includes some of my favorite stories I've had the good fortune to hear Beckman read live. "The Only Hope of the Jews" is but one of those. ...more

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Jul 08, 2018 David rated it it was amazing

I love Beckman’s approach to flash. The few details he deliberately chooses, the unique well-intentioned and laidback rhythm, the kind of windows on little worlds he creates, it’s just all so good. Absolutely marvelous flash.

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