Books like “Flash Fiction Flash Bangs A Sparkling Array of Hundred Word Short Stories” that tell their stories in a short number of words come along every so often and usually they are lots of fun like the ones from Daw publishing that were only 99 words by many great writers of science fiction. Most recently there is “Twisted Tales in 66 Words,” edited by Kimberly Raiser. Andy Underwood could have taken lessons from the others because it is more than trying to tell a tale in 100 words. One of the tricks is to tell a story in as few words as possible but the author also has the same responsibility to readers to have a beginning, middle and an end that it has all led up to. “Twisted Tales” did so in only 66 words “Flash Fiction” doesn’t because he is just using words and no real focal point. He leads off with some interesting ideas but does not conclude them very well. “Flash Fiction Flash Bangs a Sparkling Array of Hundred Word Short Stories,” a real disappointment, fizzles out on the first page and never gets any better.
Flash Fiction Flash Bangs A Sparkling Array of Hundred Word Short Stories
Andy Underwood
Outskirts Press Inc
Denver, Colorado
9781432783488, $15.95, www.amazon.com www.outskirtspress.com
