Kevin Coolidge
Day by Day Armageddon
Screw Armageddon, this is Hell.—unknown survivor
September 29th
All Laurel Health System flu clinics have been canceled until further notice. What the? I can’t even turn on the TV without hearing some scary swine flu story. Ok, I get it. Flu shots are good; the flu is bad. But the “must have” accessory of the season, the flu shot, isn’t to be had anywhere. I’m assured that production is being ramped up. There is nothing to worry about…
October 23rd
I get a call from the Don Gill Elementary School. My nephew is running a fever and my sister can’t be reached. I pick him up and I find out that many children have become ill. Yes, this is a little unusual, but there is nothing to worry about…
October 25th
President Obama declares the swine flu outbreak a national emergency. We are assured that this is not a response to new developments. Illness is more prevalent than ever and production delays mount, but there is nothing to worry about…
October 27th
The hospital has canceled the local Halloween festivities. LHS is restricting anyone under the age of 19 from entering facilities. This is for the safety of the patients and employees. There is nothing to worry about…
October 28th
I begin reading Day by Day Armageddon written by J.L Bourne and published by Pocket Books. This apocalyptic, zombie novel is written in first person format as a journal. The narrator is an unnamed US Naval officer who starts the diary as a New Year’s resolution. As the days progress, It appears something is happening in China. News sources report a mysterious disease sweeping the Middle Kingdom.
The highly contagious influenza quickly spreads around the globe, and our chronicler is stranded in his home while on leave. He decides to remain barricaded in his home, improving his defenses, buying more ammo and stocking up on MREs (Meals Ready to Eat)while society quickly crumbles around him.
The government’s precautionary measures fail to contain the plague, and politicians and the remnants of the military retreat to hidden bunkers, leaving the civilian population to fend for themselves. Our protagonist teams up with his only surviving neighbor, and they trek the landscape, searching for a zombie-free zone. Along the way, our heroes encounter hordes of undead, rampaging rednecks, and realistic survival situations.
The author, J.L. Bourne, is an active duty naval officer, and his use of military jargon, accurate descriptions of weapons, as well as realistic survival strategies add a keen edge to the tale that many zombie stories ignore. In many ways, this book is as much an insightful look into the psyche of a skilled survivor, as it is a post-apocalyptic thriller. I did see, however, some lack of dramatic tension, as the characters were so well prepared for almost every scenario. I found the journal format a clever storytelling device, but the first person format does make it harder to give depth to the supporting characters. I also appreciated the addition of crossed off words, as well as coffee rings that gave this zombie survival journal verisimilitude and an authentic bite…
October 31st
It’s time to finish up my book review column and turn on the porch light. It’s Halloween night and soon children dressed as ghosts and ghouls will be banging on my door begging for treats. Here comes a group shambling along now. Wow, I swear the costumes get more realistic every year. If I didn’t know better, I’d swear it was the dead crawling from the grave, but it’s Halloween and there’s nothing to worry about…
Ghosts? Ghouls? Or brain-chomping zombies? Email me at frommyshelf@epix.net Miss a past column? Visit the crypt at http://frommyshelf.blogspot.com and get your fill. Looking for a story with a happy ending? Check out “Hobo Finds a Home,” a children’s book soon to be awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. All Hobo had to do was promise to write a sequel…
Showing posts with label Halloween. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Halloween. Show all posts
Monday, November 9, 2009
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Oops! A review from October that never got posted here! (or) If Janet Evanovich can publish "Plum Spooky" in January, why can't I do Halloween now?
Kasey Cox
Boo! Ooooooooooo! Screeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek! Sound effects from stories best told around a campfire, or with a flashlight at the slumber party. No matter how much adults may roll their eyes, or try to steer their kids away from the “Goosebumps” books, most kids like scary stories. What’s the attraction? There’s a lot of deep psychology behind that answer, as well as theories from many other fields of study, but suffice it to say here that what kids seem to like best is a story or song with equal parts of scary, gross, and funny mixed in. Do you know the old story about the voice chanting, “When I get you, I’m going to eat you!” and what the chanter was really after? If you can’t remember it from your childhood, ask a ‘tween. Be prepared: the story itself is creepy in the telling, but “ew!” in the ending.
“The Ugly Pumpkin” by Dave Horowitz. Retelling of the classic Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale, “The Ugly Duckling”. Bright drawings in leap-out-at-you Halloween and fall colors of orange, yellow, blue, and black. It’s autumn, and all the pumpkins are lined up, waiting to be chosen to become Jack-O-Lanterns. The Ugly Pumpkin gets passed over, again and again, but even more hurtful than this rejection is the scorn and teasing he endures, as other pumpkins, kids in Halloween costumes, skeletons, and even trees make jokes at his expense and say cruel things. In despair, he rolls down into a ragged garden to hide and be alone, and accidentally, joyfully, discovers the truth of his identity, that which should have been obvious: he is not a pumpkin after all. Perhaps my favorite part of this hilarious and touching story are the enormous letters of the words as he shouts first his misery than his jubilation to the sky: first, that he is the Ugly Pumpkin; finally, “Oh My Gosh! I’m a ……!” Far be it for me to ruin the end for you and the delighted children you’ll share this with. Besides, you’ve got to see these illustrations for yourself! I believe old Hans would get a big chuckle out of this rendition of the story he told people was autobiographical.
“Sipping Spiders Through a Straw: Campfire Songs for Monsters” – lyrics by Kelly DiPucchio, pictures by Gris Grimly. Grimly, whose style and work is now celebrated in its own right, cites his early influences from H. P. Lovecraft, Edgar Allan Poe, and artist Edward Gorey. As for the lyrics, for those of you who have lived through “Great Green Gobs of Greasy Grimy Gopher Guts” and/or “Jingle Bells, Batman Smells”, as a kid yourself or as an adult now, this collection is fine. Most of the words do not evoke anything too disgusting, and many are quite giggling-ly clever. Skip over any songs you don’t want your kids singing, enjoy the ones you all get a laugh from, and enjoy the whimsical, strange drawings. The images and the words may be a little too much for those younger than 5 years old, I think – with my kindergarten-going nephew in mind. He would enjoy them, but his younger sister might be a little scared, or just not quite language-ready to keep up with the words. I would gleefully share this with my friends ages 5 and up, and find it especially useful to fill time entertaining kids at upcoming Halloween events.
Boo! Ooooooooooo! Screeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek! Sound effects from stories best told around a campfire, or with a flashlight at the slumber party. No matter how much adults may roll their eyes, or try to steer their kids away from the “Goosebumps” books, most kids like scary stories. What’s the attraction? There’s a lot of deep psychology behind that answer, as well as theories from many other fields of study, but suffice it to say here that what kids seem to like best is a story or song with equal parts of scary, gross, and funny mixed in. Do you know the old story about the voice chanting, “When I get you, I’m going to eat you!” and what the chanter was really after? If you can’t remember it from your childhood, ask a ‘tween. Be prepared: the story itself is creepy in the telling, but “ew!” in the ending.
“The Ugly Pumpkin” by Dave Horowitz. Retelling of the classic Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale, “The Ugly Duckling”. Bright drawings in leap-out-at-you Halloween and fall colors of orange, yellow, blue, and black. It’s autumn, and all the pumpkins are lined up, waiting to be chosen to become Jack-O-Lanterns. The Ugly Pumpkin gets passed over, again and again, but even more hurtful than this rejection is the scorn and teasing he endures, as other pumpkins, kids in Halloween costumes, skeletons, and even trees make jokes at his expense and say cruel things. In despair, he rolls down into a ragged garden to hide and be alone, and accidentally, joyfully, discovers the truth of his identity, that which should have been obvious: he is not a pumpkin after all. Perhaps my favorite part of this hilarious and touching story are the enormous letters of the words as he shouts first his misery than his jubilation to the sky: first, that he is the Ugly Pumpkin; finally, “Oh My Gosh! I’m a ……!” Far be it for me to ruin the end for you and the delighted children you’ll share this with. Besides, you’ve got to see these illustrations for yourself! I believe old Hans would get a big chuckle out of this rendition of the story he told people was autobiographical.
“Sipping Spiders Through a Straw: Campfire Songs for Monsters” – lyrics by Kelly DiPucchio, pictures by Gris Grimly. Grimly, whose style and work is now celebrated in its own right, cites his early influences from H. P. Lovecraft, Edgar Allan Poe, and artist Edward Gorey. As for the lyrics, for those of you who have lived through “Great Green Gobs of Greasy Grimy Gopher Guts” and/or “Jingle Bells, Batman Smells”, as a kid yourself or as an adult now, this collection is fine. Most of the words do not evoke anything too disgusting, and many are quite giggling-ly clever. Skip over any songs you don’t want your kids singing, enjoy the ones you all get a laugh from, and enjoy the whimsical, strange drawings. The images and the words may be a little too much for those younger than 5 years old, I think – with my kindergarten-going nephew in mind. He would enjoy them, but his younger sister might be a little scared, or just not quite language-ready to keep up with the words. I would gleefully share this with my friends ages 5 and up, and find it especially useful to fill time entertaining kids at upcoming Halloween events.
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