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Strangely Funny #1
Strangely Funny
This is not your typical anthology. Open these pages and discover twenty-five talented writers on a hilarious journey through the paranormal. Zombies who are finicky eaters, vampires caught between groupies and werewolves, and ghosts with awful decorating tastes await. We’ll even show you how to beat the monster in the closet. Join Joette Rozanski, Suzanne Robb, Agatha-winning author Catriona McPherson and many others as they take you from the ridiculous to the...Strangely Funny.
292 pages, Paperback
First published July 16, 2013
3 people are currently reading
280 people want to read
About the author
Sarah E. Glenn
32 books111 followersSarah E. Glenn has a B.S. in Journalism, which is a great degree for the dilettante she is. Later on, she did a stint as a graduate student in classical languages. She didn’t get the degree, but she’s great with crosswords. Her most interesting job was working the reports desk for the police department in Lexington, Kentucky, where she learned that criminals really are dumb.
Her great-great aunt served as a nurse in WWI, and was injured by poison gas during the fighting. A hundred years later, this would inspire Sarah to write stories Aunt Dess would probably not approve of. She is co-author of the Three Snowbirds mysteries with Gwen Mayo.
Sarah belongs to Sisters in Crime, the Short Mystery Fiction Society, and the Historical Novel Society. She lives in Safety Harbor, Florida.
Her great-great aunt served as a nurse in WWI, and was injured by poison gas during the fighting. A hundred years later, this would inspire Sarah to write stories Aunt Dess would probably not approve of. She is co-author of the Three Snowbirds mysteries with Gwen Mayo.
Sarah belongs to Sisters in Crime, the Short Mystery Fiction Society, and the Historical Novel Society. She lives in Safety Harbor, Florida.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
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July 31, 2013The thing about humor books is, if all the stories are by an author you like, say David Sedaris, you're probably going to like all the stories. But individual tastes vary, especially in humor, so the probability of liking every story in a collection by various authors is small.
So although there were a number of stories I didn't care for, there were some good ones. My favorites were:
Indricotherium by Rosalind Barden
Ruby by Jon Michael Kelley
I also enjoyed:
The Best of Taste by Edward Ahern
Window Watching by Joseph Jude
One Scareful Owner by Catriona McPherson
I Must Be Your First by Paul Wartenberg
Disclaimer: I also have a story in this, "We Bring Them Back. For You!" (It's intended to be funny, but as I said, tastes vary.)
So although there were a number of stories I didn't care for, there were some good ones. My favorites were:
Indricotherium by Rosalind Barden
Ruby by Jon Michael Kelley
I also enjoyed:
The Best of Taste by Edward Ahern
Window Watching by Joseph Jude
One Scareful Owner by Catriona McPherson
I Must Be Your First by Paul Wartenberg
Disclaimer: I also have a story in this, "We Bring Them Back. For You!" (It's intended to be funny, but as I said, tastes vary.)
November 2, 2015
A delicious assortment of darkly funny tales full of horror and magic from the fantasy genre. It ought to appeal to very young ages of ten to twelve or so, on up. The collection earns a solid four stars due to the consistent quality of the writing, though no two tales are penned by the same author. As with all collections of this kind, some stories do stand out a bit more than others, depending on the reader’s tastes. For me, one such tale was Tommy and the Trolls by James McCormick. It’s the kind of story parents will want to read to their kids as it teaches some good lessons of appreciation, love, and respect for family, all in the most hilariously roundabout way. Tommy, an eight year old genius, feels very remiss that his mother won’t just let him do whatever he wants. “What good are parents if they don’t let you do as you like?!” He has made up a long list of punishments for her, one corresponding to each offense, that includes, among other things, not allowing him his third helping of chocolate desert, not letting him stay out all night, not letting him… you get the idea. But deciding to be generous, he decides to banish her to a hell world instead! Lol. Needless to say, that doesn’t go as expected, and Tommy gets some rightly owed comeuppance for his efforts.
I’ve read novellas and novels from James McCormick previously. The strength of his writing is one of the things that drew me to this collection. But I’m just as delighted to have discovered some wonderful new authors. Another favorite tale by Joette Rozansky, The Homunculus Caper, involved a lazy slob of an apprentice alchemist. Determined to avoid cleaning dishes and tidying up his home, he magically animates a doll to be his tireless servant for him. Apparently mistreating magic-imbued dolls comes with some lessons in morality and fair play, in a tale that turned out to be strangely reminiscent of McCormick’s morality tale. A lot of screwy plot twists and belly laughs later, we arrive at the seminal point our hero will have to learn as part of receiving his just deserts.
Though clearly for the young reader and the young at heart, I suspect the YA audience will not be alone in enjoying these tales. Parents wishing to read aloud to even younger readers will find many of these stories irresistible in that regard, the two above notwithstanding.
I’ve read novellas and novels from James McCormick previously. The strength of his writing is one of the things that drew me to this collection. But I’m just as delighted to have discovered some wonderful new authors. Another favorite tale by Joette Rozansky, The Homunculus Caper, involved a lazy slob of an apprentice alchemist. Determined to avoid cleaning dishes and tidying up his home, he magically animates a doll to be his tireless servant for him. Apparently mistreating magic-imbued dolls comes with some lessons in morality and fair play, in a tale that turned out to be strangely reminiscent of McCormick’s morality tale. A lot of screwy plot twists and belly laughs later, we arrive at the seminal point our hero will have to learn as part of receiving his just deserts.
Though clearly for the young reader and the young at heart, I suspect the YA audience will not be alone in enjoying these tales. Parents wishing to read aloud to even younger readers will find many of these stories irresistible in that regard, the two above notwithstanding.
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June 23, 2016Ye Gods, I’m a big fan of James McCormick who delivers Tommy and the Trolls in this anthology. Thank God I’m past child bearing age or I would be panic stricken I might be delivered of a ‘Tommy.’ You get the feeling from the outset that Tommy is not your normal eight year old as he cooks up a spell in his bedroom, pentagram and all, to banish his poor benighted mother to Azamoth.
The spell works, but in reverse. Instead of Mum doing the bidding of a family trolls for eternity, he is destined to a life of servitude where he will never see the light of day again, as Mother troll tells him ‘the caves outside are not something you ever want to see.”
Not your average bedside story for children to teach them a lesson about appreciation.
James never ceases to amaze me with his vivid imagination that spans all kinds of fantasies, with well developed characterization and masterful writing.
I’m rather nervous about going to sleep tonight with the story fresh in my mind in case of parallel universes.
Not for the fainthearted.
I really enjoyed The Taste of Copper by Alex Azar. I’ll be looking out for more of his work.
And really related to Criticus Ex Machina by Sarah E. Glenn.
All in all a good read of well written short stories by talented writers when I don’t have time to sit down with a full length novel
The spell works, but in reverse. Instead of Mum doing the bidding of a family trolls for eternity, he is destined to a life of servitude where he will never see the light of day again, as Mother troll tells him ‘the caves outside are not something you ever want to see.”
Not your average bedside story for children to teach them a lesson about appreciation.
James never ceases to amaze me with his vivid imagination that spans all kinds of fantasies, with well developed characterization and masterful writing.
I’m rather nervous about going to sleep tonight with the story fresh in my mind in case of parallel universes.
Not for the fainthearted.
I really enjoyed The Taste of Copper by Alex Azar. I’ll be looking out for more of his work.
And really related to Criticus Ex Machina by Sarah E. Glenn.
All in all a good read of well written short stories by talented writers when I don’t have time to sit down with a full length novel
September 28, 2013
I received a copy of Strangely Funny as part of the Goodreads First Reads Giveaway.
Anthologies are hard to rate since the stories included can vary a great deal in their appeal and writing style. Strangely Funny is a wonderful introduction to many new authors and many of the stories were well written and humorous. Several of my favorites are: Criticus Ex Machina, One Scareful Owner, and I Must Be Your First. If you enjoy paranormal with a twist then this is an enjoyable collection and worth your time!
Anthologies are hard to rate since the stories included can vary a great deal in their appeal and writing style. Strangely Funny is a wonderful introduction to many new authors and many of the stories were well written and humorous. Several of my favorites are: Criticus Ex Machina, One Scareful Owner, and I Must Be Your First. If you enjoy paranormal with a twist then this is an enjoyable collection and worth your time!
May 18, 2016
Definitely some strange stories, some funnier than others and the funniest I thought was the first one - The Best of Taste - about placing an online dating ad. Some of the rest of the stories were more weird than funny but still a bit fun to read as were odd - such as the Tommy and the Trolls storey where one little genius 8 year old played with sorcery and ended-up in another land... for a while.
Many different authors so if you enjoy short, quirky stories and varied writing styles, will probably enjoy this anthology.
Many different authors so if you enjoy short, quirky stories and varied writing styles, will probably enjoy this anthology.
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August 22, 2013Since I have a story in the anthology I will leave any comments about the quality of the work to others.
Below is a link to the reading Ted Wenskus, one of the authors, gave of his story "Down for the Count." Give it a listen and decide for yourself if Strangely Funny appeals to you.
http://youtu.be/jpcKQ_MqIjI
Below is a link to the reading Ted Wenskus, one of the authors, gave of his story "Down for the Count." Give it a listen and decide for yourself if Strangely Funny appeals to you.
http://youtu.be/jpcKQ_MqIjI
October 15, 2013
25 writers take this from ridiculous to funny. Some really good and others not to my liking. Some well written and humorous. Zombies, vampires, warewolves, ghosts, paranormal. Something for everyone. An interesting read.
July 14, 2017
Fun and easy read
Really enjoyed these stories, with a humorous spin on what would traditionally be shelved in the Horror section. Well done for a first collection, and I'm looking forward to reading the next volume soon.
Really enjoyed these stories, with a humorous spin on what would traditionally be shelved in the Horror section. Well done for a first collection, and I'm looking forward to reading the next volume soon.
September 3, 2022
This is one of those titles I've had sitting on the table behind the couch, waiting to be picked up for the occasional read between innings (go, Jays!), periods (go, Sabres!), or commercials (go, Grimm!). It's been something of a struggle to keep it from the DNF pile, but it seemed like every 'one last story' was just strong enough to keep me reading.
Strangely Funny is certainly strange, but I can't say that I found much of it genuinely funny. Some of the stories were mildly amusing - in a smirk and a smile kind of way - but I can't say any of them had me laughing out. Humor is incredibly subjective, so I have to give Sarah E. Glenn credit for the variety of stories she's compiled here, but none of them really struck my funny bone. While many of them didn't work for me, there were some standouts that I would be remiss in not highlighting:
"Criticus Ex Machina" by Sarah E. Glenn
"Jake Blossom, Pixie Detective" by Ken Macgregor
"A Proper Job for a Lady" by Gwen Mayo
"Tommy and the Trolls" by James McCormick
"One Scareful Owner" by Catriona McPherson
"I Must Be Your First" by Paul Wartenberg
The stories are arranged in alphabetical order by author, so you can get a sense of just how long the dry spells were. I'd have to go back and count, but I believe there were 7 or 8 stories before striking gold with Glenn's own tale, and another half dozen weak entries followed. I had thought we'd hit pay dirt with 4 fantastic stories in a row, but the dry spell after that mini-run was even longer. Fortunately, Wartenberg swooped in to save the day (and a certain Slayer) with a great penultimate entry in the collection.
Awkward and uneven, and certainly more odd than funny, Strangely Funny is a collection that certainly had its strengths - it just contained, for me, too much fluff in between.
Originally reviewed at Beauty in Ruins
Strangely Funny is certainly strange, but I can't say that I found much of it genuinely funny. Some of the stories were mildly amusing - in a smirk and a smile kind of way - but I can't say any of them had me laughing out. Humor is incredibly subjective, so I have to give Sarah E. Glenn credit for the variety of stories she's compiled here, but none of them really struck my funny bone. While many of them didn't work for me, there were some standouts that I would be remiss in not highlighting:
"Criticus Ex Machina" by Sarah E. Glenn
"Jake Blossom, Pixie Detective" by Ken Macgregor
"A Proper Job for a Lady" by Gwen Mayo
"Tommy and the Trolls" by James McCormick
"One Scareful Owner" by Catriona McPherson
"I Must Be Your First" by Paul Wartenberg
The stories are arranged in alphabetical order by author, so you can get a sense of just how long the dry spells were. I'd have to go back and count, but I believe there were 7 or 8 stories before striking gold with Glenn's own tale, and another half dozen weak entries followed. I had thought we'd hit pay dirt with 4 fantastic stories in a row, but the dry spell after that mini-run was even longer. Fortunately, Wartenberg swooped in to save the day (and a certain Slayer) with a great penultimate entry in the collection.
Awkward and uneven, and certainly more odd than funny, Strangely Funny is a collection that certainly had its strengths - it just contained, for me, too much fluff in between.
Originally reviewed at Beauty in Ruins
October 25, 2013
Review to Come
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May 25, 2018Author's guest post at my blog:
https://bookfare.blogspot.com/2018/05...
https://bookfare.blogspot.com/2018/05...
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews