strangebookssecretary's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
strangebookssecretary's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
emilysherr's review
4.0
there’s something methodical, almost clinical in mike russell’s writing style that’s as much addicting as it is unsettling. i enjoyed some symbolic moments, laughed at the absurdism of others and had fun reading another piece of insanity. will probably tackle the rest of his books that i haven’t read yet at some points this year
quoth_chloe's review
2.0
I was sent this book in exchange for an honest review!
I am the first to say I love strange things and I really enjoyed the creepy and completely bizarre stories however, they may have been a bit too much for me!
I enjoyed the short story style, I think anything longer for these particular stories would have been too much. The characters were interesting and they definitely evoked certain emotions through just their personalities.
I definitely appreciated the writing style, the author is very talented and can really create interesting characters and scenes and these stories are definitely original, however I feel they were lost on me. This really isn't the sort of thing I usually read and although it was a great experience to jump out of my comfort zone I personally don't think this is something I would seek out myself.
That being said, my boyfriend found them incredibly intriguing so I guess it just depends on the person!
I am very grateful to strangebooks for sending me this and I hope I get to review some other strange books in the future!
I am the first to say I love strange things and I really enjoyed the creepy and completely bizarre stories however, they may have been a bit too much for me!
I enjoyed the short story style, I think anything longer for these particular stories would have been too much. The characters were interesting and they definitely evoked certain emotions through just their personalities.
I definitely appreciated the writing style, the author is very talented and can really create interesting characters and scenes and these stories are definitely original, however I feel they were lost on me. This really isn't the sort of thing I usually read and although it was a great experience to jump out of my comfort zone I personally don't think this is something I would seek out myself.
That being said, my boyfriend found them incredibly intriguing so I guess it just depends on the person!
I am very grateful to strangebooks for sending me this and I hope I get to review some other strange books in the future!
cathreadsalot's review
4.0
Thank you to the author for providing me a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
Strange Medicine is the third short story collection I have read by Mike Russell, and I have to say I think it’s my favourite. The level of detail the he puts into his stories is unparalleled. I can always picture so vividly the things he is describing, it almost feels like I’m actually inside the world he has created. There are 8 stories in this book; my favourites were Mime and Mr. Dennis and the Universe. I have come to find that the stories I enjoy more are always the longer ones, probably just going back to the fact that I enjoy all the work he puts into the details.
I would recommend this book to anyone. It was a very quick and interesting read :)
Strange Medicine is the third short story collection I have read by Mike Russell, and I have to say I think it’s my favourite. The level of detail the he puts into his stories is unparalleled. I can always picture so vividly the things he is describing, it almost feels like I’m actually inside the world he has created. There are 8 stories in this book; my favourites were Mime and Mr. Dennis and the Universe. I have come to find that the stories I enjoy more are always the longer ones, probably just going back to the fact that I enjoy all the work he puts into the details.
I would recommend this book to anyone. It was a very quick and interesting read :)
pip94's review
3.0
The publisher very kindly sent me a physical copy in return for an honest review. This is definitely a bit of a weird one. While reading it I wouldn't have been surprised to find question marks floating above my head. There are some pretty bizarre stories in here. I found it quite refreshing, although some went a bit over my head. It is written well and the stories are interesting, but I did like some stories better than others. If you are looking for some weird stories, this is definitely worth a read.
stephbookshine's review
4.0
*I received a free copy of this book, with thanks to the author. The decision to review and my opinions are my own.*
Another collection of the strange, bizarre and surreal from Mike Russell in Strange Medicine.
In these short stories he conjures up variously a man precariously constructed and confused; a couple haunted by bridges and walls; a love affair with a telephone; a world where mimes are outlawed; a grief-stricken father full of hate; a person consumed by paranoia; an intellectual with brain problems; and a highly unusual shoulder-fish.
As I found previously with Mr Russell’s short stories, to describe them is ridiculous, as on the surface they seem nonsensical – odd dreams and fancies with no rhyme or reason behind them. Yet when you actually read the stories you find that beneath the strange surface you are actually reading about very sensible and logical things: loneliness, grief, hubris, love, understanding… the gamut of human emotions and experiences.
This collection of stories entertained me as I read them, but kept me thinking, turning over the ideas and feelings presented, long after I had put the book down.
‘In the future,’ the woman says, ‘I remember a man like you.’
Anthony Tobias Bradshaw slowly lowers his newspaper.
‘I am sorry, madam, are you talking to me?’ Anthony Tobias Bradshaw enquires, knowing perfectly well that she is but wanting the woman to understand just how impertinent it is of her to be doing so.
The woman ignores Anthony Tobias Bradshaw’s question and says:
‘One day, the man realised that he wasn’t a man at all but that he was, in fact, sixteen birds. At the moment of realisation, the birds all suddenly took flight, each one flying off in a completely different direction.’
– Mike Russell, ‘Flock’ in Strange Medicine
Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog
https://bookshineandreadbows.wordpress.com/2020/01/17/strange-medicine-mike-russell/
Another collection of the strange, bizarre and surreal from Mike Russell in Strange Medicine.
In these short stories he conjures up variously a man precariously constructed and confused; a couple haunted by bridges and walls; a love affair with a telephone; a world where mimes are outlawed; a grief-stricken father full of hate; a person consumed by paranoia; an intellectual with brain problems; and a highly unusual shoulder-fish.
As I found previously with Mr Russell’s short stories, to describe them is ridiculous, as on the surface they seem nonsensical – odd dreams and fancies with no rhyme or reason behind them. Yet when you actually read the stories you find that beneath the strange surface you are actually reading about very sensible and logical things: loneliness, grief, hubris, love, understanding… the gamut of human emotions and experiences.
This collection of stories entertained me as I read them, but kept me thinking, turning over the ideas and feelings presented, long after I had put the book down.
‘In the future,’ the woman says, ‘I remember a man like you.’
Anthony Tobias Bradshaw slowly lowers his newspaper.
‘I am sorry, madam, are you talking to me?’ Anthony Tobias Bradshaw enquires, knowing perfectly well that she is but wanting the woman to understand just how impertinent it is of her to be doing so.
The woman ignores Anthony Tobias Bradshaw’s question and says:
‘One day, the man realised that he wasn’t a man at all but that he was, in fact, sixteen birds. At the moment of realisation, the birds all suddenly took flight, each one flying off in a completely different direction.’
– Mike Russell, ‘Flock’ in Strange Medicine
Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog
https://bookshineandreadbows.wordpress.com/2020/01/17/strange-medicine-mike-russell/
briarsreviews's review
4.0
Strange Medicine by Mike Russell
This book is an excellent selection of short stories. I love books like this because there are great for those who want a short term read, but also want a lot of spice in their life and Strange Medicine brought it!
These stories are quirky and exciting, which isn't something you can say about a lot of short stories series. Some of them seem a little dark or strange for short stories, but they are so well written it's unbelievable. This book definitely kept me interested!!
Some of the stories are more thoughtful, while others will just make you laugh. Without spoiling, I would say this is a good collection that gives you a little bit of everything - it's just enough! These out of the box, bizarre, yet thoughtful stories are a great way to spice up your library or reading experience. You'll have many thought provoking questions, which is just how I like my reads!!!
My critiques are that I would have liked to read more into each story. I felt like some of them could have been expanded much further than they were, but they were short stories and that it is. This book wasn't meant to be a full length novel.
This is a refreshing novel and I definitely want to read more! It didn't wow my socks off beyond belief, but it was so great that is deserves four stars! Mike Russell is a very talent author who should definitely be in the top contenders at book stores (if he isn't, they are crazy! What a talent that guy is!).
Four out of five stars.
This book is an excellent selection of short stories. I love books like this because there are great for those who want a short term read, but also want a lot of spice in their life and Strange Medicine brought it!
These stories are quirky and exciting, which isn't something you can say about a lot of short stories series. Some of them seem a little dark or strange for short stories, but they are so well written it's unbelievable. This book definitely kept me interested!!
Some of the stories are more thoughtful, while others will just make you laugh. Without spoiling, I would say this is a good collection that gives you a little bit of everything - it's just enough! These out of the box, bizarre, yet thoughtful stories are a great way to spice up your library or reading experience. You'll have many thought provoking questions, which is just how I like my reads!!!
My critiques are that I would have liked to read more into each story. I felt like some of them could have been expanded much further than they were, but they were short stories and that it is. This book wasn't meant to be a full length novel.
This is a refreshing novel and I definitely want to read more! It didn't wow my socks off beyond belief, but it was so great that is deserves four stars! Mike Russell is a very talent author who should definitely be in the top contenders at book stores (if he isn't, they are crazy! What a talent that guy is!).
Four out of five stars.
bookishjade's review
4.0
I took a chance on this book. When I bought it, I hadn’t even heard of the author before let alone read any of his books. But I saw it on Instagram, and the premise really intrigued me…
This is a collection of short stories categorised under the banner ‘weird fiction’, and they are definitely weird which meant I wasn’t disappointed.
But as well as being weird, they are extremely imaginative and quite brilliant. These stories take everyday situations like going to work and having a relationship, then put a weird spin on them that makes you think differently about the world we’re living in.
The opening story, Flock is very odd. We are introduced to a man, Anthony Tobias Bradshaw (and he is always referred to by his full name) who lives a repetitive and rather mundane existence.
Despite technically being retired, he still returns to work each day, to an empty abandoned office. He does his 9-5 shift, then goes back home to his wife. Except one day things are different, and the routine alters.
It’s a great little story, but the weirdest part is the ending. It’s a satisfying and funny ending, and you won’t be expecting it. This one set the tone for the rest of the book.
The second story, Seventy-Two Bricks, had me feeling as though I was in a dream. I felt like I was part of it, and the two main characters Geoffrey and Tiffany, are very endearing. This is a love story told in an unconventional way, but it’ll still manage to break your heart.
It still has surreal elements, but it was when I read this story that I knew the book wasn’t going to be weird on the extreme end of the spectrum like Russell’s novella [b:Strungballs|32968591|Strungballs|Mike Russell|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1479122473s/32968591.jpg|53602627] was. This was a positive realisation, because I could tell that these stories would have a medicine like healing, rather than a shock effect, and that’s exactly what I want from stories as imaginative as these.
My favourite story in the entire collection is without a doubt Mime. It’s also one of the longer stories, and this made it even better because I was enjoying it so much. The plot itself could have rounded up within seven pages, but Russell pushes this idea to its very limits.
What appears at first to be a story exploring mime artists, quickly turns into something much deeper and more meaningful. I was fully immersed in this story so much that I didn’t want it to end. I will never be able to see a mime artist in the same way again, and this story is magical and one I’m sure any mime artist would be proud to read!
I’d recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a writer who can take fiction to the next level of imagination, whilst including weird ideas that you never thought could exist. They do exist, and they’re in this book.
This is a collection of short stories categorised under the banner ‘weird fiction’, and they are definitely weird which meant I wasn’t disappointed.
But as well as being weird, they are extremely imaginative and quite brilliant. These stories take everyday situations like going to work and having a relationship, then put a weird spin on them that makes you think differently about the world we’re living in.
The opening story, Flock is very odd. We are introduced to a man, Anthony Tobias Bradshaw (and he is always referred to by his full name) who lives a repetitive and rather mundane existence.
Despite technically being retired, he still returns to work each day, to an empty abandoned office. He does his 9-5 shift, then goes back home to his wife. Except one day things are different, and the routine alters.
It’s a great little story, but the weirdest part is the ending. It’s a satisfying and funny ending, and you won’t be expecting it. This one set the tone for the rest of the book.
The second story, Seventy-Two Bricks, had me feeling as though I was in a dream. I felt like I was part of it, and the two main characters Geoffrey and Tiffany, are very endearing. This is a love story told in an unconventional way, but it’ll still manage to break your heart.
It still has surreal elements, but it was when I read this story that I knew the book wasn’t going to be weird on the extreme end of the spectrum like Russell’s novella [b:Strungballs|32968591|Strungballs|Mike Russell|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1479122473s/32968591.jpg|53602627] was. This was a positive realisation, because I could tell that these stories would have a medicine like healing, rather than a shock effect, and that’s exactly what I want from stories as imaginative as these.
My favourite story in the entire collection is without a doubt Mime. It’s also one of the longer stories, and this made it even better because I was enjoying it so much. The plot itself could have rounded up within seven pages, but Russell pushes this idea to its very limits.
What appears at first to be a story exploring mime artists, quickly turns into something much deeper and more meaningful. I was fully immersed in this story so much that I didn’t want it to end. I will never be able to see a mime artist in the same way again, and this story is magical and one I’m sure any mime artist would be proud to read!
I’d recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a writer who can take fiction to the next level of imagination, whilst including weird ideas that you never thought could exist. They do exist, and they’re in this book.
lourdes_chapters_we_love's review against another edition
3.0
This is a collection of short stories that are funny and weird.
Review to follow.
Review to follow.