A review by owenblacker
The Pigeon Summer, by Lee Mandelo, Brit Mandelo
4.0
A short, sweet, spooky meditation on grief
A very quick read — only 10 minutes — this short sees a character alone in an apartment with their grief. And maybe a ghost.
The theme reminded of me of Mandelo's later work, his debut novel Summer Sons, another spooky queer tale that became an instant favourite when I read it earlier this autumn. Both stories have queer protagonists mourning their closest friends, lost to maybe-suicide. Obviously that novel is a lot more involved and complex than a 22-page short, but this earlier piece still has some of the novel's charm. Y'all should read both.
A very quick read — only 10 minutes — this short sees a character alone in an apartment with their grief. And maybe a ghost.
The theme reminded of me of Mandelo's later work, his debut novel Summer Sons, another spooky queer tale that became an instant favourite when I read it earlier this autumn. Both stories have queer protagonists mourning their closest friends, lost to maybe-suicide. Obviously that novel is a lot more involved and complex than a 22-page short, but this earlier piece still has some of the novel's charm. Y'all should read both.