Short Fiction, Poetry and Classic Book Reviews
“All right kids, are we all here? One, two, three, four—good. Best behavior when we go inside please. Okay, here we go. All in a line please. Michael, over here with us. Quickly. Watch your step, Tia—there we go. Good job. Dylan, turn around please. Yes, that’s very clever, but we need to go up the... Continue Reading →
Echoing through the empty, Sunday morning main street of a country town, an elderly Honda hatchback engine screamed in speeding pain. In the driver’s seat of the car sat a young man wearing an ill-fitting suit and a worried look, wrenching the gearstick and mashing the clutch in a rushed and clumsy manner that corroborated... Continue Reading →
Adam sat upon one of the large, black stones on the hill overlooking the shore. The stone was flat and comfortless, but a good height for sitting, and a spectacular vantage point. He brushed the soles of his bare feet across the fine layer of sand that covered the stone below. Small waves rushed against... Continue Reading →
The Barnesville Racing Carnival was a beloved annual event and had been for the last twenty-three years. It began when young Billy Ferguson rode into town to deliver the news that the war had ended. Sure, it was old news, but who could blame the kid for wanting to celebrate? When Billy died soon after... Continue Reading →
Grover Melbow was a model train enthusiast. He took his hobby seriously, and prided himself on attention to detail. The last seventeen years of his life had been devoted to constructing a model train line around his property—all thirty-two acres of it. The crown jewel of his collection was an N Scale replica of The... Continue Reading →
Soft light dawned in the darkness, awakening brighter into a sizzling panorama of fiery flakes, bursting then descending in swirls of green and blue. The embers carpeted the ground and faded one by one, each giving a final bright wink then disappearing. A whip crack echoed through the evening air, and rumbling hooves shook the... Continue Reading →
Gavin St. Grosby was a freelance fruit picker, one of the best. He specialised in strawberries, but he could pick just about anything; it was a gift. His family disapproved of his choice of vocation; his father hadn’t spoken to him in years. St. Grosby men were traditionally either senators or unemployed anti-whaling protestors. Due... Continue Reading →
My friend Mossy and I love watching the Academy Awards; it’s a chance for us to celebrate the best people on earth. The 2015 Awards were particularly memorable. The evening began as usual: beautiful celebrities on the red carpet, artists being recognised for their talent, and light-hearted comedy courtesy of the host (Neil Patrick Harris).... Continue Reading →
The bewildered crowd wandered a street lined with abandoned shops and burned out cars. Their rapturous cheer had wilted by degrees into dead silence. All shouting had ceased; no one was fighting anymore; not a single firebomb lit the night. The wail of police sirens had long vanished. Two men sat on the kerb. The... Continue Reading →
