Really enjoyed this book. Great plot and engaging, believe characters. I was drawn right into the story. Would definitely recommend.

3★
“Every detail I learned of her life rendered her that much less approachable: her mother’s crown as Miss Norway and former career as the highest-paid fashion model in Europe, her father’s self-made fortune in oilrig accessories and his close friendship with Prince Philip of England.”

I have enjoyed many of this author’s stories in the past, and I started this book a long time ago but set it aside. I thought maybe I’d read too many in a row. Unfortunately, my original reaction hasn’t changed. I didn’t find these as much fun as the earlier stories.

Two completely different ones revolve around girls named Vanessa, although this is still my preview copy, so perhaps that was changed later. In the one referred to in the quote above, Canvassing, our young high schooler is lusting after Vanessa, a rather glamorous classmate.

“Although I can’t pinpoint precisely the origins of my interest in Vanessa—how her wild auburn mane and volatile idealism came to eclipse Danielle Pastarnack’s delicate innocence or Sally Sewell’s devil-may-care coquetry—my attraction quickly developed into a full-fledged infatuation.”

He finds her at his front door one day, canvassing for a US Presidential hopeful who needs enough signatures to get his name on the ballot. Is his father at home?

Would she like some help? Yes, she’d be happy to have help. YES! He can’t wait to ride around the neighbourhood in her

“flamingo-pink Chrysler Cordoba. The vehicle boasted a vinyl roof and power windows. Its owner wore white tights under a denim skirt and had a daisy pinned above her ear. A pair of his-and-hers clipboards rested on the passenger seat.”

But, the story opens with him saying “I was once—briefly—a suspect in a murder investigation.” He is speaking 20 years later, now married to her equally attractive, much younger sister, only a kid he didn't notice when he had a crush on Vanessa. So of course I read on.

He and Vanessa had continued pounding the pavements, although they had more than enough signatures. She just wanted to promote the candidate. He just wanted to hang around her. Needless to say, things disintegrated. I will leave it there.

Grappling is a story about a beefy guy who wrestles crocodiles, saved a lovely young girl from certain death, and she waits all her life for him to come back to marry her. He's a pig of a man, as it turns out.

I enjoyed the poignant The Bigamist’s Accomplice about two people whose partners are in the same dementia unit and have become attached to each other. It posed some interesting questions. When do you try to convince someone of the truth, and when do you let them believe what they want to and just go with the flow? Are you allowed to feel betrayed?

The title story, Amazing Things Are Happening Here is about a psychiatric hospital where a patient has gone missing, but a nurse is determined not to report it, because someone will be sacked. So he covers it up, convinces others to help, makes more and more complicated excuses for the man, leading to slapstick and mayhem that should be funnier than I found it. Maybe it's just me.

The author is a doctor, and I have no doubt he knows what he’s talking about with the psychological and medical issues. He’s also a good writer, don’t get me wrong, but for some reason, these stories just didn't grab me as much as some of his others.

Thanks to NetGalley and Black Lawrence Press for the preview copy from which I’ve quoted.

Lots of Sadness, Bad Choices, and Nursing Homes

This is a fine collection of accomplished short stories. The writing is sharp, if sometimes more restrained and rueful than usual. The stories are well paced, they're unpredictable, and they can be amusing, touching, and even suspenseful, (often at the same time). Appel has a great eye and a great touch and excels at the small observation and brief moment, although he can also build up a slow burn of dread or danger. That said, putting aside admiration for the author's skill, almost none of these stories engaged my interests or played to subjects in which I'm invested. That's not Appel's problem; that's the nature of short story collections. I really enjoyed Appel's collection "Coulrophobia & Fata Morgana", and especially admired and enjoyed his novel "The Biology of Luck". This collection, trending to the somber end of the scale, just wasn't the right box of chocolates for me.

(Please note that I received a free ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)

Another incredible collection of short stories from the imaginative mind of Jacob Appel.

This group of eight stories seem quite conventional at the start, as if you’re petting your neighbor’s dog. You know this dog, he’s friendly, he doesn’t growl, doesn’t nip or bite; so you’re a bit surprised when your neighbor warns you to be careful. “What’s up?” I say. “I’m not sure, he’s just been acting weird lately; kind of nervous.” Your neighbor says. I immediately step back, wary now, on guard.

This is my mindset whenever I read any story written by Jacob Appel even though I know I’ll enjoy it. As I start to read, innocently as a second grader, I know there’s a twist coming up ahead somewhere. La, la, la, la; reading along, and there it is, last paragraph; bam!!! What, what did he say?!

He makes you think, long after the story is over. Cool, isn’t it? I think so. I’m not going to list all eight stories; but know there’re all good. Here’s two I enjoyed best:

‘The Bigamist’s Accomplice’: Arlene’s husband Benny, a former surgeon, is now in a nursing home and barely recognizes her. Benny does enjoy telling his old ER stories to fellow resident, Connie, who listens with rapt attention but hardly says a word. Jim, Connie’s husband, is just happy his wife looks so peaceful when she’s with Benny. The staff smile and joke that Benny and Connie are in love. Dementia or not, Arlene doesn’t think this is so amusing; especially when Benny tells her he’s getting married to Connie.

‘Dyads’: Penny drives the Harbor Authority’s boat across the harbor to deliver her passenger, Professor, Dr. Victor Navarre to a small island so he can study hooded seals, for a week. The Professor’s seven-year-old daughter, Patagonia, is with them for the ride to drop her father off, but will ride back with Penny, to meet her mom at the dock. She’s hoping to see seals but sounds almost disappointed when they see humpback whales instead. A mother and her calf, and their male escort. Both Penny and the Prof realize the whales are swimming inland and a rescue mission changes everyone’s plans.

In both stories’ choices have to be made for realistic endings to occur; but Jacob let’s us have a little fun first.
As always, I highly recommend these tasty morsels for your reading pleasure.

Thank you NetGalley, Black Lawrence Press, and Jacob Appel

I am a new reader and fan of Jacob M. Appel. His writing is unique, quirky and rather quite enjoyable! This is one of my favorites from him! A very refreshing and delightful read!

What I like about these stories are that although set in different times, they highlight issues of humanity, making decisions and enduring the consequences and these themes remain throughout time. The writing style is very engaging and absorbing. Sometimes it's more about what isn't written, they're thought provoking and tend to raise more questions when you've finished reading, challenging perceptions and beliefs.

Canvassing
This is a great story about a judge recalling the troubling story of a girl who was murdered during his youth. A massive twist with the last sentence, a wow moment. But then a while afterwards you'll start thinking of lots of questions, all the ifs and buts and the influence of privilege and money.

Grappling
A story of blind love born out of tragedy, it's a tale about being devoted to one person, despite them being really bad for you. It's set in 20s Florida but still rings true today in the fact that people put up with atrocious behaviour in the name of love, whilst other suitors are ignored.

Embers
This is a story about a male high school student, Zach, who falls for a girl, Vanessa. He doesn't speak to her at school but gradually gets to know her and they become friends. Initially this seems another story about unrequited love and blind love but this is different, it's deeper because this time there is empathy and compassion so although they do not have a sexual relationship, their bond is strong and arguably is a much better outcome in the situation - although of course it never feels like that. It is a type of love, albeit a different type from the one Zach wanted.

Helen of Sparta
I must admit, this one left me a bit confused initially. On the face of it, it's a story about a teenage boy and his sister who pick up their drunk mum's friend from the airport. They take a detour to her old school before returning home when there is a sudden revelation. This is one that you need to think about and it came to me a little while after I finished.

The Bigamist's Accomplice
A story about Arlene and her husband Benny, who is in a nursing home. He falls in love with another resident, Connie, and the story is about how Connie's husband Jim arranges for Benny and Connie to pretend to be married. It's a story about love, letting go and acceptance.

Amazing Things are Happening Here
A story about the cover up of the disappearance of a patient from a psychiatric ward, it's a tale about humanity, choices that we make and dealing with the consequences.

Dyads
A story about a woman, Penny, who takes a professor, Victor, and his daughter, Patagonia, out to see seals but ends up on a rescue mission for a humpback whale, it's calf and male escort. Another story about the choices made and ultimately living with the consequences rather than changing circumstances.

Live Shells
A story about May, who's first husband, Donald, turns up unexpectedly whilst she's found a new line interest in Tanner, her autistic daughter's special Ed tutor. There's a rather uncomfortable dinner with both men present and an even more terse boat ride to scatter the Ashes of May's deceased mother ending up in a fist fight between the two men. It's another story about choices, sticking by them and deciding - albeit 20 years later - whether they are the right ones.

I started the first story and was reading with interest then it just stopped. Well, maybe that's a technique of the author to prompt the reader to think more deeply. But I couldn't find more. The second story benefits from a colorful setting and eccentric characters whose motives were so close to the surface that when the story ended, I was left thinking "Ok, and . . ?" After the third I gave up. These stories are well told, as far as they go. They're not experimental, not genre, rather plain but not for me.

Amazing Things Are Happening Here was my introduction to the work of Jacob M. Appel.   Having heard of this author but knowing little about him or his writing I thought this book of short stories might be a good place to start.  What I didn't realise is that this guy is an absolute master at the short story having published in excess of 200 of them and he has a string of awards to his name.   So it's little surprise that I immediately fell under his spell and flew through this book in the space of a day.

Sometimes, but not always, I can be left feeling ripped off at the end of a short story wanting just a bit more than the author has provided.    Not so here.   Naturally there were characters I felt attached to and would have enjoyed more time in their company, but not once did I have that sensation that the story was incomplete.  I can't think of a single story I disliked although my absolute favourite was The Bigamist’s Accomplice.    I don't want to share details of the plot because I hope you'll read it yourself.  I was surprised to realise how moved I was by such a short story.   The author cleverly made me stop and question myself about how I might respond if I ever found myself in this scenario.   How would I feel versus how I think I should feel.    His stories gave me at least one ahha moment, one infused humor (at least I hope it was supposed to be tongue-in-cheek) there was hope and sadness, reminiscence and food for thought.  

Amazing things are happening here may well have been my intro to his work but  I can say with the utmost certainty it will not be the last.   Thanks to Jacob M. Appel, Black Lawrence Press and NetGalley for the opportunity of reading this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

EXCERPT: (from the short story Live Shells)The decades are creased into Donald's face like the rings of a tree. He's grown a beard, put on weight, sprouted hair from the cusps of his ears. I approach unseen in the shade of a coconut palm and listen to his speculations on the recent cold snap and the prospects for the upstate orange crop while Grandmama nods and smiles and clicks her knitting needles together as though she's heard it all before. She was already an old woman when I married Donald and she can no longer tell the difference between strangers and long term acquaintances she's since forgotten, so she hedges her bets, treating even the water-meter man and the Jehovah's Witness proselytizers like kissing cousins. Donald is no exception. And me? I'm not sure how to proceed after twenty-one years, so I step into the afternoon sunlight, my jaw clenched to hold my composure, but at the very moment when Donald recognizes me, my eyes rivet to the double knot in the right sleeve of his shirt. I stare at the haunting spot where the limb should be, unable to avert my gaze, fully conscious that I'm behaving the perfect fool.

ABOUT THIS BOOK: "In his new short story collection, AMAZING THINGS ARE HAPPENING HERE, Jacob Appel renders our post 9/11 world through a variety of personalities, each narrating their unique and startling stories. Meet the shy high school student with a crush on a girl dying of leukemia, the mother whale who beaches to save her offspring, the search for the VA hospital's lunatic who goes missing and never returns, and more. We are in the hands of a patient, master artist who watches the world unfolding around him, sees its protagonists' inadvertent mistakes, and observes them endeavoring to reclaim their dignity. These stories lift us far above the realm of entertainment, and instead enrich and enliven the psyche's oceanic heights and depths."--Marilyn Krysl

MY THOUGHTS: What can I possibly say after Marilyn Krysl's succinct and spot on observation except that Appel is an author who never disappoints, and that I read this wonderful collection in one sitting.

Appel is a master of human observation, and he conveys these observations into quirky and entertaining short stories that reflect our dreams and ambitions, our failings and frailties.

My favorite story in this collection is The Bigamist's Accomplice, which I featured in my preview of this book on my webpage sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

THE AUTHOR: Jacob M. Appel's first novel, The Man Who Wouldn't Stand Up, won the Dundee International Book Award in 2012. His short story collection, Scouting for the Reaper, won the 2012 Hudson Prize. He has published short fiction in more than two hundred literary journals including Agni, Conjunctions, Gettysburg Review, Southwest Review, Virginia Quarterly Review, and West Branch. His work has been short listed for the O. Henry Award (2001), Best American Short Stories (2007, 2008), Best American Essays (2011, 2012), and received "special mention" for the Pushcart Prize in 2006, 2007, 2011 and 2013.

Jacob holds a B.A. and an M.A. from Brown University, an M.A. and an M.Phil. from Columbia University, an M.S. in bioethics from the Alden March Bioethics Institute of Albany Medical College, an M.D. from Columbia University's College of Physicians and Surgeons, an M.F.A. in creative writing from New York University, an M.F.A. in playwriting from Queens College, an M.P.H. from the Mount Sinai School of Medicine and a J.D. from Harvard Law School. He currently practices psychiatry in New York City.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Black Lawrence Press via Netgalley for providing me with a digital ARC of Amazing Things Are Happening Here by Jacob M. Appel for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

Please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com for an explanation of my rating system. This review and others are also published on my webpage sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

These eight stories all deal with a pivotal moment in the main character’s life. In most cases, that person is not aware that it even is a pivotal moment. It could just be some event that at the time seems unimportant, but hindsight will indicate that something of significance was happening. In Canvassing, a young man helps an attractive young girl get a presidential candidate on the ballot, with unexpected results. In Embers, a young boy becomes infatuated with his father’s teen-aged patient. In the Bigamist’s Accomplice, a wife witnesses her husband’s mental powers deteriorate due to dementia as his affection grows for another patient. In the title story, a health worker takes extraordinary measures to hide the whereabouts of a patient that has somehow disappeared from the grounds.

While all these stories are compelling, the author has a few sly tricks. His settings range from Florida to Rhode Island using places that may or may not intersect with the real location. He also casually drops in a name or person from a previous story, which a reader may wonder about. It’s as if Appel has a stock of actor ready characters to draw upon to feature when needed. I may have to go back and track some down. Recommended. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing the opportunity to read another great book from this author.

Copy furnished by Net Galley for the price of a review.

Another grab bag of goodies from the pen of Jacob Appel.  His short stories always provide food for thought, one way or another.  This collection is a bit more somber than his usual fare, but the quizzical quality is there, along with many points to ponder.  My favorite was The Bigamist's Accomplice. Set in a nursing home, it is both touching and sad.

This is an interesting collection of short stories (eight stories in all), each one thought provoking in its own way. Some of them seem like deceptively simple, straightforward narratives that provide nothing more than a moment of literary escape ... yet hours or possibly even days after reading them aspects of what I'd read came back to me. Made me think. I like that.

Rather than give a rundown on all eight stories in the collection I will simply touch on the two that I found to be the most compelling: The Bigamist's Accomplice and Live Shells.

The Bigamist's Accomplice is the poignant story of a wife dealing with her husband's dementia. After thirty-seven years together he barely recognizes her... And when he does it seems those memories are fleeting, he knows her more as a regular visitor at his nursing home than as the woman who's shared his life.

Live Shells is an introduction to May, "a thrice divorced woman of forty-eight", whose first ex-husband chooses to reenter her life - after a twenty-one year absence - on the occasion of her first date in months. A larger than life Hemingway-esque character full of blustering machismo he quickly wrecks havoc on everything around him.

The author does an excellent job of capturing the essence of his characters. Keeping each individual story unique and distinct from the other. It's a bit intense at times but well worth reading.

I would recommend this book to any reader who enjoys literary fiction, particularly in short form.

***Thanks to NetGalley, Black Lawrence Press, and author Jacob M. Appel for providing me with a complimentary copy of Amazing Things Are Happening Here in exchange for an honest review.

Another wonderful excursion by Jacob M. Appel into the ordinary and bizarre. I’ve read every one of his books and short story collections and this collection, I think, is the best. Appel has remarkable insight into the human condition and is a master crafter of sentences. Highly recommended.

I had the pleasure of having breakfast with Appel last spring and it was as delightful as reading his stories.

I received this book from NetGalley and the publisher as an ARC.

To say that Appel's writing evokes a strong emotional response would be an understatement. In fact, Jacob Appel writes his characters so well, that I still seethe with rage thinking about his most unlikeable characters, like Donald the ex you can't get rid of and the scheming nurse whose name escapes me at this moment.
In each story, Appel creates a complete world, each different from the next. I'm very impressed with how unique each universe is from the others. I also appreciated how he doesn't devote much time to describing characters' physical appearance in great detail. It's a minor pet peeve of mine when there is a lot of physical description. If it is not absolutely necessary to the plot, then I'd prefer little to no physical descriptions. I like to imagine my own characters' appearances however I see fit.
Though I rated this book 4 stars out of 5 (where 5 is "This is the best book -- I'll never forget this book"), I feel that 3.5 would be more appropriate. Certain parts felt corny and cliche, especially the endings of some of the stories. I also don't like his approach to romantic themes. I almost gave up on this book completely after reading Canvassing. The way Josh interacts with and talks about Vanessa screams stereotypical "man writing about women romantically". You know, the kind of writing that makes you want to simultaneously cringe and dry heave. Luckily, this is a collection of SHORT stories. I would not have been able to take an entire book's worth of Canvassing. If you can make it through Canvassing, I assure you, the stories get better.
My favorite story is The Bigamist's Accomplice. Though it also involves romance, the focus is more on the "married" couple's spouses, who must put the artificial wedding ceremony together. It's sad, yet sweet. I can't imagine what I would do if my life partner wanted to marry someone else and I had to be the one to allow it. It raises questions of giving up pieces of your own happiness for the sake of someone you love; doing the things you SHOULD do over what you want to do. When I put myself in Arlene's place, I feel absolutely crushed at the thought that the person I spent my entire life with is moving on without the mental capacity to even miss me. But at the same time, it's nice how the new wife is "the other Arlene".

*note that the review will appear at the attached link by the end of the week; it's not up yet

I seriously tried to love the book. It seems just forced. I Thank NetGalley for an ARC to read the book.