January Reading Round-Up

In an effort to get through more of my endless TBR pile, and rebuild my reading habits a bit, I thought it might be nice to blog about what I read each month. Turns out, in spite of having several books on the go in January, I haven't actually finished any of them yet... D'oh! Best intentions and all that 😳

However, I also read quite a lot of flash/short fiction and poetry online these days, so I decided to make a note of things I came across this month that jumped out at me, moved me in some way, or were just downright brilliant! Obviously there is a huge amount of great writing out there, so this is just a short personal selection of things I happened to read and enjoy.

And without further ado, here is January's list:

Yesterday's Tide by Jo Withers (in Milk Candy Review) - I love the repetition in this, like the waves coming in and out inevitably. The imagery is beautiful, shot through with sadness.

Vintage, with Nozzle by Alison Theresa Gibson (in Spelk) - Something about this piece just grabbed me when I first read it; the way the series of short images build up to imply a much bigger story.

B is for Balls by Kara Vernor (in Okay Donkey) - A brilliantly framed story about how boys and girls can be treated differently.

A Stubborn Woman Gives Nothing by Nikoletta Gjoni (in Jellyfish Review) - I've always been a sucker for mythic stories, and this one is just wonderful from start to finish.

Go To Hell by Ashling Dennehy (in Lunate) - This micro is an incredible example of how someone can use a few carefully chosen words to say much more than you might think possible.

Sacred Kingfisher by Mary Francis (in Reflex Fiction) - Another piece with mythic threads beautifully woven through it, both complementing and contrasting with the modern elements in the story.

One Day, Before Too Long by Kathryn Milam (in Lunate) - The voice in this story is really well developed, and conjures the setting and relationships it describes perfectly.

So there you have it! I hope if you hadn't come across any of the pieces above, you found something to like, and maybe next month I'll have finished some books to review as well 😉