She turned deliberately away and began to shuffle off.  Danny felt powerfully compelled to go after her.  Only the thought of his mother waking to discover him gone prevented him from trotting behind the Old Woman like an obedient puppy. Even so, he found he could not easily turn his gaze aside; he had to back off, tripping over the curb, stumbling. His fever seemed to gain intensity. Beads of sweat popped out on his forehead. The woman halted and looked over her bony shoulder at him, her black eye widening in surprise.

“My, you’re a strong one, aren’t you?” she said.

At which point wrenched himself free and ran home.

Book Review:

Review by Ann Wilkes (APR 2, 2010)

Jack Skillingstead has a unique voice and a penetrating view of this world and beyond its confines. The stories in Are You There and Other Storiesrun dark and tragic, but are immensely rich and engaging. The depth he reaches with his characters is only surpassed by his talent for pushing the reader into uncharted territories of space, time and mind.

Some of the stories are written in the universe of his first novel, Harbinger, which is also reviewed here at Mostly Fiction. My favorite story in this collection, “Scatter,” involves an undead man who carries on as a film noir detective, appearing as characters out of Casablanca or The Maltese Falcon in his digital projections. His business, however, is more real than he is and is interrupted by a woman entering his office wearing a tight skirt and a confident air. She sees into him and disrupts his existence.

In “Double Occupancy,” Skillingstead nails the guilt and sense of responsibility that drives an older brother to nurture and protect his younger sister after their parents are gone. Of course this is what goes on beneath the real action: he discovers that her boyfriend has unwittingly brought monsters to Earth from another dimension.

In “Rescue Mission,” we find a man who is called by an alien siren song. The “sirens” alter his perceptions using his own memory against him to keep him on their planet for purposes of study and companionship. He must find the real voice, the real Natalie from the ship who is trying to rescue him.

“Cat in the Rain,” depicts a man on the outskirts of social interaction. He is a loner and becoming far too comfortable in his own world, withdrawn from others. Like wild animals that isolate the runts and the laggers in a herd to make a meal of them, his isolation has become the tool of an unseen enemy seeking to suck him into a vortex, from which his replacement would enter our world.

Skillingstead steps into the mind of an old widowed woman who is losing her faculties in “Thank You, Mr. Whiskers.” He portrays her fears, confusion and frustration brilliantly. Her husband subverted her opinions and desires. Now that she is free of his control, she is trapped in a failing mind. Did she really kill that young black man who seemed too interested in her comings and goings by wishing him dead? In this story, Skillingstead posits a very different, very lonely version of life after death.

From “Here’s Your Space,” I present my favorite first line of a story to date: “The aliens tasted like tofu, kind of bland.” The novel also sports an awesome cover by John Picacio.

Unlike many short story collections, this collection was full of winners. There wasn’t a single story among them I didn’t like. You might want to watch Mary Poppins or read doses of light-hearted stories with happy endings while reading this book, but read it you should. You also might want to sleep with the light on if you read it at bedtime. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

AMAZON READER RATING:	from 1 readers
PUBLISHER:	Golden Gryphon Press; 1 edition (October 1, 2009)
REVIEWER:	Ann Wilkes
AMAZON PAGE:	Are You There? and Other Stories
AUTHOR WEBSITE:	Jack Skillingstead
EXTRAS:	Audio Excerpt Ann Wilke’s interview with the author
MORE ON MOSTLYFICTION:	Read our review of: Harbinger

Bibliography:

• Harbinger (September 2009)
• Are You There and Other Stories (October 2009)

“I wouldn’t let Laird know it, but I was impressed. Slightly. If nothing else, I was peering down upon a world that, after a generation or so, would forget I ever existed as “The Pointer.” Infinity wasn’t about consciousness evolution; it was about Laird’s ego evolution. And it was also about spreading the human seed beyond our solar system. In a fundamental way it was about escape. And I was all about escape. Except not this time. The price was too high.”

“Anyway,” I said, “have a nice trip.”

“Ellis—”

I did something that only looked brave if you happened to be weak-minded. Still, I was grateful for the cloud engulfing us. Heights tended to make me queasy.

I stepped forward off the scaffolding—

—and stumbled out of the broadcast environment and fetched up against the side of my cabin.

 

Book Review:

Review by Ann Wilkes (APR 2, 2010)

In his debut novel, Harbinger, Jack Skillingstead takes the reader to present day Earth in the midst of an evolutionary change. Ellis Herrick wakes up from a strange dream feeling different. More alive. And so does Nichole, the girl next door. So different, in fact, that she invites him to her room and her bed, even though they were just casual friends, neighbors, and she with a boyfriend. But wait, it’s not a coming of age story. Unless perhaps it’s the population of Earth that is coming of age.

After an auto accident, Ellis’ severed hand grows back. He’s whisked away to a strange hospital where his father signs him over to the care of a rich benefactor. But Langley Ulin is not a benefactor at all. He wants what Ellis has, even if he has to take it piecemeal.

Due to his regenerative abilities, Ellis becomes a source of organs for Langley, who doesn’t want to die. In a moment of weakness, Ellis signs a document that, in essence, makes him the old man’s property. Seemingly forever, since Ellis can’t die. Most people call Ellis “The Herrick,” some with awe, others with contempt.

He loses Nichole and becomes an emotional cripple, unable to have long-term relationships. He also can’t accept the evolutionary change that is happening not just to him, but to many people across the planet. He’s not even sure he believes in these Harbingers, the tree-shaped beings that have been spotted by some since the beginning of the change. Beings who may be responsible for the change. Or may be monitoring Earth’s progress.

About 150 years later, Ellis finds himself on a generational ship traveling to Ulin’s World, captive of Laird Ulin, Langley’s grandson. Ellis tries once more, after a long period of isolation to connect with another human being. He leaves the command level of the ship and takes a holiday in the artificial towns created on the lower levels. Ellis brings chaos to the strict rules of conduct of these self-contained villages that look like crosses between the Hollywood sets of State Fair and Stepford Wives.

Ellis Herrick’s twisted, strange journey is fascinating, as is his struggle with his forced relationship with his captor. He’s both victim of his circumstances and his own psyche. And yet, he’s The Herrick. Like patient zero for a plague, because of his altered state, he heralds the dawn of a new age. He’s not sure he wants to be a part of this evolutionary change, but he can’t escape it, not even through death.

The novel’s ending had me scratching my head, but it also made me think for days about evolution, fate and personal growth. I recommend this remarkable, mind-bending treatment of the evolution of the mind, the transcendence of time and space, immortality and so much more.

AMAZON READER RATING:	from 6 readers
PUBLISHER:	Fairwood Press, Inc (September 1, 2009)
REVIEWER:	Ann Wilkes
AVAILABLE AS A KINDLE BOOK?	YES! Start Reading Now!
AUTHOR WEBSITE:	Jack Skillingstead
EXTRAS:	ExcerptAnn Wilke’s interview with the author
MORE ON MOSTLYFICTION:	Read our review of: Are You There? and Other Stories

Bibliography:

• Harbinger (September 2009)
• Are You There and Other Stories (2009)
• Life on the Preservation (2013)