fairywhispers's "2009 Bookshelf"

This is the first I’ve heard of Margo Lanagan, but I feel it won’t be the last. Black Juice is a collection of short stories of the superb quality I have come to expect from the genre’s Australian authors. I fully enjoyed every single one of the stories included in this book.

• Singing My Sister Down- This is a very sad story about an unusual tribal punishment, and my favourite story in this collection.
• My Lord’s Man – A story about love, acceptance and misjudgement.
• Red Nose Day – An interesting twist on the typical clown story.
• Sweet Pippit – A beautiful story about elephants and their love for their handler. This is my second favourite story in this collection.
• House of the Many – A story about the fading of our childhood impressions.
• Wooden Bride – An interesting story about living up to our word.
• Earthly Uses – A twist on the concept of angels.
• Perpetual Light – Set in a future world where the air is unbreathable.
• Yowlinin – Monsters and outcasts of society meet.
• Rite of Spring – Singing in the season.
• The Point of Roses – This is my pick for third place in this collection. A boy with great powers influences others.

Margo’s stories are magnificent, engrossing and above all, thought-provoking. My top three stories in this collection are Singing My Sister Down, Sweet Pippit and The Point Of Roses. All three of these stories are worthy of your attention.