Book Reviews
If you
would like to review this book, please send your comments
via e-mail to talltalespress@shaw.ca
. We will post the reviews as we receive
them. Thank-you.
Dragons,
Dinosaurs and Excitement, January
24, 2004
We have been passing
around this book in class at school and our teacher
has read us some of the stories. They`re great.
Living in Britain we had never heard of the Ogopogo
and it sounds a bit like our own Loch Ness monster
and there`s also a story which ends up near Loch
Ness in Scotland which is exciting and which began
among Dinosaurs in Canada. I`ve been on holiday
to Loch Ness and now after reading these two stories
would like to go to the lake where the Ogopogo
lives and to the museum of the Dinosaurs in Alberta
in Canada. Our class did some art work on Dragons
and Dinosaurs after hearing these two stories.
All the stories are interesting but a class vote
put the two about Dragons and Dinosaurs top of
the list as you never know what is going to happen
next.
Riveting Tall
Tales, January 2, 2004
I read the stories
in this book over the Christmas holiday and couldn`t
put it down. There is something for everyone and
the funny front cover amused me. The cover also
tells us about some of the stories in the book
from the story of the Ogopogo, the mythical dragon,
to the thriller set in the real Dinosaur excavations
in the Alberta Badlands. `Water Dragon` is a lovely
story about how a dragon went back to the lake
and became a water dragon and `Dinosaur` is an
exciting tale of a criminal on the loose in the
museum at Drumheller Dinosaur Museum who ends
up in Scotland by the loch where the Loch Ness
monster is supposed to live. These were my two
favourite stories but I enjoyed them all and hope
all the authors will write some more. My Dad enjoyed
them all too and said it`s a good present for
all the family as it appeals to adults and older
kids.
A
short story reader from the Rockies,
December 3, 2003
What a delight it is to read
an anthology of true, heartfelt stories written
with emotion and pizzazz from both youth and adult
writers. 19 authors from around the world share
their lives, their stories, and their emotions
with you. The writing is of the highest quality
and is guaranteed to move you.
This book charmed me,
made me laugh, and made me cry. It would make
an excellent book to read during the hectic holidays!
I recommend this book to all!
Nineteen
Cheers for Tall Tales and Short Stories !!,
December 3, 2003
When was the last
time you sat down to enjoy not just a piece of
a novel, but you actually finished an entire story
in one sitting?
When was the last time
you took a chance on some new authors?
As I began to read each
of the stories in this collection, I was pleasantly
surprised to be introduced to new and original
plots played out by incredibly strong characters.
I was taken to faraway times and lands in 'Water
Dragon', I was introduced to the ethical struggles
of a man desperately trying to save his wife's
life in 'In The End', I was completely mesmerized
by 'Because There Was No Breeze', and finally
sat spellbound as I enjoyed Steve Van Bakel's
own 'Lost Innocence'. Each character depicted
in these stories will remain with me for a life
time.
I loved to fall in love
with these nineteen story-lines.
So, if you're buying
as Santa today or if you're looking for a quality
purchase for your own enjoyment, stop here and
pick one up. I can promise nineteen glorious rides
you will not find yourself willing to put down!!
Nineteen Cheers for Tall
Tales and Short Stories!
Tall
Tales and Short Stories, December 2,
2003
Some folks these
days are asking, "Where have all the readers gone?"
I can't speak for all of them, but many are tucked
away in comfy chairs enjoying Tall Tales and Short
Stories, the new book from Canadian publisher
Steve Van Bakel's TALL TALES PRESS.
"These books are selling
like coffee on a cold day," the publisher says
happily. "Parents are buying them because there's
considerable emphasis on children, both as writers
and readers."
True. But in my opinion
Santa, along with his usual cookies and cake,
will be rewarded with a copy of Tall Tales and
Short Stories this Christmas. Each of the nineteen
prizewinning stories has its own fascination,
and features writers, both young and old, from
Canada, the U.S., England, Asia and Australia--a
tall order even for tall tales.
The ambitious project
boasts stories written by both children and adults.
Amazing Annelise Duran, a 12-year-old Hawaiian
who has already won two state championships, wrote
a beautiful story about her dying grandmother
titled, The Sunset. There's a narrative about
Ogopogo, by Darcy Nybo, and a very clever Dear
Helen, in true New Yorker style, by Singapore's
widely-published Damon Chua.
Short stories, after decades
of drubbing by the evil eye of TV, are enjoying
a well deserved comeback. Time-pressed readers
choose shorter writings because they can enjoy
them more quickly than novels. Tall Tales And
Short Stories has 175 delightful pages that prove
it.
William Childress
Former Editor-Writer, National Geographic Magazine.
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