Weird Babies - Jaclyn Desforges

AUTHOR: Jaclyn Desforges

GENRE: Speculative Short Story Collection

PUBLICATION DATE:

RATING: Can't decide.

In a Nutshell: A collection of somewhat absurdist short stories. Highly creative, but a bit too random in development. This collection has its merits but it wasn't the right book for me. A good option for those who don’t seek a destination but enjoy a meandering journey.

The title and the cover called out to me so strongly that I had to try this collection. The description was also intriguing. Unfortunately for me (and the book), the stories had fewer babies and more weirdness than I would have liked.

From the description, I understood this to be a speculative fiction collection. The thirteen stories herein are indeed speculative, but more towards the absurd side of the spectrum than the fantastical side. I don't mind absurd fiction when there's some rhyme or rhythm to the plot, but this set of stories was a combination of stream of consciousness and abstract bizarreness, something my Capricorn head isn't equipped to digest.

The titles are deceptively simple. They simply don't indicate the direction the plot will take. In fact, in many cases, I struggle to understand the link between the title and the content.

Most of the stories seem fairly straightforward at the start, but they soon turn eccentric. The plot development is random, as is the ad-hoc change of voice and setting multiple times within a single narrative. As this was a fairly common feature across the entries, I couldn't really connect with the tales, even though I could see the creativity in them. The author’s writing style is also distinctive, with one particular habit standing out: repeating the subject of a sentence across a para, especially at the start of a story. This seems quirky but after a while, it also gets repetitive.

Having strong endings might have saved 2-3 stories for me, but unfortunately, the ending in almost every story is like a sudden snip of the narrative ribbon, leaving me more confused than anything else.

As always, I rated the stories individually. In almost every case, my rating started off strong but then kept dipping. In a couple of cases, my final rating would have been better if the finale had offered me better closure. None of the stories except one ('Second Coming' - a creative tale mixing realism and religion with a dash of humour - ⭐⭐⭐⭐) reached four stars.

All said and done, this book and I were simply not the right match for each other. Then again, not every book is for everyone. This collection is more for those who enjoy an unplanned journey without worrying about what the destination is, forget about reaching it.

Leaving this without a rating as a good part of my dissatisfaction comes from my need for grounded speculative fiction (not an oxymoronic requirement despite how it sounds) and better closure at the end. If you are a go-with-the-flow kind of reader who enjoys absurdist short stories, you might have better luck with this collection. I truly hope you do.

My thanks to River Street for a complimentary copy of “Weird Babies” at my request. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book. Sorry this didn’t work better for me.