Thursday, August 30: Femme Fatale
I HEAR IT’S YOUR BIRTHDAY!
by Deborah Elliott-Upton
Today is a special day: it’s Michael Chiklis’ and my birthday. Not that Michael knows I celebrate his birthday concurrently with mine, but I always raise a glass to him on our shared birthday. I assume he would do the same for me if only he knew. (If anyone wishes to tell him, mention I favor champagne, but a nice pinot noir works, too.)
I’m tired of people asking what I want for my birthday. I don’t know any more than they do. I have the important things already: love of family and good friends and my health. Except – I would love to have a day where I did nothing but lounge around and catch up on my reading. Of course, one day would never be enough to catch up on all the books I’d like to read, but you have to start somewhere. On our birthday just might be a nice appointment.
So, I thought I might share what I have managed to read lately – except these are short stories I have read many times and this summer, I decided to re-read a few of my favorites.
Last week I read (yet again) the O. Henry classic,“The Ransom of Red Chief.†The story is timeless and always makes me laugh. Henry is a master of visualization and we become a silent spectator listening to Sam share the tale of how he and Bill spent some time with Red Chief and barely lived to tell the story. We feel Bill’s pain, commiserate with the kidnappers and ultimately for Red Chief, who no one misses when he’s taken.
My favorite short story is from Jim Henson’s The Storyteller by Anthony Minghella. The nine stories are fairy tales and folk tales dealing with universal themes we all relate to. Notwithstanding Henson’s name, these aren’t children’s tales, but more like the original Grimm’s Fairy Tales sans the Hollywood Ending. My pick is “The Soldier and Death.†The war-weary soldier is rewarded for good deeds with a magic sack and a pack of cards that always wins. The soldier plays cards with devils, bartering for lost souls. He tricks Death from returning to earth, but realizes his mistake when hoards of people ready-to-die and enter Heaven cannot since Death no longer comes for them.
I own a battered paperback of Isaac Asimov’s Banquets of the Black Widowers that I return to now and again. This particular one is the fourth installment of the Black Widowers series and is peppered with the author’s “Afterward†following each story. Each of these story behind the story is quite delightful. I always feel like Asimov and I are sharing a conversation in between the tales. The twelve short stories are “puzzlers to tease your brain†reads the cover. Asimov – another genius at storytelling – makes the reader comfortable in the company of elegant gentlemen well acquainted with the best life offers. We are privy, as is Henry, the debonair butler who serves them first their dinner and then solution to the mystery in question.
Why not celebrate my birthday (and Michael’s) with a good book you’ve been meaning to read? It’s okay, we’re celebrating today and you deserve a break. This one won’t add extra calories or cholesterol, although it may make your brain cells swell, your lips pull into a grin and loud, satisfying sighs escaping when you finish one of the stories.
It’s a nice birthday treat I’m sharing with you. There are so many books and so little time – unless we make the time. Take some now and select a story you’ve been meaning to read. The champagne is already poured and I’m raising my glass. Please join me.
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[…] Thursday, August 30: Femme Fatale » This Summary is from an article posted at Criminal Brief: The Mystery Short Story Web Log Project […]
Happy Birthday to you!
I recently reread The Old Man and The Sea and I am revisiting Huck Finn right now.
Birthday or no, I have to have something to read at all times or I go crazy. Books are my form of crack cocaine. I don’t want to read … I need to read.
happy birthday!
The Storyteller was a (brief) tv series before it was a book, all episodes written and directed by Manganella before he directed The English Patient. They are brilliant, amazing little shows, each starring John Hurt as the Storyteller, who is accompanied by a talking dog. Highly recommended.
Happy Birthday! Just got the November issue of EQMM in the mail and to celebrate along with you and Michael, I am going to sit right down and read Ed Hoch’s story. It’s a Dr. Sam, who is my favorite of Hoch’s many characters.
Enjoy the day and the year to follow. Terrie
Happy Birthday, Debbie!
I’m with you. The best way to spend your special day is to enjoy a good story – well, it wouldn’t hurt to have lots of chocolate to munch, too.
Years ago, my mom and I each had a copy of Katherine Marshall’s book, Christy. We both read it at least once a year for several years running. When mom died, I got her copy and shared it with my mom-in-law. Now, when I’m out antiquing with my husband and in-laws, we all look for Christy. I have two now to share with each of the granddaughters when they are older.
It is amazing to think that our words, as writers, might actually have an impact on someone’s life. Then again, whether or not it ever gets to anyone else, the words we write become part of our lives.
Hope this day is the start of a wonderfully blessed year for you and yours!
What a great idea! I am definitely celebrating with you today except for me it will be tea with Agatha Christie. Happy Birthday! Thanks for the suggestions of stories I need to find and put on my to-be-read list.
Happy Birthday!! :]] I am considering reading the classics this Fall. You know, the ones we’ve all seen the movies of, but never actually studied – like Jane Eyre and Pride and Prejudice. Your birthday seems a good time to start!!
I, on the other hand, have decided not to have any more birthdays. (And if I did, I’m not sure I would advertise that I had the same birthday as The Thing.)
Many happy returns.
Birthdays aren’t the problem, JLW. It’s how you perceive them. I plan to make good use of the time I’m allowed here on earth, so another year I make it through is like getting a gold star next to my name. Hopefully I’ve used the time wisely. I’m going the George Burns route and expecting to be 100 and functioning. So, whatever birthdays you don’t want, Jim, send them my way.
And as for The Thing — he still has those gorgeous blue eyes…and besides, the man can act like nobody’s business. I can hardly wait for The Shield’s return.
I must have been a nerd or had mean teachers, I read all the classics in school. Still love them. Happy Birthday, Debbie….oh and Michael. Here’s to you both.
Happy B-Day! I’m already reading my way through Kipling’s short-stories as well as Ring Lardner’s. When I was younger I used to re-read Dicken’s Christmas Carol—still spooky. And if you like Asimov’s Widowers, try his Union Club (Griswold) Mysteries and the stories about teen detective Larry (some in Dr. A’s book The Key Word).