Wind Over Heaven: And Other Dark Tales

After I read this book, I thought, Man--I certainly got my money's worth. I don't tend to review books I can't give five stars, but this one...I'd love to give it six. So much imagination in such a slim volume. And it doesn't so much defy classification as rise above it. Yes, there are stories here that might be shoehorned into Science Fiction--like Vox Domini or On Top. And yes, the Horror genre might loosely describe An Eye for Acquisitions and perhaps The Apple Golem. But none of these stories fit comfortably into boxes--they slip out, winking at us, creeping over borders, scattering little seeds of fear, astonishment, wisdom, wry humor. Even the Magic Realism label doesn't do them justice. Bruce Holland Rogers is a terrific writer. These stories stick with me; they make me think; and some of them are simply great fun. Read his stuff; this book is a bargain. Susan O'Neill, author, Don't Mean Nothing: Short Stories of Viet Nam

"Vivid. Evocative. Bruce Holland Rogers' writing jumps right off the page." -Wil McCarthy, author of Bloom"Bruce Holland Rogers stories are like the glimpses you catch out of the corner of your eye. They are full of the logic of dreams, and the logic of the heart." -Maureen F. McHugh, author of Mission Child"I admire Bruce Holland Rogers and his writing for their seriousness, their onesty and their style." -Valerie Freireich, author of Becoming HumanFrom dark fairy tales to creepy science fiction to a theological mystery set in the Old West, the mind of Bruce Holland Rogers takes you to territories of the bizarre: Wall Street, Suburbia, and Mexico. In the Nebula Award-nominated story "These Shoes Strangers Have Died Of," a World War II veteran confronts the perpetrators and victims of genocide, and the would-be perpetrators, through his art. The title story, "Wind Over Heaven," exposes the weird underside of the upscale restaurant business. And the 1998 Bram Stoker Award-winner "The Dead Boy at Your Window" (which also won a Pushcart Prize for literary fiction) takes readers on a journey to the land of the dead like no other.

I've heard it argued that horror is an emotion, not a genre, and Bruce Holland Rogers has demonstrated this well in his collection of dark stories. The stories range from a western to a fable to science fiction, but all are intelligent tales with dark themes, including redemption and revenge, and settings ranging from the land of the dead to an alternate Aztec-like Mexico. I recommend this book.

"Vivid. Evocative. Bruce Holland Rogers' writing jumps right off the page." -Wil McCarthy, author of Bloom"Bruce Holland Rogers stories are like the glimpses you catch out of the corner of your eye. They are full of the logic of dreams, and the logic of the heart." -Maureen F. McHugh, author of Mission Child"I admire Bruce Holland Rogers and his writing for their seriousness, their onesty and their style." -Valerie Freireich, author of Becoming HumanFrom dark fairy tales to creepy science fiction to a theological mystery set in the Old West, the mind of Bruce Holland Rogers takes you to territories of the bizarre: Wall Street, Suburbia, and Mexico. In the Nebula Award-nominated story "These Shoes Strangers Have Died Of," a World War II veteran confronts the perpetrators and victims of genocide, and the would-be perpetrators, through his art. The title story, "Wind Over Heaven," exposes the weird underside of the upscale restaurant business. And the 1998 Bram Stoker Award-winner "The Dead Boy at Your Window" (which also won a Pushcart Prize for literary fiction) takes readers on a journey to the land of the dead like no other.

Bruce Holland Rogers is a delightful writer. I have never been disapointed in his stories. His books are easy to pick up and hard to put down.