Slight Details & Random Events by Eric Arvin
A collection of short stories from one of today's most
talented and challenging new writers. Eric Arvin covers everything from
college love to mystical river sprites, from deep tragedy to bawdy sex
comedy, in this collection that takes the everyday and finds the
adventure within. It's a read sure to keep you guessing.
Cover art and illustrations by HvH
(http://hvhexpo.blogspot.com)
Read one of
the short stories.
Read Reviews
ISBN: 978-0-9801018-0-5
Price: $11.99
Length: 224 Pages
Publication Date: November 15, 2007
eBook ISBN: 978-0-9801018-1-2
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Bay Area Reporter - Reviewed by Jim Piechota
Indiana-based writer and former bodybuilder Eric Arvin's first anthology
of short stories combines the sexy and the sublime, along with several
thought-provoking pieces and a few interesting bits of poetry and artwork.
"Prometheus" showcases Arvin's versatility as a writer by mixing equal parts
eroticism and narrative in a smart tale about a man who attempts to free a
bearded, naked brute tied to a tree but becomes captivated by his
ever-expanding genitalia. From the nosebleed seats at a burlesque show, Marc
and his boyfriend enjoy a writhing bodybuilder on stage until a mysterious
thin man steals the show in "Camera Phone."
Fully fleshed-out male lovers Cat and Gael appear in a long string of
poignant, tender stories that seam together like a novella; some stories are
pure melodrama, while others are epistolary, told in a series of e-mails.
Readers won't want to miss Arvin's grand finale of three closing stories
featuring a giant, irresistible muscle-head named Gordy. The hilarious yet
erotically-charged lampoon of gym culture is seemingly drawn from the
author's long days working out alongside a revolving collection of cocky
male powerhouses. His main character may be "gorgeous," but he "wasn't too
bright," writes Arvin. "That was a muscle stereotype that unfortunately
applied to Gordy." The four bodybuilders who seem enthralled with him
eventually give in to their most forbidden desires. Whether helping,
squatting, or showering, Gordy ("in his tight green shorts") always gets his
men in the end.
Eric Arvin is
without question one of the finest talents in the literary world to
come
along in recent memory. His novels
The Rest Is Illusion
and SubSurdity:
Vignettes
From Jasper Lane have
created a sensation and gained him a wide fan base. His
newest release, this anthology titled
Slight Details and Random Events,
takes his
readers on a journey into the remarkable products his talent can
create. A series of
short stories based on the characters of Kat and Gael are just
fabulous, as is his
Gordy series at the end of the book. Other delights include
Tater n’ Purgatory
and
Deacon Decides.
Mr. Arvin has tackled two vastly different genres with his first
pair of novels, and this anthology will show readers just how
limitless his potential
actually is, holding the reader spellbound throughout. Slight
Details and Random
Events is a keeper
for sure and it’s a welcome addition in this wonderful storyteller's
catalogue.
I am proud to call Eric Arvin my
friend which I find particularly interesting since we have never met face to
face. Yet I consider him to be someone I have gotten to know and he is one
of the new breed of authors writing gay literature that is to be paid
attention to. I met him through his dramatically fascinating first book,
“The Rest is Illusion” and marveled at his use of the English language, his
spirituality and his ability to incorporate the supernatural into his work.
His second book “Subsurdity” introduced me to his wry sense of humor which
had me laughing aloud. His new book “Slight Dreams & Random Events” shows me
an Eric Arvin that can combine the drama of the first book with the humor of
the second book and thereby produce a series of connected short stories that
peeks into the psyche of the author. Arvin looks at the mundane aspects of
everyday living and breathes a sense of adventure into those things we do on
a regular basis.
Arvin has a flair for language as well as a technique of letting us into his
life through his writing. We see his life spirit through his deftly drawn
characters and it appears to me that the stories included in this volume are
personal tales which pulls the reader into them and will not let him go
until he closes the covers of the book, Even then, the stories reside in the
mind.
If there is a unifying theme of “Slight Details & Random Events” it is the
quest and the struggle of finding where one fits into the world. What I
found especially appealing about the book is that it allowed me to see from
where Arvin’s other works come. The short story “Absurdity on Jasper Lane”
is obviously the seed that grew into Arvin’s second book and the setting of
his first book, Verona College, is here as well. Those supernatural elements
of “The Rest is Illusion” couples with the authors spiritual side in several
of the tales. Twenty-five short stories make up the book and intermingled
with them are five lovely poems and through each of the selections in the
book it becomes easier to know the writer.
I have been accused of writing only positive reviews but let me tell you
that this is not at all true. I chose not to share negative opinions in
print because I believe that every author needs time to find his place on
the literary ladder. Eric Arvin, in my opinion, climbed way up that ladder
with his debut book and has remained there. He is a welcome addition to our
world and if he keeps up the steam and the passion with which he writes. It
seems to me that he will be sitting on the top of that ladder for a long
time. I am not particularly fond of short stories as I find that I never
really get involved because of their brevity of length. This is not at all
true here. From the moment that I began to read, I was hooked.
