John M. Flynn

Dreaming Rodin is a collection of short stories written by Joseph M. Flynn. The stories deal with a variety of topics. The author presents his interesting characters as they are living their lives. Their relationships are challenging and the conclusions are often surprising. In Pluto on Sundays, young Rollo and his mother pay a visit to his grandmother's apartment. He doesn't want to be there and he copes by creating a fantasy world. It becomes obvious his mother finds him to be problematic and he may prove her to be correct. Where the Mountains are Tinged with Silver is the moving story of the love between a son and his mother and how well they know each other. The title story, Dreaming Rodin, is the memorable story about a middle aged art professor whose life is far from ideal. She is complex ,eccentric and fascinating. These and the rest of the stories are skillfully written. Mr. Flynn is an excellent story teller.
I received this book free of charge from the publisher, Publerati, and I give this review of my own free will.… (mehr)

I received a free copy of this book from Publerati in exchange for an honest review.

Rollo is a little boy who is left on his own most of the time. When life gets to be too much for Rollo, he gets into his spaceship and heads for Venus.

Lenny Kindred is a salesman who believes he can sell anything to anyone. Clement Most challenges that belief for Lenny with just one quick visit to the back room of Clement's bar.

Geneva Underwood has been keeping a journal of her daily life for forty years. She is now 58 years old and has come to realize that art, at least for her, is not what most people think it is. For her, it is work.

Ethan, a violin performer, finds out some of what he doesn't know about people when he connects with Harmony.

And then there's R-man. He recently changed his name from Royal Lemonade. Now he wants to change his image. One thing R-man knows for sure, and that is, "Life was all about needs".

These are just a few of the characters who live in John Michael Flynn's book of Short Stories entitled **Dreaming Rodin**, the theme of which is about all kinds of people and how they manage to get through daily life. For some it is possible to take life's complications in stride and move forward. For others, the moving forward part is more difficult with more roadblocks and few rewards. For each character there is a confrontation with what he or she believes to be the most defining need in their lives. Flynn's characters are combinations of smart, arrogant, stupid, unaware, funny, tragic, and reminiscent of a people we all know, including ourselves.

My favorite stories in this collection were 'Reverse English' and 'The Size of Need'. Both of these stories had more depth than some of the others, and the motivation of the characters was more evident to me. Which is not to say that the other stories don't share this because each one is a glimpse into the daily life of any-person. There are characters who made me laugh, and characters it was difficult to like, as well as one in particular I would have liked to bring home, cook him dinner, and get him started on a better path.

I would recommend **Dreaming Rodin** to anyone who likes Short Stories, particularly those with characters that don't disappear from your consciousness just because the book ended. I read this book twice before reviewing it, and I plan to read it again in the future.… (mehr)