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A review by trish204
Beneath Ceaseless Skies Issue #225 by Caroline M. Yoachim, A.T. Greenblatt, Scott H. Andrews
4.0
This review is for the short story Carnival Nine by Caroline M. Yoachim
Zee is a young doll at the beginning of this story. She lives with her Papa and her grandparents in Closet City but dreams of the adventure that is the carnival. One day, she decides not to use the turns of her key for chores but to go explore, thus ending up at Carnival Nine (the numbers come from the train cars the carnival is housed in).
There, she meets Vale and decides that a life as a carnie is more her thing. What then follows is a sad little tale of family and belonging, of a life well lived, or not really lived at all, of taking care of others versus taking care of yourself, of selfishness and selflessness. Because where do you draw the line? How much CAN anyone give before they start having nothing left for themselves?
As such, the central theme was time. The perception of it, which differs depending how old you are, the passing of it and making it count no matter how much or how little is given to you.
I really liked this creative look at a life, the turns one had each day. I didn't like! That, however, was counter-balanced by the examination of .
As you can s ee, the author tackled a lot of difficult themes in this story but she did it nicely and in a very colourful and creative way that I enjoyed very much.
You can read the story for free here: http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/stories/carnival-nine/
Zee is a young doll at the beginning of this story. She lives with her Papa and her grandparents in Closet City but dreams of the adventure that is the carnival. One day, she decides not to use the turns of her key for chores but to go explore, thus ending up at Carnival Nine (the numbers come from the train cars the carnival is housed in).
There, she meets Vale and decides that a life as a carnie is more her thing. What then follows is a sad little tale of family and belonging, of a life well lived, or not really lived at all, of taking care of others versus taking care of yourself, of selfishness and selflessness. Because where do you draw the line? How much CAN anyone give before they start having nothing left for themselves?
As such, the central theme was time. The perception of it, which differs depending how old you are, the passing of it and making it count no matter how much or how little is given to you.
I really liked this creative look at a life, the turns one had each day. I didn't like
Spoiler
how Zee beat herself up over just spending ONE day for her own enjoyment. Yes, it was bad luck that her father died on that day, but she isn't a horrible daughter or mother for having wanted just a little time for herselfSpoiler
Matts' disability and how his mother immediately decided she didn't care about it but would love him dearly anywayAs you can s ee, the author tackled a lot of difficult themes in this story but she did it nicely and in a very colourful and creative way that I enjoyed very much.
You can read the story for free here: http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/stories/carnival-nine/