Ken Harmon

Increasingly, the literary reviews seem to lack good solid writing - it's a difficult business they're in, looking for that writing in a world of mediocrity while their own business model grows ever more unsustainable. It makes one wonder what their slush pile's look like; whether there are gems waiting for the room to shine, or whether the difficulty these presses face make it impossible to foster and, worse, identify good writing. There was nothing particularly memorable in this edition, and the poetry was particularly weak. Reading poets like [[Joy Hart]] and [[Billy Collins]] and [[Mary Oliver]], to then shift over to one of these journals, makes the poetry in the journals look like so much ego-centric pulp.

2 bones!!… (altro)

Gumdrop Coal, the elf that delivers coal to bad boys and girls, finds himself out of a job and on the run after he's accused of killing off one of the former bad kids, now a parent himself. To clear his name, he'll travel all around Kringle Town to figure out whodunit in this Christmas-y noir tale.

Filled with Christmas cultural references and puns galore, this was a fun holiday read though the mystery for me was secondary. Most of the chapter titles are lines from Christmas songs, the bad side of the tracks is Pottersville, and basically if there's a holiday pun to made, it is. There's a late, surprising turn to the religious, in my mind, and though it didn't bother me, it may be jarring or unwelcome to some readers.… (altro)

Full of hilarious puns and Christmas jokes. After a while it wears a little thin but it's all in good fun. It's amazing how author, Ken Harmon, is able to combine soo many elements of holiday lore into such a wild tale of noir. Gumdrop Coal is our hero, or rather, anti-hero. He's the leader of the coal patrol, and leaves Kringle Town once a year to leave coal for all the bad boys and girls. One day, that all ends and he finds himself out of a job, how did he get on the bad side of the fat man? Is he being frames? Is someone trying to ruin Christmas or take it away from Santa? In order to save his hide and reputation, Gumdrop must get to the bottom of the mystery. He finds himself confronting the misfit toys, enlisting the help of Ralphie and his red ryder bb gun, and some other elves. It will make readers chuckle, but it could have been wrapped up a little sooner. A creative and inventive holiday read.… (altro)