{"id":13445,"date":"2021-02-21T15:27:51","date_gmt":"2021-02-21T09:57:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/?p=13445"},"modified":"2021-03-12T18:54:25","modified_gmt":"2021-03-12T13:24:25","slug":"something-in-the-middle-small-stories-from-the-far-side-of-consciousness-by-a-i-wand","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2021\/02\/21\/something-in-the-middle-small-stories-from-the-far-side-of-consciousness-by-a-i-wand\/","title":{"rendered":"Something in the Middle: Small Stories from the Far Side of Consciousness by A.I. Wand &#8211; Book Review"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.gr-assets.com\/images\/S\/compressed.photo.goodreads.com\/books\/1596272882l\/54774624._SY475_.jpg\" alt=\"Something in the Middle: Small Stories from the Far Side of Consciousness\"\/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/54774624-something-in-the-middle\">Goodreads&nbsp;<\/a>|&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.in\/gp\/product\/B08F2XYQNF\/ref=x_gr_w_bb_sin?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=x_gr_w_bb_in-21&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=3626&amp;creative=24790\">Amazon<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Source<\/strong>: Review Copy<\/li><li><strong>Pages:<\/strong>&nbsp;428<\/li><li><strong>Publication Dat<\/strong>e:&nbsp;July 30, 2020<\/li><li><strong>My Rating:<\/strong>&nbsp;4\/5<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Blurb<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>A first-time author.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A hotshot book editor.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A whirlwind romance and a runaway bestseller nobody saw coming.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The meteoric rise and stunning collapse of a cross-platform media empire.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>All of this \u2013 plus a basement full of undiscovered treasures left by former tenants \u2013 is thoughtfully unpacked and dusted off in our sideways collection of small, strange fictions.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Nothing here is what it seems upon first glance.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Or second glance.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Geometry, physics, dating, office culture, school, sports, domestic life, and the paranormal collide in a surreal fusion posing some curious questions:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>What happens when a trained specialist perpetrates a coordinated attack on a person&#8217;s large intestine&nbsp;during an artistic fugue?&nbsp;<\/li><li>Did space aliens abduct her, or was it the movie studio?&nbsp;<\/li><li>Is it possible to write a book anymore with no zombies in it?&nbsp;<\/li><li>Are witches, voodoo, a mad scientist, a demented surgeon,&nbsp;a sadistic psychiatrist, and a crazy clown enough?&nbsp;<\/li><li>What, exactly, are smart pills?&nbsp;<\/li><li>What do I want in my middle?&nbsp;<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-heading\">Read a longer blurb on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.in\/gp\/product\/B08F2XYQNF\/ref=x_gr_w_bb_sin?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=x_gr_w_bb_in-21&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=3626&amp;creative=24790\">Amazon<\/a><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Review<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>In <em>Something in the Middle<\/em>, the author A.I. Wand has created a collection of stories unlike anything else by exercising immense imaginative power. His intention was to write a collection of stories that did not seem to be written by just one person, and he indeed puts on many hats and gives the readers an anthology that is bizarre, yet fun to read. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The author has a very compelling and frank tone. The narrative form is not static. It breaks form again and again. The author does it elegantly, successfully piquing curiosity more than confusion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The book starts with the most eccentric introduction I&#8217;ve ever read. It continues to astonish me again and again. There is surrealism and dark humor in the book. There is romance and murder. The author clearly refused to put his short stories in a box and encapsulated multiple genres in this anthology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Most of the stories didn&#8217;t have any deep underlying meanings (if they did, I missed out on them). They were just eccentric stories that would make you chuckle (and occasionally gross you out). He did subtly touch on current world issues in a hilarious way. The author played around with different settings, formats, and even writing styles. This book is very nuanced and its fun lies in the writing style rather than the plot or plotlines because they are just so random.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This book contains something for everyone. There are stories that will make you laugh out loud. There are darker and even grotesque stories like &#8220;The High Price of Tardiness.&#8221; Stories like &#8220;Roll Call&#8221; will make you shed a tear. In one story, a writer argues with a character he created. Every story wasn&#8217;t strange or complex. Stories like &#8220;Complacency&#8221; were simpler and got their message across. However, there were some stories that I just did not understand. I have to commend the author of this book for writing the most creative anthology I have ever read. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Some readers may have to get past the initial discomfort and confusion of the book because of its unconventional nature. I will say that there was not a single moment of boredom for me. This book felt like the most well-thought-out and complex comedy act I&#8217;ve ever experienced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Reading this book is a truly unique experience. If you like linear anthologies that all follow a genre or a theme, this might not be for you. But if you are open to trying books written in unconventional ways, you might enjoy this book a lot.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Content warnings for the book<\/strong>:&nbsp; aggressive sexual content, violent content, expletives<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><em>Check out the book website for an interactive experience!<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.not-wand.com\/.\">https:\/\/www.not-wand.com\/.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>Connect with me on&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/tavleen_words\/\">Instagram<\/a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/tavleensoni\">Twitter<\/a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/user\/show\/32793447-tavleen-kaur\">Goodreads<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2021\/02\/21\/something-in-the-middle-small-stories-from-the-far-side-of-consciousness-by-a-i-wand\/#more-13445\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading &#10142; <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Something in the Middle: Small Stories from the Far Side of Consciousness by A.I. Wand &#8211; Book Review<\/span><\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13445","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-book-reviews"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4559,"url":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2017\/02\/04\/books-i-read-in-january-2017\/","url_meta":{"origin":13445,"position":0},"title":"January 2017 Reads","date":"February 4, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Hello everyone! This is the first time i am doing a month reading wrap-up and I'm hoping to do a lot of these this year. January was a pretty good reading month for me. I finished 6 books. All of these were sent to me for review by their author.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Book Lists&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/images.gr-assets.com\/books\/1475398277l\/32329443.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":10757,"url":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2017\/10\/14\/adventures-in-farland-by-moshank-relia-book-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":13445,"position":1},"title":"Adventures In Farland by Moshank Relia (Book Review)","date":"October 14, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Add this book on Goodreads Genre:\u00a0Children's Fantasy Publisher:\u00a0Rumour Books India Release Date: October 19th 2017 Pages:\u00a070 Format:\u00a0Paperback My Rating: 4\u00a0stars Mira and her friends Bira and Vira are on their way to Gunhill when they are meet Bushy, a funny man with ladybugs in his hair. He tells Mira that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Book Reviews&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/images.gr-assets.com\/books\/1506875661l\/36335839.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":9115,"url":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2017\/07\/17\/esper-files-the-sky-cult-esper-files-2-by-egan-brass-book-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":13445,"position":2},"title":"Esper Files: The Sky Cult (Esper Files #2) by Egan Brass (Book Review)","date":"July 17, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Add this book Goodreads Buy this book on Amazon Genre: Science Fiction, Steampunk Publisher:\u00a0Inkitt Release Date:\u00a0January 25th, 2017 Pages: 208 My Rating:\u00a04.5 stars You can check out my review of the first book\u00a0The\u00a0Esper\u00a0Files\u00a0here. The\u00a0Esper\u00a0Files: The Sky Cult is the second book in a science-fiction\u00a0steampunk\u00a0series. I enjoyed the first book so\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Book Reviews&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/images-eu.ssl-images-amazon.com\/images\/I\/51IQWoUaBHL.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":11548,"url":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2017\/12\/10\/coffee-and-ordinary-life-by-mitali-meelan-book-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":13445,"position":3},"title":"Coffee and Ordinary Life by Mitali Meelan (Book Review)","date":"December 10, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Add this book on Goodreads Buy this book on Amazon Genre:\u00a0Poetry Release Date:\u00a0November 28, 2017 Pages:\u00a080 Format:\u00a0Kindle My Rating: 3\u00a0stars Goodreads Synopsis Some relations are like an old sweater; often too worn out to be revived, but too precious to be replaced. This book is a collection of simple, heartfelt\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Book Reviews&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/images.gr-assets.com\/books\/1511383002l\/36643477.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":79,"url":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2016\/02\/02\/book-review-percy-jacksons-greek-gods-by-rick-riordan\/","url_meta":{"origin":13445,"position":4},"title":"Book Review: Percy Jackson&#8217;s Greek Gods by Rick Riordan","date":"February 2, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Mythology My Rating: 5 stars \u201cHermes played a little Mozart and some One Direction, and Apollo cried, \u2018I must have it! The girls will go wild for that!\u201d I loved this book! It is narrated by Percy Jackson, the protagonist of the Percy Jackson and the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Book Reviews&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.files.wordpress.com\/2016\/02\/screenshot_2016-02-02-23-45-06-1.png?w=350&h=200&crop=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":6581,"url":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2017\/04\/16\/mudmen-the-quest-for-humanity-by-shitij-sharma-book-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":13445,"position":5},"title":"Mudmen \u2013 The Quest For Humanity\u00a0by Shitij Sharma (Book Review)","date":"April 16, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Add this book on Goodreads Buy this book on Amazon Genre: Fiction, Fantasy, Post-Apocalyptic My Rating: 4.5 stars I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an\u00a0honest review. Mudmen is the second book by author Shitij Sharma. It is a stark contrast from his first\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Book Reviews&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/images.gr-assets.com\/books\/1485913536l\/34093278.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13445","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13445"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13445\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13445"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13445"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13445"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}