Epeolatry Book Review: Crocodile Tears Didn’t Cause the Flood by Bradley Sides
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Title: Crocodile Tears Didn’t Cause the Flood
Author: Bradley Sides
Genre: Short Story Collection, Weird Fiction/Horror
Publisher: Montag Press
Publication Date: 6th February, 2024
Synopsis: Bradley Sides merges the South with the weird in his latest collection of magical realism short stories, Crocodile Tears Didn’t Cause the Flood. Here, a boy creates a guide to his beloved pond monster, a parent weighs the consequences of the coming apocalypse, a man protects a jar of delicate moths, a test taker fearlessly faces death, a young woman rejects ownership of her vampire family’s farm, a father leaves a letter for his ghost daughter, and a flood of broken robots sparks pure joy. Full of grief, loss, and, somehow, even hope, Sides’ fantastic stories boldly and tenderly explore the complexities of humanity.
This compilation of stories took me through similar themes and emotions, ranging from loss, grief, regrets, survival, hope against the odds, and trapping oneself in the same pattern.
Several of Side’s works show the reader glimpses of people deemed different, misplaced, and longing for something.
These character types always hit home for me. Most of us have gone through a challenging situation or know someone who has felt dismissed by society, family, or friends. Someone grieving for a different outcome, for the loss we feel. Yet, at some point, we dust ourselves off and keep going—our most human trait, survival. Side’s stories will have you relating to this kind of heartache. It’s as if he’s been there himself—a good friend telling us we aren’t alone.
Among my favorite stories were The Guide To King George, Do You Remember, That Winter Ago, Our Patches, To Take To Leave, and Claire and Hank.
This is a lovely collection for those who enjoy reading about different, weird, odd characters and the grief involved in their lives. Yet, knowing that one way or another, they survive with their kind of hope.
/5
- About the Author
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Amie DeStefano enjoys writing short stories, poetry, the unusual and weird, but especially fantasy or anything else she dreams up and puts on paper. Her short story is published in That Darkened Doorstep anthology. While living in Pennsylvania with her husband and two children, she writes as often as possible. Amie enjoys sushi, coffee, and a good book, but nothing compares to the Zen-in the moment feeling she gets from writing.
