Title: Wake Up the Night
Author: Kenneth Silver
Publisher: Independently published
Genre: Short Stories
First Publication: 2021
Language: English
Book Summary: Wake Up the Night by Kenneth Silver
This is a collection of stories, of words and ideas that flow like a dream, but is there anything less predictable or quite so fickle as a dream? Ken Silver creates narratives that are decidedly daring, and he is never afraid to reach, but never beyond the point at which (with lawyerly precision) he is unable to support his conclusions, scientifically or otherwise. Make no mistake though, it is hardly a tame piece of writing, but a rich harvest of beautifully imagined and thoroughly engrossing tales conceived by an original thinker who refuses to be shackled to curatorial conventions. Accordingly, each and every story, and the novel that follows, has a mind of their own.
The novel itself could only have been written by someone who had actually been there. It took more than research. It took a fashion designer, lawyer, and rainforest radical, but, most of all, it took a poet. Sip it slowly. It is a bold and complex selection and wants to be savored.
Book Review: Wake Up the Night by Kenneth Silver
The short stories in Wake Up the Night by Kenneth Silver are calm and thoughtful, yet they deal with heavy topics like human nature and its violent tendencies. The author achieves an intriguing and frequently frightening impact with his first collection of short stories, which combines an insightful, character-driven narrative with themes that tap into dystopian fiction, sci-fi, and fantasy.
The first story in this collection, “Outside Influence,” has a humble beginning but develops into a gloomy one over the course of the narrative. It tells the story of an American photographer seeking to capture the calmness of grazing deer, but the animals unexpectedly attack him. The plot thickens with a growing number of animals, even domesticated ones, becoming hostile toward humans. The subtle mysticism that was woven into this tale gave the impression of being incredibly realistic and was, of course, loaded with symbolism.
Everyone has an innate need to be accepted by a community. However, this need is particularly important for children since it is the driving force behind their worldviews, attitudes, and the manner in which they engage with the outside world. But how do you balance the urge to fit in as a child with your culture if your cultural background was vastly different from that of your surroundings? And this estrangement felt so very painful in the short space of this story about Ben Burton.
Ben Burton, the protagonist of the light-hearted title story, is the child of parents who are residents of an age-restricted neighbourhood. With longer life expectancies and fewer children in the near future, the narrator of this book describes his experiences as “the first and only kid in a society inhabited by seniors,” detailing the challenges and rewards of growing up in an “Age Restricted Community” with elderly parents. This darkly satirical tone is precisely what drives the formal inventiveness of “The Trigger,” a short tale that makes use of the several connotations its title might have. The events of this narrative take place in the year 2040, when an industry leader in the private prison sector is conducting research on “Behavior Modification Theory” as a method for the treatment of convicts. In this particular instance, it means putting prisoners in the same situation that “triggered” their criminal behaviour.
The collection’s strong climax, “Leak in the Roof,” is a reflective but ultimately encouraging narrative delivered in the form of a memoir that echoes and unifies many of the themes explored in the preceding stories. The novella reveals an interesting life of the celebrated fashion designer, Kenny, working in the fashion business through a combination of an autobiography, anecdotes, poetry, and an editor’s note. This novella tells the story of Kenneth Silverman’s struggles and eventual triumph in the industry while also narrating his efforts to make the world a better place.
This collection of short stories is absolutely remarkable, and each one manages to inspire while also entertaining the reader. Kenneth Silver has a fantastic imagination, as shown by the fact that each of these stories is impressive with its unique characteristics. The majority of the stories featured in this collection were absolutely fantastic examples of excellent writing. They are memorable, insightful, philosophical, introspective, and entertaining, and a few of them were really emotional. Wake Up the Night contains a wide variety of literary genres, including science fiction, magical realism, dystopian fiction, fantasy, and even a memoir. Kenneth Silver’s ability to switch gears and convey stories in a variety of styles is astounding. Overall, this is a very high-quality collection of short stories that will keep you captivated and involved in the drama.
