My love for stories probably has been the only constant interest in my life so far. So, when presented with the opportunity to read a collection of them how could I even resist. Starting this new year with ‘Wonderful World‘ by Janie Reynolds.
Janie, a practicing osteopath, lives in Eastbourne, UK, with her teenage daughter, and a music producer son. She won the Faber & Faber ‘Hard Lines’ short story competition at the age of 19 while training to be a journalist in London. But she left journalism to study psychology and philosophy at Middlesex University. Her non-governmental organization ‘People Against Chimpanzee Experiments’ has worked to achieve a ban on the use of great apes in medical research. Wonderful World is her debut book collection.
Review: Wonderful World
DISCLAIMER: This review is my humble honest opinion. I DO NOT claim to have any authority/power/intention to add/delete any value of the book or of the author. I wish nothing but success to the author.
A myriad of emotional flavors!
Wonderful World is an intimate collection of stories and poems offering a spectrum of familiar feelings. The stories in the book have been divided by the author into three broad shades: white, grey, and black. For me, the different colors represented the emotional levels of intensity; with each darkening shade the stories grew more potent.
Given the leanness of pieces, they feel like individually wrapped bite-sized candies of varied flavors which serve for a perfect bedtime light reading. Each composition engulfs the readers immediately and transports them into a realm reassuringly familiar. The book in itself surpasses all the geographical identities and talks of the things instinctively humane making it relatable for all its readers.
Janie has successfully managed to capture raw emotions with her identifiable writing style giving the book a personal touch. The thing which stood out for me most was how each story felt like an honest and vulnerable extension of the author herself.
Although the writing and the form isn’t conventional by any means, but it is surely powerful. Packed with numerous layers and depth, this book is definitely worth its price. I would recommend it to anyone who loves shorter pieces and isn’t turned off by the experimental writing style or form.
Bookish Bubble 
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