This original collection of short stories references original/classic themes and explores the added dimensions of speculative fiction.
The ‘Little Mermaid’ introduces us to ‘Koo-arsh’-an alien human-like inhabitant of an immense lake on an exo-planet. The ‘Princess and the Pea’ becomes a young woman afflicted by a strange intolerance to pea-soup. The ‘President’s New Clothes’ reveals a future President Chester Trump wearing the image of clothing projected onto his body and caught out with unforeseen consequences.
There can be little doubt that the foundation sources for these new tales share a timeless quality, having endured over the generations since the early 19th Century. Modern readers need do little to fill in gaps and use their imagination to make this anthology relevant to their own experiences.
Nine of the re-imagined stories in this anthology are inspired by the works of Hans Christian Andersen and one by the Brothers Grimm. Many of the original stories are well known and some have been adapted to feature films, television, comics and other media. Their abiding popularity is strongly related to the human emotions, foibles and failings that are common to all modern human cultures.
Tabella dei contenuti
Tale 1: The Little Mermaid
Tale 2: The Ugly Duckling
Tale 3: The Little Match Girl
Tale 4: Be Careful What You Wish For
Tale 5: 100 Years Hence
Tale 6: The Nursery Attendant and the Duct Maintenance Droid
Tale 7: The Happy Family
Tale 8: He’s Wearing No Clothes
Tale 9: Cinderella
Tale 10: The Princess and the Pea
Circa l’autore
Rodney has written three speculative fiction novels and an anthology of short stories with future themes based on traditional stories that are targeting both adult and young adult readers. He has also contributed to six compilations of short stories through his writers group (Northern Beaches Writers Group based in Sydney).He has written extensively in the Australian media, beginning with travel and boating magazines then moving on to feature articles on urban design and property. He began screenwriting, and producing short films during the last two decades.His first novel (re-written and newly published as ‘Covert Messages’) has been a springboard for his interest in speculative fiction. Themes coming into sharp focus have included: artificial intelligence, the search for extraterrestrial intelligence, global pandemic and the worsening effects of global warming. His ‘Covert Trilogy’ is similarly based in the near future in a dystopian world.Rodney belongs to the Northern Beaches Writers’ Group, is a member of Mark Dawson’s ‘Self Publishing Formula’ program and belongs to the MEAA Australian writers’ union as a journalist member. Besides writing, his other passions include playing classical guitar, landscape photography, bushwalking, and travel to historic quarters in various corners of the globe.