Rating: 4 stars out of 5
Though Jimmy’s ill and isn’t getting any better, he hopes to have a bit of fun during Pride weekend. When he meets Nolan, a young dancer in the parade, Jimmy takes a chance on making himself vulnerable for the first time in years.
What Jimmy doesn’t expect is how strong Nolan will make him feel with a simple gesture of support.
Note: This short story was originally published in the charity collection, Love Is Proud.
Chicken Soup by Mel Bossa demonstrates exactly how precisely a writer can build a tiny portrait of a man who has lost all hope of a future in every respect, despair and depression slowly weighing him down by his daily new illness and as the story eventually lets on, his varying viral count.
While we don’t know specifics, we are lefts enough clues to put together a vague past history of a man soon to see his 40’s birthday, alone, even among his friends during Pride weekend.
Mel Bossa does a beautiful job with Jimmy and we feel his desolation of the spirit that suddenly lifts when he meets a 27 year old bank teller from Nova Scotia pursuing his dream of becoming a ballet dancer. What follows is a sweet, tear inducing tale of recognition, connection, and of hope.
This is such a gem of a short story, certainly a HFN. But its message is clear and life affirming, the characters well defined for such a brief story and the ending left me sniffling. Yes, I certainly recommend this lovely story to everyone in need of an uplifting tale to read.
Cover art by Written Ink Designs: I get that its branding a series of short stories but this shows its short failures. It’s in no way appropriate for this story which is due something far better.
Sales Links: JMS Books LLC | Amazon
Book Details:
Kindle Edition, 14 pages
Published March 2nd 2019 by JMS Books LLC
ASINB07PWTZ9B
Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words 