Get in trouble by Kelly Link

Text, 2015. ISBN 9781922182630
(Age: 16+) Recommended. Short stories. 'Be bold, be bold. But not too bold - lest that your heart's blood should run cold.'
This book is an Indies Choice Book of the Year Finalist for 2016.
You will need to be bold to encounter the nine short stories included here for the reader to enjoy. The writing is captivating and the stories are weird, engrossing, surprising and at times alarming or disturbing.
These stories encompass a range of characters that include: a young girl, a middle-aged movie star, a spoiled birthday girl, astronauts, evil twins, bootleggers, The Wizard of Oz and superheroes.
Some of the stories require the reader to really slow down and collect all the clues in the writing for there to be real understanding and appreciation of the intricacies in the telling. The stories unfold in a dreamlike stream of consciousness where the connections seem logical in that space and time but, at the end of the story, the reader marvels at the creativity and imagination that created the journey to an unexpected destination.
The Summer People is a compelling first story in this collection. It has teenage Fran caring for the 'summer people'. These people are holiday makers that visit for the summer. There are also 'summer people' to look after and they are always at home. This story is a cautionary tale of the dangers of making agreements with fairies.
While these are short stories, they are for sophisticated readers able to suspend belief and enjoy the ride.
Linda Guthrie