The Blue Fairy and other stories of transcendence
Author
Ernest Dempsey
Publisher
Modern History Press
4 Review Copies Left
A thought-provoking excursion to life's last breath
Ernest Dempsey's second collection of short stories The Blue Fairy takes a subject that has been dreaded for centuries - 'Death'. It is one of the few works of fiction, which neither treats the subject as the 'D word' by bringing in fantasies of afterlife nor compromises the solemnity by trying to evaporate the reality of death in humor. Instead, Dempsey explores the many sides to the subject that make the final departure a meaningful reality of existence. Inspired mostly by real life experiences, Dempsey's The Blue Fairy ingeniously integrates dying with living. It is a book for the soul.
Acclaim for the writing of Ernest Dempsey
"There is something about the somberness of his search for moral principles that reminds me of Victorian poets such as Tennyson, Bronte, Kipling, and Hardy writing in the 19th century. Bringing these themes into 21st century views is an interesting task."
-Janet Grace Riehl, Village Wisdom
"Following clearly in the footsteps of Rod Serling or his distant predecessor, Edgar Allan Poe, comes a fresh new voice in world fiction. Ernest Dempsey conveys the freight of emotion with a twist of irony in his first collection of short stories which address the tender lines between life and death."
-Victor R. Volkman, host of Authors Access
About the Author
Ernest Dempsey has authored four books and, in just the last few years, seen the publication of his poems, essays, short stories, and literary reviews worldwide. He is now the editor-in-chief of the literary magazine Recovering the Self: A Journal of Hope and Healing (www.RecoveringSelf.com) and also works as the country editor for Pakistan on the celebrated Internet news channel Instablogs. Dempsey is now looking forward to completing his first novel.
Learn more at www.ErnestDempsey.com
From the World Voices series at Modern History Press www.ModernHistoryPress.com
Reviews
Book Title: The Blue Fairy and other tales of transcendence
Author: Ernest Dempsey
Publisher: Loving Healing Press
ISBN: 9781932690927
Reviewed by Michele Tater for Review the Book
“Death ends a life, not a relationship.”
~Robert Benchley
Even though life and death are intertwined as a everyday occurrence, most people and cultures have a fear of dying and what happens after we die. Although the death of his Aunt affected him at a very young age, the author Ernest Dempsey, has used that experience to examine the event of death from the perspective of the survivors.
In his book “The Blue Fairy” Mr. Dempsey writes 25 short stories that includes several different example of the dying and grieving process. Each story gives the reader a glimpse into people’s lives when they have been touched by death and shows how they are able to handle it. The old says of “everyone handles grief differently” comes to life in these beautiful written tales. This is not a morbid or even a sad book, it is just a look into a subject few people want to talk about even when they are in the grieving process.
I found that life lessons, not necessary death lessons, are found in each story. It showed how to look at death as a part of life and living. We must be prepare for aspects of the process we will not understand, for example a need for someone to die or how someone else death was in vain. As we are not all the same in life nor are we all going to leave this life the same way. The people we leave behind are the ones that will have to come to grips with their lost while you just cease to be a part of their lives. One of the stories, was about the concept of “death” even when a person is alive. They are living life just going through the motions and not breaking out of the rut they have made for themselves. Another story shows also how someone can be obsessed with death; when, why and how it will happen, that they too can not live a full life.
Living with the idea that death may be just around that corner can scare many individuals, but it is the truth. In this book I feel readers can get a new prospective on “living” through the many looks of death. It is not a depressing book it is actually a book of hope that all who read it will chose to live life; really live life.
Reviewed on 12/01/2010 by ReviewTheBook.com Member michele tater
