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Black Juice by Margo Lanagan

By RachelUndefined on December 13, 2009 • ( 0 )

Opening Sentence:We all went down to the tar-pit, with mats to spread our weight.
Synopsis:‘And through the silence comes something immense and leisurely, that sheds the filth of heavens from it’s dusty wings…Whatever it is, it comes for all of us, ant or angel, lost child in the forest or lady and lord of manners. Tonight it’s come for my nan, and it gathers her up out of the thing that was her self, up out of her own bones into its dark, dirty, soft, soft breast, unfisting her hands from the front of her nightshirt, laying down her remains, moving her on from us like a storm cloud dragging its rain.’

Margo Lanagan’s stories will delight, shock, amuse and move you to tears with their dazzling imaginative reach, their dark humour, their subtlety, their humanity and depth of feeling.

After all Black Juice runs through us all.

Black Juice is a book of extraordinary stories – breathtakingly fierce and surprisingly tender, they explore the dark and the light, and pit the frailty of humans against implacable forces. This is landmark fiction.
Genre:Fantasy
Rating:@@@@@
Pages:227
BCID:xxx-7330370
ISBN:978-0-575-07924-3
Year:2007
Format:Paperback
Comments:This is the first I’ve heard of Margo Lanagan, but I feel it won’t be the last. Black Juice is a collection of short stories of the superb quality I have come to expect from the genre’s Australian authors. I fully enjoyed every single one of the stories included in this book.

Singing My Sister Down- This is a very sad story about an unusual tribal punishment, and my favourite story in this collection.
My Lord’s Man – A story about love, acceptance and misjudgement.
Red Nose Day – An interesting twist on the typical clown story.
Sweet Pippit – A beautiful story about elephants and their love for their handler. This is my second favourite story in this collection.
House of the Many – A story about the fading of our childhood impressions.
Wooden Bride – An interesting story about living up to our word.
Earthly Uses – A twist on the concept of angels.
Perpetual Light – Set in a future world where the air is unbreathable.
Yowlinin – Monsters and outcasts of society meet.
Rite of Spring – Singing in the season.
The Point of Roses – This is my pick for third place in this collection. A boy with great powers influences others.

Margo’s stories are magnificent, engrossing and above all, thought-provoking. My top three stories in this collection are Singing My Sister Down, Sweet Pippit and The Point Of Roses. All three of these stories are worthy of your attention.

My Top Ten Books of 2012 (bookmonkeyscribbles.wordpress.com)
The 2013 Stella Prize Longlist announced (booktopia.com.au)
Review: Margo Lanagan – Tender Morsels (sffbookreview.wordpress.com)
Three Steps To Better Sleep On A Plane (time4sleep.com)
Doing Stuff & Putting Myself Out There (woahmolly.com)

‹ Bob Becker, quoted in ‘What’s Happening to Our Girls’ by Maggie Hamilton

Third Reich Law Still Being Enforced ›

Categories: Impressions

Tags: Arts, australia, books, fiction, International Standard Book Number, Margo, Margo Lanagan, Online Writing, short stories, Short story

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How do I rate my books?

½ Star: I disliked it to the point where I didn’t even finish it and I would actively discourage others from reading it. This will definitely be released.
1 Star: I almost didn’t finish this book, but I powered through. I strongly disliked it and I would actively discourage others from reading it. This will definitely be released.
1 ½ Stars: I read this book, but I didn’t particularly enjoy it and I wouldn’t recommend it. This book will be released.
2 Stars: I don’t really have an opinion on this book. I didn’t particularly like it, but I didn’t particularly dislike it either. I won’t read it again and probably wouldn’t recommend it. This book will be released.
2 ½ Stars: This book is alright, I guess. Other people might enjoy it, but it’s not for me. I might mention it in passing, but I won’t reread it. This book will be released.
3 Stars: This book is average. I enjoyed it, but I’ll probably forget it within a year. I might recommend it to fans of the genre, but I won’t be rereading it. This book will be released.
3 ½ Stars: This book is above average but unexceptional. I enjoyed it, and I would probably recommend it, but I doubt I’ll read it again. This book will be released.
4 Stars: This is an excellent book. I enjoyed it quite a bit and would recommend it to others. I may or may not reread it. This book might be kept, or it might be released.
4 ½ Stars: This book is fantastic. I absolutely loved it and I fully intend to read it again. I would definitely recommend it to others. This book will be kept.
5 Stars: This is an amazing book which I’ll reread multiple times. I quite likely sacrificed sleep or skipped meals for this book and will shamelessly promote it to all and sundry. This book will definitely be kept, and I’ll probably buy an extra copy just to release it.

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What Were the Crusades? Fourth Edition by Jonathan Riley-Smith
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