More Stories to Tell (Stories to tell Book #2)
About
More Stories to Tell - Presents two of his more recent stories read to the ever-growing audience at the aged care home. Growing in numbers, of course, not individual size.
“Goings on in Space” is a messy tale of love, sex, space, droids, and mean business types who control the known Universe.
“A Couple that Kills” A young couple living their lives as professional killers for hire, all while living in a semi-rural hippie community selling prize organic beef.
Trailer
Praise for this book
What a clever, naughty, intelligent little book. Crawford has a distinctive voice, like if Roald Dahl wrote for adults after too much red wine. “Goings on in Space” is one of the most irreverent science fiction stories I’ve ever read. It’s campy and chaotic, but there's real affection in the writing. I found myself unexpectedly moved by the droid character’s yearning for recognition and love. “A Couple That Kills” reads like a meditation on duality how people compartmentalize identity, morality, and performance. The couple are so likable, which makes their profession all the more chilling. I felt like I was being let in on a cosmic joke that was also, somehow, a philosophical essay. Brilliant.
This book surprised me. I expected light entertainment, but Crawford’s stories carry real thematic weight. “Goings on in Space” uses sci-fi not for escapism, but to explore some surprisingly poignant questions: Can machines feel? What does intimacy mean when everything’s synthetic? There's a beautiful loneliness woven into the narrative, buried under sharp jokes and ridiculous scenarios. “A Couple That Kills” is wonderfully ironic. Their community thinks they’re new-age saints, but behind closed doors, they’re wiping fingerprints off silencers. I laughed, I squirmed, I admired the guts it took to write something this unfiltered. Not perfect sometimes the transitions felt abrupt, but the ideas are bold and well-executed.
Hands down one of the funniest and most original short fiction collections I’ve read in ages. “Goings on in Space” made me laugh out loud in public. The dialogue is snappy, the scenarios ridiculous yet oddly plausible. It reminded me of Red Dwarf but with more heart. And “A Couple That Kills”? I don’t know how Crawford made me care about two cold-blooded murderers, but I did. I rooted for them. I worried for them. I questioned my own morality. That’s good writing. Add to that the delightful setting of the stories being read to aged-care residents, and you’ve got a meta layer that adds charm without being gimmicky.