SHORT STORIES
Brief Descriptions
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Here are the twelve consecutive stories about Willie Button, a small-time thief, who unintentionally burglarizes the Devil's Bible. His attempts to sell or give the deadly book away are met with refusal and horror. When Willie Button is killed by a wildly driven taxi, the book stays with him. And St. Peter refuses to let him through the Pearly Gates until he rids himself of it. The twelve stories follow poor Willie as he is returned to life, and his attempts to unload the "albatross" — the albatross around his neck, as he calls the book, so that he can gain forgiveness, and be allowed to enter through Heaven's Gates.
The Willie Buttons Series ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ With this issue we allot Albert J. Manachino and his works his
own separate section. The man deserves it. He has published
hundreds of stories over the past 70 years in many small
presses. Also novels and cartoons. Worked with artists well
known in their own fields, among them Kevin D. Duncan and
Larry Dickison. His stories continue to appear in electronic
presses on line, among them Surprising Stories and Bewildering
Stories. Thank you, Al, for the opportunity to showcase your
witty, quirky, imaginative, often hilarious stories, that often
have an undercurrent of truth concealed under the guise of
hilarity.
The Albert J. Manachino Series ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Here is a story for children of all ages about a beautiful graceful flower whose name was Lily who lived in a pond, and a strong, but gentle beast who has wandered far from home on a very special quest.... Lily and Tiger ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Three short, short stories to inspire your soul and warm your heart.... Grandma and Me ~~ Alyssa Starts Over ~~ Good Neighbor Love ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A nostalgic story of a child and her grandmother making biscuits and memories.... Biscuit Making ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ (An inspiring religious analogy) A father recounts, "My daughter has a favorite stuffed teddy bear she carries around with her. There is a game we play called "Where's Bear?" Every now and again, she will sit Bear down somewhere and forget about him. If I see Bear all alone, I take him and hide him somewhere. When my daughter realizes Bear is missing, she asks me, "What did you do with him?" I give her clues to find him...."
Where's Bear ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A gracious old woman, an unplayed piano, and a young boy with a dream... The Unplayed Piano ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I will provide for thee in a way ye thought not of. The Lord works in mysterious ways, as this fanciful whimsical tale illustrates... How a Number 3 Washtub... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ananta never told anyone of his meeting with the wandering minstrel, or how he obtained the vina. Or how it changed his life...
Narada ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Natalie, driving quiet-souled and competently towards the Golden Gate, in her mind's eye saw the grandiose yet graceful Golden Gate bridge again and she yearned to already be on it; she saw its distant, blue-gray waters, which would be, from that height, like hitting cement, and a good contentment blossomed in her. She would soon be over its railing and headed into the water's death far, far below And her fatal disease—she could not say its name and award it stronger strength, even though she'd been an EMT and then a trauma nurse for thirty years and had seen enough to give Superman forty or fifty deep, psychic scars—would vanish under the water. But, at work, she had hardly dealt with that–that disease. She had dealt with mangled accident victims, with still hot-skinned burn victims and with other horrors beyond description. So why couldn't she deal with her disease, see it through to its painful end? ... When all seems lost... an inspiring story of finding the strength...
The Bridge's Siren Song ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Greg almost didn't stop when he heard the faint sound of a car horn and saw what he thought was a broken guardrail on the other side of the road. He was in a hurry to meet his friend, Chris. At first, he thought nothing of it, but something tugged at his mind that he should take a look to see if an accident had occurred. He swung the car around and stopped at the break in the guardrail. Meant To Be ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Spring Fever ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
by Paula Freda
by Evelyn Horan
by Alandra Blume
by Bro B
by Celine Rose Mariotti
by David Coffman
by Don Stockard
by Myrtle Archer
Approaching the rail, he could see a car had crashed through it, and a driver slumped over the wheel. He immediately took out his cell phone and called 911 for the police and for an ambulance. While Greg at first considered not touching anything, just leave everything for the police and the medics, he decided he should check on the driver and maybe take him out of the car in case it caught fire. Just as he reached the car and started to open the door, he recognized the driver. It was his sweet Laura. She was dazed, semi-conscious, mumbling incoherently....
by Sheldon F. Katz
by Sara Lloyd
Dilemma
by Kathi Sprayberry
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I loved my mother. In her your youth she was free-spirited and spontaneous; she reminded me of a gypsy moth, and she wore gardenias in her hair. She was beautiful and kind, yet she bore a secret pain that would slowly yet relentlessly drain her mind and her spirit. For she was one of the many victims of OCD - obsessive compulsive disorder...
She Wore Gardenias In Her Hair
by Paula Freda
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At age four, Evan was diagnosed with brain cancer, yet year after year he surprised everyone by continuing to survive. Whenever anyone looked at him, he smiled at them. They said he painted a smile on their faces and brightened their day whenever they saw him. Evan brought joy to everyone he met....Painting A Smile
by Lillian Manachino
(among her very best)
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It was a bright beautiful St. Patrick's Day in the town of Golden Pots. Everyone was out celebrating, all except one. His name was Andrew. He believed in Leprechauns and all the townsfolk thought he was crazy. So he decided to prove to everyone they were wrong....
Leprechaun's Luck
by Lillian Manachino
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Sometimes in life people have to move for different reasons. Little Mike and Anne hear their parents talking about moving, and they think their world will end....
The Move
by Lillian Manachino
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Little Emily has never witnessed a thunderstorm. Lillian Manachino, one of our keenest young adult writers, shows us a toddler's first encounter with a thunderstorm....
Thunder Rolls
by Lillian Manachino