An Elbow, a Flower, a Stairwell or Two

By: Dale Stubbart

Narrated by: Gareth Johnson

From across the room, he noticed her elbow. Such an exquisite elbow. What fine lines. As he traced the curve of her elbow with his eyes, he noticed something stenciled there. At this distance, he should not have been able to tell that that something was a flower. But he could, so he gave up reasoning for reality. His eye started tracing the lines of the flower. He was only vaguely aware that the flower was drawn on a woman's elbow some 20 yards away.

Suddenly, his laptop got heavier, almost dragging him down. He thought that must have been due to all the data he had recently downloaded. Strange thought. The lines of the flower slowly, but surely, turned into a descending, spiraling staircase.

"What an interesting twist", he thought. And then his mind swirled out of control. His last thought was that he was falling....

Pink polka-dots were never so welcome! Hmmm, this stairwell traveling could come in handy, I wonder what other stairwells...You mean hells don't you, quit thinking that way!

©Since 2018 Dale Stubbart (P)2018 Dale Stubbart

Umm Different, Unique, and ... delirium

Remember the last time you were feverish... or too tired you were nonsensical... or saw something and just daydreamed...?
Hold that image and magnify it tenfold.
This story is a nonstop-one-thought-running-into-another like a nonstop sentence on a runaway train on steroids.
It’s not enlightening or eye popping and it won’t leave you in a profound stupor.
But when you just wanna zone out - this will help. Or not help.

Like A Surrealist Painting - But with Words

This is one of the strangest books I have encountered in a very long time. It chronicles the adventures of a young man who becomes interested in the tattoo on a woman's elbow. He, and the story, jumps from place to place and event to event, but it all makes a bizarre kind of sense - perhaps more so after a glass or two of wine or a toke or two ... if that sort of thing is legal in your neck of the woods.
In any case, it's very short, so worth a look, if only for the experience.
Personally, I enjoyed it although I continue to be puzzled by it.

Humm.. 🤔

This book just didn't seem to go anywhere. The main character is trapped for a while and the whole story revolves around his internal monologue. IDK if the author was watching Castaway while writing? I did feel like the computer was his Wilson lol. I'm left scratching my head thinking what the heck!! The narrator wasn't bad. He's just doing the best with what he's got to work with. I was given a free copy of this book at my request and have voluntarily decided to leave this review.

Short, confusing, intriguing. Worth a listen.

This can be a confusing story -- especially since it's told at such a rapid, and sometimes jarring, pace. I think that's somewhat intentional, but it is what it is.

Because I think the author intended this as sort of a long-form poem where you're to figure out and understand what's going on, I don't want to ruin anything. It's short enough at 27 minutes for you to give it a try anyway.

The narration was also a bit jarring at times and a bit hard to follow, but it may be due to my own unfamiliarity with the type of accent.

I bumped it a star up overall since it did leave me thinking for a bit, and I do think it's worth a listen. It's also a bit jarring and forgettable after a bit of pondering IMO.

I was provided this audiobook free of charge in exchange for my honest review.

Polka dots have never been so welcome.

As the Pythons might say, 'Now for something completely different'. A very short story of a dorky young man's journey from a party to ...
A twenty day adventure in about as many minutes. Just don't trace the staircase.
Weird, and with the perfect dorky reading by very English voiced Gareth Johnson, making the whole entertainment totally surreal.
I was attracted to this book by the title, requested and, to my delight, freely gifted a complimentary copy via Audiobook Boom by the rights holder. Thank you so much. It was great fun.

ambiguous book but at the same time original

I have to admit it is very strange, but in the same way it was interesting. I put 4 stars to encourage the writer :)

Escher-like world of 'what the hell is going on?'

This book is an MC Escher drawing turned onto a book. A tattoo melds into a staircase, the staircase into another world. Scene change in an instant. The protagonist, and the reader, are constantly thrown off as to where they are and what is going in a swirl on non sequitur and constant change. And yet, it's generally an enjoyable ride.

I listened through this twice, to see if I could work out what exactly is going on with the constant swirl. Is it drugs? is it virtual reality? is it insanity? Or something else? And while there is some suggestions at the end as to what was the cause, it's never made clear. I think the best way to enjoy this is revel in the insanity of what is going on and just enjoy the ride. Yes, try work it out, but more just get swept along with it.

There is some things that felt off in the writing. Midway through the book it changes from a third person point of view to first person. Maybe it was intentional, maybe part of the 'keep the reader off kilter' approach, but didn't sit well.

Narration by Gareth Johnson is good. It has an energy to it that works really well with the text, while still being well paced and clear.

This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this review voluntarily.

huh?

I was given this free review copy audio book at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

So... not sure what I just listened to. The narrator has a good voice, but I just felt lost the whole time. It is rapid to the point of being jarring and it is just left me thinking, "what the hell did I just listen to?"

Short story

I listened to this on audible and I think the story was better because the narrators voice pulled you in. When a 20 something year old guy is at a party and observes a tattoo on a woman’s elbow, he gets pulled into a 20 day cycle of stairs and other odd events. The story is very short but a good one, where rabbit holes (metaphorically) keep appearing and drawing both the man and the reader.

Creative and interesting.

This is a strange work but if you are interested in a unique and creative work then this may be for you.

The Narrator did a good job with the material.




This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review.