Jack London

Moon-Face & Other Stories ANNOTATED Jack London

IntroductionThe title story is a short story by Jack London, on the subject of extreme antipathy. The unnamed protagonist of the story has an irrational hatred of John Claverhouse, the moon-face man. He hates really everything about him: his face, his laugh, his entire life, and when he finds out that Claverhouse engages in illegal fishing with dynamite, he works out a scheme to kill him while making it look like an accident... The Leopard Man's Story is a short mystery story about the ingenious murder of "King" Wallace, a fearless lion-tamer as told by the "Leopard Man", a saddened leopard trainer who bears visible scars on his arms and whose personality diametrically opposes his daring profession. Other stories included are: Local Color, Amateur Night, The Minions of Midas, The Shadow and the Flash, All Gold Canyon, and Planchette. Review Excellent collection of short stories. I was very impressed with how varied they were in terms of writing style. I didn't know Jack London had so many sides to him. Some of these stories are written in his signature 'naturalism', while others are a bit more philosophical, Gothic and mysterious. Some feature strong willed female protagonists (a fact that somewhat surprised me as I wasn't used to strong females in his works). Some of these stories had a bit of the kind of dark and morbid fascination in them that reminded me of E. A. Poe. Highly recommended!Moon-Face: A Story of Mortal Antipathy 4/5Superbly written, this is a first person narration of mortal antipathy. The ending was brilliant but on overall, the story was a bit too dark for me. I felt the ending a bit unfinished, but on the other hand that the whole brilliance and novelty of it- the way the story ended. The Leopard Man's Story Speaker Icon 3/5Another well written and paced story. Altogether, quite dark and violent. Not for the sensitive souls. Local Color 3/5An interesting read but not very memorable. It evaporated from my mind quickly. Amateur Night 5/5What makes a good journalist? This story follows a brave young lady who is determined to get into journalism. Now, this is a story that is still relevant. Sometimes you just have to push your way through and be willing to try new things. The Minions of Midas 5/5Very dramatic and nerve wrecking, it reads like a murder mystery but it is also an interesting commentary on social classes and changes as well as revolutionary movements of past times. There is also a chilling aspect to it, a feeling of guilt being the underlining tone of it. The Shadow and the Flash 5/5The science fiction element to this story really surprised me. Two men in search of invisibility, two chemists battling it to the finish line. I kept thinking about Asimov while reading this one, wondering whether he had read it. Possibly my favourite story in the collection. The science of it is a bit shaky, but why the story itself? It's absolutely amazing. All Gold Canyon 4/5This is London as I know him, describing the battle of man against nature. Excellent descriptions in this one, it is easy to imagine everything that takes place. Planchette 5/5A ghost mystery of sorts, this story contains a lot of ambiguity. I was mighty impressed with it. Where does science end and supernatural begin? Or are the two somehow connected? I liked the commentary about the twenty century minds and their belief in science. In many ways, the subconsciousness mind is still a mystery. This story made me think about The Turn of a Screw, for there are a few ways to read and interpret it. Absolutely delicious reading!