This book is a compendium of horror short stories designed to leave you in a state of wonder, excitement, and horror. I’ve read a lot of horror stories in my life, most notably Steven King and Clive Barker, and this book rivals them. I’ve mentioned this before in an earlier post, about how it drops you in murky water that tumbles you about, leaving you out of breath as it teases you with the shore line, and once you make it to the shore, heaving air back into you, you jump back in for more. Well I finished the book. The murky water has left. And I still want more.
The one thing about this book is the different styles of writing each author presents. If you’re a writer you learn certain rules about writing, how to phrase your sentences and how to weave them. What you should and shouldn’t do. These authors know the rules, and break them. It’s like the old saying, know the rules so you know which ones you’re breaking. Not only do they break them, they create these living things in word form that can only be described as people living their lives, and being thrust in their own living hells.
This book was well curated, as each story pushes you deeper and deeper into horrors so well thought out, both incidental and purposeful. Monsters, both human and otherwise, appear when you least expect them. People are ravaged both physically and mentally. Indeed, if you are not into horror, you shouldn’t read this book. It will leave you shaken inside and out, and you will be thinking of them for days.
So if you’re looking for a good horror book to read, Out There Screaming is perfect. It is primarily written by black authors, but don’t let that be the idea behind getting it. It’s a good read! Short stories that you can finish over lunch time at work. Or before going to bed, if you dare. And there are stories that do include the black experience, it is not the experiences you should be afraid, rather the dark secret behind those experiences.
Arid Testimony 