City of Weird

Reviews / Votes

Booklist: "The 30 stories collected here come from an impressive cast of authors. All stories are set in Portland, Oregon (you don't need to know anything about Portland to enjoy them), and partake, to varying degrees, of the unique brand of weird that defines that city. Some center around specific landmarks (Powell's bookstore makes several appearances), some reference the history of the town, and some treat the city only as a general setting. These stories range from highly speculative to more mainstream, from upbeat to cynical, silly to serious; stories of love and loss, humor and pathos, from the bizarre to the poetic. There's even an illustrated comic. Some are wonderfully pulpy, and some are more modern. "Transformation," by Dan DeWeese, uses an alien invasion as critique of mindless conformity; "Yay," by Bradley K. Rosen, is a Christmas Krampus story of madness and indigence; "Waiting for the Question," by Art Edwards, is a gritty urban fantasia featuring Alex Trebek. All of the stories are very good, making this a fun and recommended collection." -- John Keogh "If weird makes you think of funny and moving and disturbing and just plain odd in that wondrous Portland way, well, City of Weird is the book for you." -- Jess Walter, author of Beautiful Ruins "City of Weird is a dark, imaginative and entertaining exploration of the bizarre, set against the backdrop of Bridgetown. From the career troubles of the undead to what's lurking in the basement at Powell's, this book is perfect for readers who want to know what truly keeps Portland weird." -- Ian Doescher, Portland native and author of the William Shakespeare's Star Wars series "Forget everything you know or think you know about Portland--all that twee Wes Anderson-y Portlandia crap--this is Portland re-imagined as exactly what it is: one more screen on which to project the American Nightmare." -- Ben Loory, author of Stories for Nighttime and Some for the Day "With work ranging from myths to folklore, science fiction and a surprising dark comedy of eco-feminist post-Fukushima revenge, Gigi Little has collected together a brilliant showcase of literary talent working in the Pacific Northwest." -- Monica Drake, author of Clown Girl "City of Weird is everything I love about Portland: its next-gen sensibility, gleeful disregard for expectation, and that undercurrent of darkness which acts as foil to the eccentricity. I popped these stories like the handmade treats they are, and enjoyed every one." -- Averil Dean, author of The Undoing and Alice Close Your Eyes "Nimbly spanning the gamut from heartfelt to absurd, lyrical to laugh-out-loud funny, City of Weird confirms the suspicion held by many a Portland resident that you don't have to look far to find the fantastical. It'll be a long time before I walk on Mount Tabor or wander Powell's without looking over my shoulder." -- Fonda Lee, author of Zeroboxer "Like old pulp magazines, City of Weird runs the gamut from simply odd to straight-up horror, from comic to tragic, from short to long and, because it's Portland, there's even one graphic story (Jonathan Hill's 'How Do You Say Gentrification in Martian'). Whether you're already a fan of the weird and horrific in fiction or just enjoy short fiction well-told, City of Weird will have something to satisfy you. Also to horrify you and make you laugh, maybe at the same time. If this is what the bumper stickers mean when they say 'Keep Portland Weird,' count me in." -- Billie Bloebaum, bookseller, Third Street Books