BLOG TOUR | 'Stories for Homes vol. 2' | SHORT STORIES REVIEW

Hey guys, and happy Tuesday! Today I am very excited to be part of an extra special blog tour, to celebrate the publication of an important and wonderful short story anthology - Stories for Homes (vol. 2). Stories for Homes features the very best in short fiction on the theme of Home, in support of the housing charity Shelter. 

The second volume, (which includes the stories I will be reviewing today), is dedicated to the victims and survivors of the Grenfell Tower fire. This is the tragedy that occurred on 14th June 2017, where the 24-storey block of flats set on fire, leading to countless deaths and overwhelming devastation. 

I feel very privileged to be helping to spread the word about this fabulous short story anthology, as not only are these short stories fantastic, but it is for a brilliant and thoroughly worthwhile cause. All of the sales from this book goes to the housing and homelessness charity Shelter, who provide information, support and advice to millions of people facing homelessness or experiencing housing issues. 

Check out the blurb here...

Published and unpublished writers come together to create an anthology of stories about what ‘home’ means.

55 writers are included in a second charity anthology that brings issues around housing, poverty and crisis to life through the power of storytelling. Volume One of the Stories for Homes Project raised over £3K for housing charity Shelter and raised awareness of housing issues.  Volume Two of the anthology includes stories, poems and flash fiction and again all proceeds will be donated to the charity.

So without further ado, I will be reviewing two short stories from the collection, Return to Winter and Real Comfort Food. 

Anyone who knows me and my reading tastes will know that I absolutely adore short stories, so I was very excited to dive into this book. Return to Winter by P.T. Whelan is a fantastic and deeply moving story about a son's relationship with his father, and his eventual realisation that he never knew his father at all. It is a narrative about family relationships, secrets, and how life experiences form who you are. The story is told in a wonderfully distinctive voice, and features characters that simply jump out from the page. I enjoyed the distinction between the descriptions of a personal family history, and a collective memory of past horrors: the Holocaust. The way the story was told was confiding, conversational and honest. I particularly enjoyed the ending of this story; it left me with a long-lasting impression and the image of a family who, after suffering a monumental loss, would remain closer than ever.

The second story I read as part of this anthology was Real Comfort Food. This story drips with poetic language and beautiful, comforting imagery that transports you to a warm family kitchen. This story is a wonderful testament to the power of comfort food, and the  countless memories that food can bring to a family, of any kind. I really did not expect the twist in the middle of the story, and I thought it was wonderfully incorporated and I really was not expecting it. I loved the relationship described in the story... all the feels. The characters and setting were so perfectly and intricately described that I felt like I was sitting right there in the kitchen, watching the scene unfold before me. The description of this 'unconventional' family was so heartwarming to read about, and I devoured every page (just as I wanted to devour the food described in the story!)

I hope you guys enjoyed my reviews of just a couple of the amazing short stories in Stories for Homes - make sure you check them all out!

Also don't forget to read all the posts on the rest of the blog tour, you won't regret it <3

Buy Stories for Homes here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B075W8H8QT/?tag=geolinker-21

Check out the website here: https://storiesforhomes.wordpress.com

Until next time :)