The Mayan Magician and Other Stories
James Ray Musgrave
Has the first woman to pitch in major league baseball made a pact with the End of Days?
The first woman signed to the San Diego Padres is a Mayan Indian. She has a mysterious control over her knuckleball. Does she pitch for her god, Kulkukan, the Warrior Serpent of the End of Times in 2012? Or, is she controlled by the N.A.S.A. scientist hired by her owner? Jim Musgrave's latest collection of short fiction includes this novelette, along with 25 other remarkable stories, ranging from contemporary to science fiction and even a few horror tales.
The Mayan Magician and Other Stories
by Jim Musgrave
CIC Publishers
reviewed by Peter M. Fitzpatrick
"There's still time for you to wake up and use your infinite minds and forget your lousy peepholes."
This collection of twenty-six short stories will have you laughing out loud and perhaps even finding tears rolling down your cheeks. It is powerful fiction that can catapult you right into the center of situations both modern American and beyond. The soul of the misplaced body of a young Iraq war soldier cries out from beyond the veil. A young meth-addicted girl gives voice to her entrapment and lurching attempt to escape. A bankrupted sub-prime mortgage investor is rescued from alcoholic ennui by mysterious bird-women who call to him from the sea.
Musgrave manages to hit quite a few contemporary targets with a subtle hand. He likes to assume the viewpoint of the weak, the unpowerful, and the disenfranchised. The horrible isolation of an autistic child's mental anguish; the Falun Gong member of mixed race stuck in Communist China; the strange and terrifying power play between a sexual psychopath and his intended victim--these are just a few instances where the humanity and pathos of normally hidden and silent ranges of existence are given powerful and moving voices by the author.
He also has an innate feel for the absurd. It can be in the negative sense of nothingness that a lonely train passenger feels when witnessing a suicide-by-train. But this author is too kind and creative to dwell very long on simple existential angst. His characters may well be mired in postmodern complexity. They meet it head-on. A sixty-eight-year-old street salesman outsmarts the spirit of Death to save the life of nine-year-old boy. The soul of a retired baseball great really does enter the soul of a cat who then brings good luck to his family.
The powerful and corrupt are indeed given an artful and effective send-up in this book. Throughout all the wit and ingenious invention that makes this collection such an enjoyable read is an intrinsic sense of moral courage. The surface of things he portrays are perhaps surreal and absurd. Deep down inside the stories, however, glimpses of a purpose, rather strong intimations of meaning, start to emerge. The effect is powerful and stirring.
The US Review of Books
PO Box 11, Titusville, NJ 08560
www.theUSreview.com
In a short story collection of Musgrave's caliber, the dilemma becomes which tale to review from The Mayan Magician and Other Stories. With "The Mayan Magician," this compilation's lead story and namesake, Musgrave weaves a mystical tale of love, courage and resolute faith in the great Mayan Warrior God, Kukulkán. Musgrave's story revolves around a contemporary young Mayan woman, Isabel Velasquez, or "Dipsie Izzie," as she wows baseball fans and wins over male colleagues and skeptics with her almost-supernatural knuckleball. She becomes the first female pitcher for the minor league Yucatán Leones -- and later, the first woman awarded a major league contract, signing with the San Diego Padres. A million-dollar contract, no less.
Anyone, who is a fan of baseball -- or even those readers like me, who possess little more than a headline-recapping knowledge of the sport -- will appreciate Musgrave's erudite interlacing of baseball and the spiritual Mayan culture. Musgrave affords his readers the privilege of accompanying Isabel on her extraordinary journey of acclamation, unwavering faith in her Mayan religion, betrayal, kidnapping and the realization of true love. What more could you ask of a short story? I give this one a huge thumbs up.
Throughout the "other stories" in The Mayan Magician and Other Stories, Musgrave flexes his creative genius and satirical, oft times irreverent, humor as he navigates the reader through a cross-genre exploration of diversity, acceptance, greed, community, faith, political corruption, cyber-lust, conformity and the lack thereof.
Whether the vehicle Musgrave chooses to transport his fictional characters is a black widow using the internet to feast and fornicate, a hurricane with human-like qualities, a text-messaging mime or a depraved ride on Amtrak's Sunset Limited on the brink of its demise, this writer weaves his tales with wit and wisdom. Is there rhyme or reason to this anthology, an interrelated theme? No. Nor is there the coziness of chicken soup. But if you love short stories, thought-provoking reads and quality entertainment, The Mayan Magician and Other Stories will not disappoint. (Reviewed by Sharon Cupp Pennington, author of Hoodoo Money)
I was introduced to the work of the author through his alternative historical fiction novel Iron Maiden. Beyond the extremely well researched and integrated storyline, I adored the realistic characters who seemed to come alive as I read.
Needless to say, when I got the chance to review another book from this author, I jumped at the chance. Despite that Iron Maiden and The Mayan Magician are not from the same genre, I am glad I did. Through perhaps a little more raw, the characters are just as vivid.
The Mayan Magician is an anthology of people stories. The genres and themes vary but it could be said that each work is about dreams and nightmares. They run the gambit from dreams fulfilled and dreams that fall flat to dreams that become perverted and outright nightmares.
There are a number of stories that stand out for me. The title of the book comes from the first and longest entry in the book. It tells of a talented female baseball player with a dream and a secret. The Peek-a-Boo Man is a chilling tale about an man with Asperger's syndrome who believes that children are being abducted and taken to a paradise without adults. The Reluctant Zombie is told from the perspective of a fallen soldier who is stuck in limbo until he gets a proper burial. (Reviewed by Dr. Tami Brady, Calgary, Canada)
The Mayan Magician and Other Stories
by Jim Musgrave
CIC Publishers
reviewed by Peter M. Fitzpatrick
"There's still time for you to wake up and use your infinite minds and forget your lousy peepholes."
This collection of twenty-six short stories will have you laughing out loud and perhaps even finding tears rolling down your cheeks. It is powerful fiction that can catapult you right into the center of situations both modern American and beyond. The soul of the misplaced body of a young Iraq war soldier cries out from beyond the veil. A young meth-addicted girl gives voice to her entrapment and lurching attempt to escape. A bankrupted sub-prime mortgage investor is rescued from alcoholic ennui by mysterious bird-women who call to him from the sea.
Musgrave manages to hit quite a few contemporary targets with a subtle hand. He likes to assume the viewpoint of the weak, the unpowerful, and the disenfranchised. The horrible isolation of an autistic child's mental anguish; the Falun Gong member of mixed race stuck in Communist China; the strange and terrifying power play between a sexual psychopath and his intended victim--these are just a few instances where the humanity and pathos of normally hidden and silent ranges of existence are given powerful and moving voices by the author.
He also has an innate feel for the absurd. It can be in the negative sense of nothingness that a lonely train passenger feels when witnessing a suicide-by-train. But this author is too kind and creative to dwell very long on simple existential angst. His characters may well be mired in postmodern complexity. They meet it head-on. A sixty-eight-year-old street salesman outsmarts the spirit of Death to save the life of nine-year-old boy. The soul of a retired baseball great really does enter the soul of a cat who then brings good luck to his family.
The powerful and corrupt are indeed given an artful and effective send-up in this book. Throughout all the wit and ingenious invention that makes this collection such an enjoyable read is an intrinsic sense of moral courage. The surface of things he portrays are perhaps surreal and absurd. Deep down inside the stories, however, glimpses of a purpose, rather strong intimations of meaning, start to emerge. The effect is powerful and stirring.
The US Review of Books
PO Box 11, Titusville, NJ 08560
www.theUSreview.com
In a short story collection of Musgrave's caliber, the dilemma becomes which tale to review from The Mayan Magician and Other Stories. With "The Mayan Magician," this compilation's lead story and namesake, Musgrave weaves a mystical tale of love, courage and resolute faith in the great Mayan Warrior God, Kukulkán. Musgrave's story revolves around a contemporary young Mayan woman, Isabel Velasquez, or "Dipsie Izzie," as she wows baseball fans and wins over male colleagues and skeptics with her almost-supernatural knuckleball. She becomes the first female pitcher for the minor league Yucatán Leones -- and later, the first woman awarded a major league contract, signing with the San Diego Padres. A million-dollar contract, no less.
Anyone, who is a fan of baseball -- or even those readers like me, who possess little more than a headline-recapping knowledge of the sport -- will appreciate Musgrave's erudite interlacing of baseball and the spiritual Mayan culture. Musgrave affords his readers the privilege of accompanying Isabel on her extraordinary journey of acclamation, unwavering faith in her Mayan religion, betrayal, kidnapping and the realization of true love. What more could you ask of a short story? I give this one a huge thumbs up.
Throughout the "other stories" in The Mayan Magician and Other Stories, Musgrave flexes his creative genius and satirical, oft times irreverent, humor as he navigates the reader through a cross-genre exploration of diversity, acceptance, greed, community, faith, political corruption, cyber-lust, conformity and the lack thereof.
Whether the vehicle Musgrave chooses to transport his fictional characters is a black widow using the internet to feast and fornicate, a hurricane with human-like qualities, a text-messaging mime or a depraved ride on Amtrak's Sunset Limited on the brink of its demise, this writer weaves his tales with wit and wisdom. Is there rhyme or reason to this anthology, an interrelated theme? No. Nor is there the coziness of chicken soup. But if you love short stories, thought-provoking reads and quality entertainment, The Mayan Magician and Other Stories will not disappoint. (Reviewed by Sharon Cupp Pennington, author of Hoodoo Money)
I was introduced to the work of the author through his alternative historical fiction novel Iron Maiden. Beyond the extremely well researched and integrated storyline, I adored the realistic characters who seemed to come alive as I read.
Needless to say, when I got the chance to review another book from this author, I jumped at the chance. Despite that Iron Maiden and The Mayan Magician are not from the same genre, I am glad I did. Through perhaps a little more raw, the characters are just as vivid.
The Mayan Magician is an anthology of people stories. The genres and themes vary but it could be said that each work is about dreams and nightmares. They run the gambit from dreams fulfilled and dreams that fall flat to dreams that become perverted and outright nightmares.
There are a number of stories that stand out for me. The title of the book comes from the first and longest entry in the book. It tells of a talented female baseball player with a dream and a secret. The Peek-a-Boo Man is a chilling tale about an man with Asperger's syndrome who believes that children are being abducted and taken to a paradise without adults. The Reluctant Zombie is told from the perspective of a fallen soldier who is stuck in limbo until he gets a proper burial. (Reviewed by Dr. Tami Brady, Calgary, Canada)
| DOWNLOADS | Mayan Magician Sampler Read samples from the book. |
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Paperback 0977650383 $18.95 E-Book B0029PBW1K $4.00 -
Category Fiction Publisher CIC Publishing Publication Date 2009-04-03 -
Publication Status In Print Trim Size 9 x 6 x 0.8 inches Page Count 348
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James Musgrave (a.k.a. Efraim Zimbalist Graves) is an author and college educator in San Diego, California. His recent non-fiction title, The Digital Scribe: a Writer's Guide to Electronic Media (AP Professional, ISBN 0-12-512255-1) has been internationally published. He has a M.A. degree in Creative Writing from San Diego State University. He was awarded the “Ebook of the Year Award, 2001-2002” from Bookbooters for his thriller, Russian Wolves. In addition, Mr. Musgrave has finished as a Finalist in the New Century Writer Awards for his novel excerpt, Iron Maiden, and Runner-Up in the $10,000 Annual Heekin Foundation Awards for New Fiction Writers (1994). He has published short fiction in many literary journals, including: San Diego Writer's Monthly, Shroud Anthology Beneath the Surface, Stone Magazine, FirstDraft, Sniplits Audio Short Stories 2 Go, Back Channels, Pacific Review, California Quarterly and Cowles Mountain Journal. He has also been published at CIC Publishers with four novels: Sins of Darkness, Russian Wolves, Iron Maiden and Lucifer’s Wedding and a collection of short fiction, The President’s Parasite and Other Stories. Mr. Musgrave’s story, “Speculum” was an Honorable Mention in the Fog City Writer’s Awards, and “Turning the Law Wheel” was an Honorable Mention in the Cedar Hill Press Short Fiction Contest. |
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