Book Review - The Parasite from Proto Space & Other Stories

By Elizabeth Suggs

If you’re looking for something weird that touches on serious content, like dealing with autism, then you’ve got to read Brett Petersen’s new sci-fi anthology The Parasite from Proto Space & Other Stories. The book is dedicated to those on the autism spectrum, those with mental illness, and those with disabilities both visible and hidden. My advice to you is to never stop pursuing what makes you happy. I whole-heartedly agree with this sentiment. 

The story opens with “The Parasite from Proto Space,” plunging readers deep into the strange. This parasite hopes to help humanity enter Proto Space, but no one will believe him. Despite the silliness, it feels very much akin to a person dealing with some sort of issue. These parasites are our minds shouting at us and we refuse to listen. Sound familiar?

Another story that struck me was “The Labyrinth and the Jingling Keys.” Brett does a wonderful job throughout the book with his word choice and sentence structure. Like one creating a painting, he expands the reader’s view on both the outer and inner word, especially in this story. One section that hit me: Bubbles, some of them larger than houses, appear at the Images of my peripheral vision. One of them contains a gingerbread house on top of a hill of powdered sugar. In another, a young Soldier is lying on a cot. Flies are swarming around Spear of bone jutting out of his leg. A second Soldier is pouring whiskey down his throat and his third is sharpening a hacksaw on a slab of stone.

These stories, sometimes graphic and sexual, seem to replicate the inner workings of the author’s mind. As if this book is the key to his soul, his words are the secret. 

If you’re looking for something weird and thought-provoking, I suggest taking a look at this selection of quirky stories. 

This author has a lot of potential, and I await his next publication.

Find your copy on Amazon.

Elizabeth Suggs is the owner and founder of Editing Mee. When she’s not writing or editing, she loves to dive deep into books (the weirder, the better!), and she loves to take random long walks to unplanned destinations.