Oftentimes the society in which we live dictates who we will become. Growth and self-discovery are simply fables rooted in lies, shadows that follow us throughout our existence.
But what happens when you begin to question this structure? In what ways might your life transform when you dare to recognize the political manipulations around you? The characters in Tales from the Red Rooster Cafe decide they want to try to find out.
A powerful collection of brilliant science fiction short stories, Tales from the Red Rooster Cafe astutely examines the darkness of mere existence found in all of us, that hidden part of us that makes us individuals and that dares to seek what we want in life-instead of what society tells us to want.
Exploring social, moral and political issues with fearless disregard for the winds of popular culture or politically correct opinion, Olson artfully weaves topics like abortion, adultery, gender roles, genetically modified food, media bias and political propaganda, social networking stupidity, celebrity obsession and the devolving state of human development and relationships into a powerfully humanizing array of stories that take readers on vivid psychological journeys into the minds of the characters who inhabit them and who reflect back an often unflattering mirror both at the reader themselves and culture at large.
While the vehicles and mechanisms of Olson's imagination often command scientific mastery of burgeoning technology and future trends, his portraiture of relationships runs the gambit from desperate romance, lost love, unspoken desire and the longing of every human soul to love and be loved unconditionally, despite circumstances that often challenge loyalty and stretch the bonds of affection. They are stories written by an author undeniably possessed of an impeccably detailed road map to the human heart and the courage to bare the obviously personal wounds and scars of having loved, lost, and lived to love again and to write about all of it in both blissful and blistering vulnerability.
Being conditioned as a human is inevitable. Questioning how it's happened is essential. These characters defy the structures around them and fight for the lives they truly want.
Written with a sharp understanding of what it means to be human in a fantastical landscape that attempts to shape who people are, this collection dares to question what it truly means to be alive, while exhibiting a literary artistry and a romantic sensibility that both enhance and transcend the genre and topics of the stories themselves.
Shad Olson is a television journalist, author, political satirist, and radio host. He has received various accolades for his journalistic work in both radio and television, including both Edward R. Murrow and Emmy awards. His love of storytelling grew out of a childhood in the plains of Nebraska, where his imagination could run wild.
Olson lives in Rapid City, South Dakota. His writing-fiction, nonfiction, and poetry-has been published in newspapers and magazines across the United States. Tales from the Red Rooster Cafe is his first collection of short fiction.
