Card Drawn:
 |
| Comfy, cozy. |
Up until now I have been impressed with the level of consistently well written stories turned out by Mr. O. Henry. I like to think of him as the M. Night Shyamalan of short story writers who is also notorious for his twist endings. Sometimes they are perfectly executed as seen in the "Gift of the Magi" and "The Cactus" and sometimes they fall flat--unfortunately, the "Skylight Room" belongs to the latter category. A young working woman moves into a boarding house run by a boisterous landlady and it is also occupied by some colorful characters. She is struggling financially as a typist and can only afford the cheapest room on the top floor: a tiny and cramped space with a skylight.
The author drops hints that she is impoverished and perhaps suffers from health issues. One night as the female protagonist is looking up through the skylight, she sees a star and names it Billy Jackson much to the annoyance of another female lodger who is well-educated in astronomy. Remember this name because it becomes important during the climactic scene when the BIG TWIST is revealed. However, the ending left me scratching my head in bewilderment because it comes across as laughably contrived without any substantial payoff. It's almost as if O. Henry came up with the ending first and somehow thought it was a good idea. He then developed the story backwards relying on serendipity instead of plausibility. A total misfire.
The author drops hints that she is impoverished and perhaps suffers from health issues. One night as the female protagonist is looking up through the skylight, she sees a star and names it Billy Jackson much to the annoyance of another female lodger who is well-educated in astronomy. Remember this name because it becomes important during the climactic scene when the BIG TWIST is revealed. However, the ending left me scratching my head in bewilderment because it comes across as laughably contrived without any substantial payoff. It's almost as if O. Henry came up with the ending first and somehow thought it was a good idea. He then developed the story backwards relying on serendipity instead of plausibility. A total misfire.
I always tell myself that I need to read more O. Henry. I read "Witches Loaves" a few years ago and liked it. I might not run out and read "The Skylight Room", though.
ReplyDeleteSame. It's also amazing how many stories he wrote over his lifetime! I haven't read "Witches Loaves" but will definitely keep an eye out for it, thanks. Check out "Gift of the Magi" or "The Cactus", which are both excellent.
ReplyDelete