The Tiny Book of Tiny Stories: Volume 1 by Joseph Gordon-Levitt and HitRECord

So, before Christmas, I got a review request in my e-mail box for a sort of book I would probably never go out to a bookstore and buy if I hadn't had occasion to hear about it in advance.  Such is the wonder of book blogging!  This book was a book of little stories, super little stories, in fact, by a collaborative coalition of artists and writers founded by actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt, where one person might write a tiny story and another person might just like it enough to draw a tiny picture to go with it.  I'll admit that I was the slightest bit ambivalent at first thinking it would be insubstantial and oh, what's the point? But then I thought, hey it's short, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt's pretty cool, and sure, I guess I'll give it a shot, why not?  Imagine my surprise, then, when I really loved it!

The first volume of The Tiny Book of Tiny Stories is indeed a tiny book.  It's not even as tall as your average mass market, and it's only about 80 pages, but it packs a punch.  Mostly pictures with just a sentence or two to punctuate them on each page, The Tiny Book of Tiny Stories can be read in just a few minutes, but if you're anything like me, you'll have a smile on your face long after. 

It's one of those books that helps its readers feel connected with all the rest of humanity just because they'll recognize some of their own sentiments in these short sentences and pictures.  They inspire nostalgia, and give curiosity about the future, make you think about just what emotion they're trying to inspire versus just how they make you feel.  I saw myself in words like, "Sometimes I lie awake wondering about the future, when I lie awake wondering about the past," and "His hands were weak and shaking from carrying far too many books from the bookshop.  It was the best feeling."  Others made me smile and still others had me laughing out loud and others just made me feel like a kid again sprawled on my bed with a book of Shel Silverstein's poetry making me laugh and wonder. 

I definitely recommend The Tiny Book of Tiny Stories if you're looking for a quick pick-me-up or a sweet gift for a friend, and I can hardly wait for Volume 2!

(Thanks to Harper Collins It Books for the review copy!)

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