Length: 2 minutes
Genre: Flash
General Impressions
Growing House is a quirky piece of flash fiction. The ending is predictable, yet the writer depicts it colorfully. Some of the word choices are strange.
Q. How's the hook?
The one-sentence hook encourages the reader to imagine Mother sitting on a chaise while eating peanuts and giving herself a pedicure.
The logistics of these two actions sparked my curiosity. Exactly how does a person eat with one hand while clipping their toenails (or, in the case of Mother, painting her toenails) with the other? Sounds like a bit of a feat to me.
But I'm interested in feats. What's more, I'm interested in characters who do things I might do. Simultaneously eating and tending to personal hygiene sounds like a familiar, rushed, early-morning activity I've done.
The second sentence is dialogue. Mother speaks bluntly about the physique of her pet frog, Peg-Peg. Dialogue pulls me in pretty quickly. Overall, the hook is good.
Q. What made me want to keep reading?
A story about a fat frog is always interesting ... at least for a while.
Peg-Peg is referenced as "he" and "him." "Peg" is typically a female name, but whatever.
The writer does a good job describing the frogishness of the frog. He "sags" on the ground. He gazes with "bulbous" eyes at a frog-shaped outdoor fountain.
Frogs are fun. The story is short. I decided to keep reading.
Q. What did I think of the plot?
Why is Peg-Peg so fat? Why does Peg-Peg keep getting fatter? That's the driving question.
Out of concern for the frog's well-being, Mother makes a vet appointment for Peg-Peg.
But before she can slide the frog into a Tupperware container poked with holes for the occasion, Mother and the narrator (presumably her daughter or son) notice that Peg-Peg is no longer fat. They quickly realize why Peg-Peg was so big in the first place.
I won't put a spoiler here, but you can probably guess. Hint: It has something to do with tadpoles.
Q. Did I enjoy the main character?
I pictured the narrating character as Mother's adult daughter. You might picture them as Mother's son. No gender is actually provided.
Adult Daughter/Son wields a daquiri for most of the story. They're relaxing in the sun.
Here's a sentence about Adult Daughter/Son that had me puzzling: "Olive oil was sizzling on my chest, and the air smelled of barbecue."
It made me wonder if Adult Daughter/Son was actually a slab of meat on the grill.
I mean, why? Why does Adult Daughter/Son have sizzling olive oil on their chest? This is never fully explained. I supposed some people might use olive oil as tanning oil. But why would they allow the oil to sizzle? Ouch.
Q. How was the writing style?
The writing style is simple and straightforward. It's not hard to read. You could read this short story after a long day of work or even during a bathroom break in the middle of the night, and it would (mostly) make sense.
Q. Is the ending satisfying?
I give a hearty, resounding "yes" to this question.
Adult Daughter/Son and Mother end up in a bizarre predicament as a result of Peg-Peg.
The last image created an unusual tableau in my mind's eye ... one I think most lovers of flash fiction would appreciate.
Want to read "Growing House" by Madison Ellingsworth in Flash Fiction Online? Here is the link to the short story one more time!
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