Steve Almond's "The Evil B.B. Chow and Other Stories"

Steve Almond’s The Evil B.B. Chow and Other Stories is a collection of short stories that encompass topics from everyday life.  The stories deal with love, friendship, sex, and character struggles wrapped in desperation, humor, and emotion.  Of the twelve stories featured in the collection, I really enjoyed reading the title story “The Evil B.B. Chow,” as well as “Appropriate Sex;” however, I did not enjoy reading “The Idea of Michael Jackson’s Dick.”

            “The Evil B.B. Chow” is about a woman named Maureen who goes on a blind date with a Chinese man named B.B. Chow.  The story is enjoyable, as well as relatable, because it focuses on issues in daily life: love, career, disappointment, and friendship.  The story immediately draws interest by plunging right into the heart of the story with how the characters are introduced; Maureen receives flowers from B.B. Chow at her office and her gay underling Marco talks with her about the future date.  There are a lot of modern elements that are found in many other stories, such as the gay co-worker/sidekick, references to pop culture (celebrity babies, magazines, Oprah), cynical view of relationships, etc., which makes the story that much more relatable for now.  The dialogue is distinct for each character; Maureen is a bit sassy and straightforward, B.B. Chow is choppy and unsure, and Marco is colorful.  The descriptions are very vivid, containing a lot of interesting similes and metaphors to better visualize things.  There is a lot of humor, as well, displayed in the characters’ actions and through their dialogue.

            “Appropriate Sex” is about a college professor trying to cope with his divorce while instructing his writing students during a whole class critique/workshop.  The story is enjoyable mainly from a writer’s standpoint or anyone who is interested in writing, as well as the workshops, because that is a huge focus in the story.  While the student’s story is being critiqued, readers will feel like they are observing in an actual classroom and they will take in the interesting views the different characters have on the student’s story.  As with “The Evil B.B. Chow,” the descriptions in this story are very vivid; one can really “see” the characters and take in the environment.  The dialogue of the characters is distinct, as well; there is a lot of lively discussion and the characters have differing opinions and different ways of expressing them. 

            “The Idea of Michael Jackson’s Dick” is about a group of friends who sit around drinking and discussing Michael Jackson’s dick and the reasons behind the choices he made.  This is by far the least enjoyable story in the collection simply because it lacks interest and, overall, story.  There is nothing really special about the characters and why the obsessed Bramble is so passionate about this topic.  It is written in a way that seems like the author is trying to understand Michael Jackson instead of the characters trying to understand him.  However, the story does get right into the characters discussing this with Bramble remarking that Michael Jackson turned white by trying to bleach his dick, which is also humorous.  His dick is also compared to an albino garter snake.  Another positive in the story is gaining somewhat of an understanding of Michael Jackson by the end, which shows that skipping to the last paragraph will save a lot of time with this story. 

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Steve Almond Discusses Humor

Steve Almond Discusses Sex and Feelings