![]() ![]() In “Old Arthur,” he tells the story of a 65-year-old man looking back on his life and wishing he had done things differently. The final story recaps the overarching theme of Planedin’s tales: individuals can find personal redemption in making things right. Their impact would be greater, however, if spelling errors, apparent typos, and run-on sentences didn’t distract from the flow of the story. In his stories, the criminals never meet an easy end, and some of the author’s descriptions-crushed windpipes and gaping wounds among them-are remarkably graphic. Planedin’s wide range of character types shows how everyone from high school girls to nursing home residents can stand up for themselves against the world’s bullies. It “took only one look at the twin gaping barrels of eternity facing them to inspire the utmost, immediate cooperation,” Planedin writes. In fact, Planedin’s citizen cops borrow some of the Detective Callahan bravado as they explore the power in being the one holding the weapon. Planedin is comfortable with the language of firearms, noting shotgun gauges and revolver calibers with the ease of Dirty Harry talking about his friends Smith and Wesson. ![]() In his first story, “Maggie’s Turn,” for instance, a violent drug dealer thinks he has pulled off another con until one of his victims targets him in a sting operation that brings her satisfaction on many levels.Įach short story in the collection gets right to the point without skimping on the details of the inevitable confrontations. In An Eye for a Tooth, he offers five tales of vigilante justice in which the punishment fits the crime in some unexpected ways.Ĭlearly offended by a judicial system he perceives as inadequate, Planedin explores scenarios in which the average citizen might be his own best law-enforcement officer. He may even carry out revenge against the judge or the person who got him punished.The Bible prescribes “an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth” as compensation for an injustice, but Gordon Planedin writes about situations that he believes call for more violent solutions. He will hate the legal system for having punished him so cruelly and disproportionately. He will hardly appreciate the fairness of the society that cut his hand off. It only results in two people having suffered losses. Other than giving the victim the satisfaction of vengeance, it does not restore to him the lost loaf of bread.
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