Challenge 1084

The Odds and the Evens

In Tom Durwood’s Jayani’s Big Gamble:
1. The setting is somewhere in the Middle East, but does the narrative provide enough information to determine where and when, exactly?
2. Why would the setting not be Afghanistan in 2025?
In Michael Fowler’s The Purloined Thesis: Does the story accurately reflect the opinions on WW1 of the historical Bertrand Russell and Ludwig Wittgenstein?
In Kirsti Mikoda’s Little Girl Lost:
1. Why does Henry Edgell move into a different home? For the purposes of his story, must it be so old?
2. The priest is mistaken. What is the Catholic church’s official position on exorcisms and ghostbusting?
3. Why does Edgell decide abruptly to keep the hitherto unknown grave a secret? Why does his decision raise doubts about the grave’s reality?
4. If the grave is Edgell’s delusion, what does the story actually describe?
In Shauna Checkley’s Booty Call: How does Janessa’s initial train of thought help justify her ultimate decision to turn away from her hot date? What role do the cats play in the logic of her decision?
In David Whippman’s The Best Day of Your Life: What must Holroyd do or what must happen to him if he is not to have a long stay in the house he now haunts?