Summary Of Sleeping Funny By Miranda Hill

Miranda Hill’s book Sleeping Funny is a collection of short stories that are brought together through wit of her writing and an unexpected series of events. Specifically, the stories “Apple”, “Petitions to St. Chronic”, “6:19”, and “Digging for Thomas” are relatable for readers and cover harder topics in a light and humours way. Each story is quite different from the next but can be linked together through motifs or character driven hardships.

Although the stories are not directly related, “Apple” and “6:19” have a strong connection between themes. Both stories show how a person’s inner desires can alter the way their minds see and react to different situations. “Apple” is the story of a young girl who starts to imagine everyone’s parents

Until, he starts asking himself more intimate questions: “How far does the tan reach?” (117). “6:19” makes it obvious Nathan is never there with the women. But, Nathan claims to be “dizzy with intimacy as he has not been in years” after he “graze[s] her sweatshirt and then slides under it” (117). The cycle of Nathan falling in and out of reality shows the loss of control he has over his inner desires. “Apple” and “6:19” both offer an insight to how demanding fantasy’s and desires can be weather they are subconscious or not, and wanted or not. Each story shows inner desires altering the way the characters react, and see everyday tasks or

Chronic” are both character driven stories. In each story a death causes a fundamental change however, for two different reasons. “Digging for Thomas” is the story of a mother and son whose husband and father was killed while at war. After his death, the mother and son found comfort completely different things then they use to such as gardening. The mother says she “would dig for Victory” (232). The barrier between her and the neighbours after her husband’s death forced her to become reserved and quiet. Her and her son only went into town if they had to. They preferred to stay close to the garden where they felt safe. The death of the husband is the cause of the mothers’ complete change in character. The death let the audience connect with her on a deeper level to understand her pain and suffering. On then other hand, “Petitions to St. Chronic” brings the narrator to the hospital; awaiting a man she’s never met before to hopefully pull through after a suicide attempt. Gibson’s suicide was the moment she realized she needed to change. She says, “It was when I lost