Quarterly Stories: Winter 2021

2021-12-27T11:58:03-05:00

This has been a rich year for short stories. Some collections I’ve enjoyed without making notes, like Venita Blackburn’s How to Wrestle a Girl (2021); her stories are vivid and will appeal to readers who prioritize voice, as well as readers who admire a certain playfulness that’s delicately balanced

Quarterly Stories: Winter 20212021-12-27T11:58:03-05:00

Autumn 2021: In My Reading Log (Part Two)

2021-10-06T15:57:52-04:00

Yesterday, in the wake of the librarians’ shushing, some might have taken advantage of the ensuing silence for a nap. Now, yawning ourselves awake, we can resume our chat about the overlap between fiction and non-fiction, in sprawling and slightly chaotic stacks and shelves. In the opening story of

Autumn 2021: In My Reading Log (Part Two)2021-10-06T15:57:52-04:00

Here and Elsewhere: Between Places (3 of 4)

2021-09-27T18:52:24-04:00

It was late when I picked up Emmanuel Mbolela’s memoir Refugee (2021), nearly time for bed; it occurred to me that another book might make more suitable bedtime reading. I’ll just start, I thought, because it was a borrowed copy and due back soon at the library. Straight away,

Here and Elsewhere: Between Places (3 of 4)2021-09-27T18:52:24-04:00

Women’s Lives: Novels, Non-Fiction, and Stories

2021-09-27T18:02:48-04:00

Even though I should have known better, I started to read Miriam Toews’ new novel, Fight Night, shortly before bed and then stayed up to finish it. Because Shiv’s voice is irresistible and the story of life with her grandmother and her mother was so hilarious and moving. But

Women’s Lives: Novels, Non-Fiction, and Stories2021-09-27T18:02:48-04:00

Alistair MacLeod’s “The Closing Down of Summer” (1976)

2021-08-20T12:40:12-04:00

“It is August now, towards the end, and the weather can no longer be trusted.” The gentle rhythm in MacLeod’s sentence is responsible for its being a favourite of mine. Such an ordinary opening to such a startlingly subversive –and topical—story. With the findings of the IPCC report and

Alistair MacLeod’s “The Closing Down of Summer” (1976)2021-08-20T12:40:12-04:00
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