Every story in this collection is strong. David Chariandy calls it "one of the great short story collections of our time." Madeleine Thien calls it "a major work and a lasting one". And Sharon Bala calls it a "masterful collection." Susan (@ A Life in Books) says all the stories are "remarkable in their eloquent … Continue reading #ShadowGiller: How To Pronounce Knife by Souvankham Thammavongsa
The Alistair MacLeod Prize for Short Fiction celebrates excellent short story collections by writers who are either from the Atlantic Provinces, or live here now. This prize is named for beloved short story writer Alistair MacLeod. Here are the 2020 nominees... A Dark House and Other Stories by Ian Colford, Vagrant Press - a … Continue reading Atlantic Book Awards 2020: Alistair MacLeod Prize for Short Fiction
I have been reading more short stories than usual during the pandemic. I've found them both comforting and easier to concentrate on. But I'm also so far behind on my blogging that I'm going to lump them all together into one post, even though they all deserve their own. Please forgive me short story writers! … Continue reading Short Stories: Ian Colford, David Bergen, Terry Doyle, L.M. Montgomery, and Best Canadian Stories 2019
My last post focused on Best Atlantic Canadian Reads of 2019. Here’s everything else… Best Books (in addition to Best of Atlantic Canada 2019, in no particular order) Fiction: Quarry by Catherine Graham This Has Nothing To Do With You by Lauren Carter - I also read her recent poetry collection this year, Following Sea. … Continue reading Highlights of 2019: Part 2
Four years ago I decided to challenge myself to read more books from Atlantic Canada. As a result, I have read 100 books from Atlantic Canada in the last four years. You can check out results of previous years here: 2018, 2017, 2016. #of Atlantic Canadian books read: 25 (last year, 23) % of books … Continue reading Highlights of 2019 Part 1: Atlantic Canada
Although David Bezmozgis has been on the Giller list before (with Free World in 2011 and The Betrayers in 2014), this is the first of his books I've read. And the only short story collection on the shortlist this year. (Here is my chance to put a plug in for K.D. Miller's Late Breaking - … Continue reading Giller Shortlist: Immigrant City by David Bezmozgis
After coming out with two remarkable novels - Heave and The Memento - Watermark is Christy Ann Conlin's first book of short stories. Watermark has already garnished a lot of praise from some well-known Atlantic Canadian authors. Lynn Coady remarks that Conlin's stories "achieve a dizzying balance of light and dark"; Lisa Moore calls the stories … Continue reading Watermark by Christy Ann Conlin
Use Your Imagination!, Kris Bertin's second book of short stories, is made up of seven stories, all of which I found engaging and satisfying, always curious to find out what was coming next. And like in his first collection, Bad Things Happen, Bertin has come up with some great first lines... Frank opens the screen … Continue reading Use Your Imagination! by Kris Bertin
While I was reading Radiant Shimmering Light, which I wrote about last week, I was also reading Sarah Selecky's short story collection, This Cake is For the Party. I have to say, and this is rare for me when comparing novels with short stories, that I'd be hard pressed to say which I enjoyed more. … Continue reading Sarah Selecky #2: This Cake is For the Party
A Certain Grace by Binnie Brennan A couple of years ago I read Binnie Brennan's novella Harbour View and loved it so much I was destined to go on to read her collection of short stories. It's hard to compete with Harbour View, but A Certain Grace is also a joy to read. A nice mix … Continue reading Atlantic Canadian Short Stories: Brennan, Skibsrud, and Crocker
Consumed by Ink 