Waiting on Wednesday: Diving Bells: And Other Stories by Lucy Wood

Waiting on Wednesday (WoW) is a weekly meme hosted by

Breaking the Spine.

My posts about adult literary fiction are here:

State of Wonder by Ann Patchett

Caleb's Crossing by Geraldine Brooks

The Flight of Gemma Hardy by Margot Livesey

My posts about my guilty pleasure reading (romantic, often paranormal, novels) can be found here:

Prince Charming Doesn't Live Here by Christine Warren

Tempest's Legacy by Nicole Peeler
Saint's Astray by Jacqueline Carey

Timeless by Gail Carriger

My posts about YA/teen titles are here:

Witch & Wizard: The Gift by James Patterson & Ned Rust

The Piper's Son by Melina Marchetta

The Mockingbirds, Book 2: The Rivals by Daisy Whitney

The Space Between by Brenna Yovanoff

Kiss of Frost by Jennifer Estep 
Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi
Born Wicked by Jessica Spotswood 
Scarlet by A.C. Gaughen

My posts about middle grade titles are here:

The Pirate Captain's Daughter by Eve Bunting

And now for today's:

Diving Bells: And Other Stories 

by Lucy Wood

9780547595535, Mariner Books, 

Pub. Date: August 2012

I'm always thrilled to discover a new short story collection, especially one where I might actually enjoy most of the short stories. Here's the publisher's description:  

Straying husbands lured into the sea by mermaids can be fetched back, for a fee. Trees can make wishes come true. Houses creak and keep a fretful watch on their inhabitants, straightening shower curtains and worrying about frayed carpets. A mother, who seems alone and lonely, may be rubbing sore muscles or holding the hands of her invisible lover as he touches her neck. Wisht hounds roam the moors, and, on a windy beach, a boy and his grandmother beat back despair with an old white door.

Diving Belles is a luminous, spellbinding debut that introduces Lucy Wood as a spectacular new voice in fiction. In these stories, the line between the real and the imagined is blurred, as she takes us to Cornwall’s ancient coast, building on its rich storytelling history and recasting its myths in thoroughly contemporary ways. Calling forth the fantastic and fantastical, she mines these legends for that little bit of magic that remains in all our lives— if only we can let ourselves see it.

Book Review: Burning Bright: Stories by Ron Rash

Burning Bright: Stories
by Ron Rash
9780061804120, Ecco Press (HarperCollins), $12.99

Though I had every intention of attending his appearance at Harvard Book Store last month, I'm afraid in the end I missed it. I did, however, finish reading his book on the day of the event. Despite my missed attendance, everything else about this book was the perfect set of circumstances. I walked into the library and saw it in front of me on the shelf. I read a little bit of it every morning and afternoon on the T to-and-from work, and finally finished it the day of the event. Short stories are a favorite form of mine, so I was even more thrilled to be reading this collection by one of my favorite southern authors (Dorothy Allison being another).

Overall, Burning Bright is a collection of thoughtful, evocative, charming, and quick reads. The language is not wasteful of words but is also fully descriptive. Speech in dialect normally drives me up a wall, but in this case fits naturally with the Appalachian setting. I think the word "raw" is often overused, but that quality comes from the stark lives of the characters; much like the words used to describe them, there is no flash–no excess–in their living. What little happiness or advantage appears in their lives is so unexpected and often burdened that you question whether it's worth it.

For instance, an older woman, widowed, marries a young outsider. The community that should have taken care of her now questions not only her relationship, but if her new husband is the one setting the recent rash of forest fires.
In another story, a young man, burdened by the hospital bills for his mother, agrees to grave robbing for Civil War artifacts. Though his mother's bills get paid, he'll have nightmares of what happened that night for the rest of his life.

The portrayal of modern day poverty leading to drug usage in that historical a setting was especially meaningful.

A pawn broker takes family matters into his own hands: Who is worth saving? His brother? His nephew?
Two loving yet meth-addicted parents struggle to provide a Christmas for their son while coming down off a high. The son provides momentary salvation for them by secretly stealing pawnable items from a plane crash, but is the quick fix worth the ultimate sacrifice?

From historical to modern day, these brief slice-of-life moments offer a powerful glimpse into one view of Appalachian society.

For more Ron Rash, read my review of his novel, Serena, here.

Book Review: Broccoli and Other Tales of Food and Love by Lara Vapnyar

Broccoli and Other Tales of Food and Love 

by Lara Vapnyar
9780307279880, Knopf (Random House), $14

This post was originally published here in July 2008. It has been edited from its original version.

I picked up this book expecting it to be good, and was thrilled when I wasn't disappointed. Do you ever have those hunches? When you look at a book, totally judging it by its cover, and think, yeah, I bet I'm really going to enjoy reading that. This was one of those books for me. 

Let me also tell you that I'm a rather recent, but passionate, short story/essay lover. Who knew? Seriously, this is an adult-life discovery. I think we should start encouraging more children/teens/young adults to read short stories. Though I wasn't this way as a child, so many children get overwhelmed by the size of a large book, tiny words, pages and pages of text. If they knew they only had to sit down and read one short story, they may sit and read two in one sitting. Maybe soon they would be reading a whole book, just for that sense of accomplishment that comes when you've turned the final page.

Lara Vapnyar writes about food as if it's there on the page in front of you for you to taste. She writes about love the same way. The fact that she is able to combine the mostly inner monologue of people's musings on life and love, while making your stomach growl for the hot borscht with sour cream someone in the story has just made, is a brilliant way of inviting other senses to partake in this primarily visual experience. 

Her stories reflect the food in them: if the food is unsatisfying in the tale, you may be left with a longing sensation for a little more of the tale to come along. If the food has been completely filling and satisfying, the story wraps up with a warm, contented closure. At the end, just as with a fabulous meal, I was sad it was over, and simultaneously relieved the self control was taken out of my hands or else I would have gorged myself a little too much.

If you like her writing, or short stories/essays in general, you should also check out her other works:

There Are Jews in My Houseby Lara Vapnyar
9781400033898, Knopf (Random House), $12

Memoirs of a Muse by Lara Vapnyar
9781400077007, Vintage (Random House), $13.95