A slyly impressive, poignant collection from a writer with great potential.
A varied, contemporary, character-driven collection of 14 stories infused with personality and life’s interminable bounty.
A good portion of the deceptively imaginative stories in Peterson’s (Catherine Wheels, 2005) vibrant collection have appeared in smaller quarterly publications and incorporate a modern ambiance with timely themes that appeal to a wide audience. Ideas about escape and freedom permeate “It’s Darkest in Suburbia,” in which a plucky college senior ventures home to sleepy suburban Maryland for the summer, preparing to desert his girlfriend and religious family for a new life on a sheep ranch in Montana. Nagging cabin fever catches up to a co-dependent couple who seemingly ice fish from their capsizing living-room couch in the fantastically surreal “Walking on Water.” Peterson skewers the “incestuous” familial machinations of a corporate workplace in “The Office.” Though most of the selections are uniform in length, brevity doesn’t rob the smaller tales, like “The Inept,” of significance. In it, a man’s stagnant life is reinvigorated by the arrival of his nephew, a retarded young man who applauds at the most inappropriate moments. “Satisfaction Guaranteed,” also mere pages in length, details the sad deterioration of a delusional man and the attempts of his brother to save him. Other standouts include a moving yarn (“Angels Don’t Sleep”) about a mournful dog walker whose chance meeting with an ethereal man and his pet Akita guides her toward a blissful state of mind, and the title story, about a backyard barbecue at which, after a few too many cocktails, neighbors start challenging individual notions of normality. There are no clunkers–even the weaker tales emerge as effective character studies, as in “A Girl and a Chainsaw,” about the interpersonal bonding between two Montana construction workers and a scorned woman, or the son who must bear witness to his newly retired father’s material liquidation in “Tool Sale.”
A slyly impressive, poignant collection from a writer with great potential.Pub Date: May 1, 2008
ISBN: 978-1-4196-8494-4
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Klaus (Weathering Winter, not reviewed, etc.) retired not long ago from the University of Iowa, where for many years he taught the art and craft of the personal essay and journal writing. No surprise, then, that he presents a diary of his musings about his retirement. At age 65, as the title says, he took retirement (rather than be given it, unasked for, as often happens). It was a difficult transition, despite the comfortable retirement fund. He had old, thin skin, comparing himself to graybeards, geezers, and others in their golden years. Leaving the warm bosom of collegial togetherness did not appeal, and the thought of abandoning the classroom filled him with anxiety. It seemed important to retain his campus office, to retain some vestige of influence, to hang on as some sort of “consultant” (as outplaced professionals are apt to call themselves). The teacher’s identity crisis prompted him to evade a formal farewell dinner—a good move—though he did accept the dedication of a large oak tree—another good move. He was, to put it bluntly, self-absorbed and mighty introspective, finding much angst in the rituals of quotidian domestic affairs. Gardening, health, friends, writing, meditation, and menus were the subjects of his journal entries, which were scrupulously written daily, starting weeks before his last class. Then, one day, the pensioner simply didn’t shave at his accustomed hour. Then he skipped a day and made no entry in his journal. Then another. As the new school year started without the professor emeritus, he and his ever-understanding wife traveled through the Canadian Rockies. And somehow retirement didn’t seem so bad, after all. A life-altering transition is faithfully chronicled in this story of a condition that is new in the history of humanity. With academic and heartland sensibility, it’s an elegy perhaps not as universal as the author envisioned, but quite suitable for more than the Modern Maturity and Elderhostel crowd.
Pub Date: Sept. 20, 1999
ISBN: 0-8070-7218-4
Page Count: 248
Publisher: Beacon Press
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 1999
A good choice for fathers of even one child, with lessons in the yin of pride and the yang of humility—often arising...
An ode to the contradictions of fatherhood, "the perfect oxymoron," in the form of a collection of sometimes rueful, always loving essays and commentaries.
Lewis (literature and Writing/Empire State College, New Paltz) and his wife, Patti, are the parents of seven children, ranging from Elizabeth Bayou-Grace, now 8 years old, to Cael Devin, 27. Lewis begins with reflections on his own father, his Brooklyn Jewish background, and tales of his courtship of Patti, a New Orleans "patrician." Once their passion flared it never died, although it did move from "X"-rated to "G" and back again during the course of Patti's pregnancies. Moreover, as the responsibilities of fatherhood have multiplied, says Lewis, "my inner life has paradoxically become simpler and quieter." Zen-like paradoxes are explored in chapters covering such parental trials as being a Brownie troop leader, giving birthday parties, exercising discipline, and coping with teenagers (male and female). Also examined are more serious topics like birth, children leaving (or not leaving) home, and the challenge of caring for a child with congenital health problems, including a diagnosis of leukemia. The diagnosis, happily, was reversed and the child, Elizabeth, went on to tap dance after undergoing multiple hip surgeries. As well the stresses of parenting seven children ("How can they eat forty-six dollars worth of fruit in an afternoon?"), Lewis must face disapproval from friends and strangers on allowing himself to indulge in such a large family. "More is less is more," is his Zen-like response.
A good choice for fathers of even one child, with lessons in the yin of pride and the yang of humility—often arising at the same time, as any experienced father will attest.Pub Date: June 10, 1996
ISBN: 0-525-94147-9
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1996
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