A BLOCK OVER

A collection of short stories reflecting on the nature of writers and writing.

Young’s thoughtful assemblage of 21 short stories eclectically spans a wide range of human experiences, but writing itself is the theme to which he repeatedly returns. In “Window of Opportunity,” Jack Severall, a character who reappears in several other tales, was a popular student in high school, considered by many to be of great promise. He now teaches English at a community college and works on a novel he hopes will redeem his aspirations. He’s surprised and somewhat crestfallen when one of his classmates, Jim Linderman, who admired Jack deeply, publishes a novel first, a work Jack must admit is an expression of true talent; this challenges his sense of identity. Jack also features in “An Academic Story,” which is exactly that: a discussion between Jack and one Dr. O’Reilly about various interpretation of James Joyce’s short stories. This is the height of the author’s literariness: a short story about short stories. Not all of the pieces are quite so self-consciously belletristic—in “Lefty,” Saed is caught seducing a married woman and sentenced to having his right hand cut off. He is left-handed and studiously tries to hide this fact in order to keep his dominant appendage, an extraordinary predicament powerfully depicted in only a few pages. Previously, his southpaw status had been a cause of endless trouble: “His left-handedness had been a source of many a cruel joke growing up. His parents had tried to convert him, giving up only upon witnessing his success at cricket as a lefty.” Young possesses a keen eye for psychological eccentricity, the strangeness that makes people fascinating—especially in the peculiar subset of people who love to read fiction and long to compose their own. He writes with in an easy, companionable style that is accessible but capable of poetic poignancy.

A treasure trove of subtle insights and narrative ingenuity.