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Bezig met laden... How to Walk on Water and Other Storiesdoor Rachel Swearingen
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Years ago at the Palace Theater in Superior, Wis., I slunk down in the seat beside my girlfriend. My eyes watered in fear as we watched “The Haunting” with Claire Bloom and Julie Harris. I was similarly distressed reading a short story in Rachel Swearingen’s debut collection, “How to Walk on Water.” At least, I was upset when the ghost hunter plays a recording of “a hollow, raspy voice” asking, “Are you there?” Adding to the strangeness, the ghost caught on tape appears in an earlier story as the recluse Natalia, who rips “tiny pieces from the corners” of postcards and chews them. I’ve begun this way to show the visceral power of art. [....] Always in Swearingen’s intriguing stories, this unsettling drift toward the unknown, the unknowable. The characters of Rachel Swearingen’s beguiling short story collection sparkle with charisma, living high on testing boundaries.Following these story lines is a voyeuristic pleasure. Swearingen’s characters, all nerve and verve, upend social hierarchies: the “normal” among them are observed as if in stasis, while those who embrace and nurture their quirks compel interest, often persuading the less misfit people around them toward fuller lives. [....] In the shocking and appealing stories of How to Walk on Water, characters meet every ill-advised “what if?” with one-upmanship, resulting in dangers and delights. The nine stories in Swearingen’s auspicious debut showcase a gift for well-placed, revealing details. [....] Each of the intriguing entries builds suspense before a gratifying or lingering payoff. This crafty collection is worth a look. Agent: Chris Clemans, Janklow & Nesbit. (Oct.)
"Rachel Swearingen's debut, How to Walk on Water and Other Stories, presents stories that bristle with menace and charm with intimate revelations. An investment banker falls for a self-made artist who turns the rooms of her apartment into eerie art installations. An au pair imagines her mundane life as film noir, endangering the infant in her care. A down-on-his-luck son moves in with his elderly mother and tries to piece together the brutal attack she survived when he was a baby. Through nimble prose and considerable powers of observation, Swearingen takes us from Chicago, Minneapolis, and Northern Michigan, to Seattle, Venice, and elsewhere. She explores not only what it means to survive in a world marked by violence and uncertainty, but also how to celebrate what is most alive."--Provided by publisher. Geen bibliotheekbeschrijvingen gevonden. |
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Google Books — Bezig met laden... GenresDewey Decimale Classificatie (DDC)813.6Literature English (North America) American fiction 21st CenturyWaarderingGemiddelde:
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Each story is truly unique and leaves you pondering long after you have read the final page. The characters were well rounded (even when they weren’t particularly sympathetic) and I find myself still invested in several of them and desiring more of their stories. My favorite story by far was “Notes to a Shadowy Man”, with “Mitz’s Theory of Everything Series” a close second. I can’t wait to read Rachel Swearingen’s next book, especially if it’s another short story collection. ( )