49. The Evil B.B. Chow and Other Stories

The Evil B.B. Chow and Other Stories (Steve Almond, 2005)

I fell in love with Steve Almond because of the genius that is Candy Freak and have long vowed to follow up and read more of him. I'm just now getting around to it. Perhaps it's unfortunate that I chose this collection to start with. First, I have trouble finishing short stories. Then I don't know how to talk about them as a collection. I started this while I was in Seattle and finished it up over the weekend, so it didn't drag on as long as some of the other collections still sitting half-finished on my night stand.

The stories here are really varied. I think I was expecting a theme to emerge, but there really wasn't one except maybe that all the stories dealt with relationships of some sort. One particularly strange one is "Lincoln, Arison," which is about a relationship between Abraham Lincoln and Fredrick Douglass. A page or two into it, I was really tempted to skip it, but I was drawn in by the characterizations of both men. A couple of pieces really didn't work for me, like "The Soul Molecule" and "Skull." But I really enjoyed the rest, especially the title story and "Wired for Life." Almond does well with the female voice, which I appreciate.

46. In Persuasion Nation

In Persuasion Nation (George Saunders, 2006)

Last year at Bumbershoot, I went to the George Saunders reading because my friends Melanie and Ed wanted to go. I hadn't read any of his stuff and didn't really know what to expect. It turns out he's an excellent reader, and his work really lends itself to being read aloud. I read the first piece, "I Can Speak," out loud to my friend the other day, and while I don't think I'm all that good a reader, it was kind of fun. Anyway, after the reading, I was all excited and bought In Persuasion Nation and stood in line for Saunders to sign it. Then I forgot all about it, even though a different friend lent me two more of his books, which sit unread in my living room stack. (That reminds me I need to finish them so I can return them when I go back to Seattle at the end of the month.) I came across my untouched copy of In Persuasion Nation again recently when I was organizing my luggage. It seems I tucked the book into the outside pocket of my littlest suitcase, which I guess I didn't unpack completely. So I decided it was about time to read it.

I found this collection a bit uneven. Some of the stories are great, but others left me cold. I particularly disliked "The Red Bow." Don't get me wrong; the best stories made up for the ones I didn't love. I'd definitely recommend Saunders after reading this and I'm looking forward to Pastoralia and CivilWarLand. Maybe books of short stories just aren't totally my thing. I have a really hard time finishing them. In fact, I've started and stalled on three other collections that sit here on my nightstand, mocking me. I always like reading one or two, but then get hungry for the satisfaction of an entire novel and move on without finishing.