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Reviewed
by Sarah Salway
Ignore
the back cover of this book. The comparisons Niki Aguirre’s publisher
makes about her are unfortunate because she is not – yet – up there
with Alice Munro, Borges or ZZ Packer, and she, and this book, deserves
more than the inevitable disappointment that particular piece of puff
yields. I speak from my
own experience. I started reading this collection thinking, ‘OK, show
me what you’ve got.’ And only after a bit settled into enjoying
them.
Because Niki
Aguirre doesn’t need to be compared with anyone. She has
her own voice, and it’s a great one for a short story writer. The same
tone runs through all the character’s voices, and the fact she can
create such different people all looking at the world from a similar
slightly skewey angle is definitely to her credit. These are outsiders
who, for once, are not trying to fit in. No, Aguirre’s characters are
too busy searching for their own brand of independence to worry what
others think, and the originality that this gives the whole collection
can’t be underestimated.
In the second
story, Time Immemorial,
the young narrator explores time travel as a way of recovering his lost
father before finding himself increasingly lost in a dark tunnel of his
own making. There are some lovely details. Watching his mother with
Earl, her awful new husband, Ally notices how
”Betty” would act coy
and sometimes (Earl) would kiss her straight on the lips when he knew I
was looking
Ally gets his revenge, but by the end, heartbreakingly,
no one wins.
In The Shed, a wife
can – apparently - only watch as her
husband takes his obsession with writing to new levels in their garden
shed. Her celebratory moment towards the end of the story is lost when
her husband’s manuscript is carried off by the wind, and you realize
how it has only been through following her husband’s dreams that she
could have her own.
Aguirre looks
closely at human relationships but
always with a kind eye, and the fact that these are characters who do
not hate is reflected in the quietness of the writing. So it is
disappointing when some stories rush towards their end or contain more
stereotypical characters. The
Little Man for example has a shocking
conclusion, but Aguirre’s skill in handling the cruelty makes me wish
she had played with this more. The twist in the tale is even humorous
in what could otherwise have been a deeply disturbing piece. Equally,
the title story, 29
Ways to Drown, was carrying me along completely
until the last seven words rammed the point home annoyingly. This
uncharacteristically misjudged touch is in contrast with the ease with
which other stories, including the beautiful Solomon’s Call,
seem to be
written. For this intensely moving story of an immigrant father allowed
his moment to shine by his daughter alone, the book would deserve its
place in my bookshelves, but there are many more stories here I will
come back to read again and again.
Sarah
Salway is a
poet, short story writer and novelist. Her books include Something
Beginning With and Tell Me Everything (Bloomsbury) and Leading the
Dance (Bluechrome). She is a teacher of creative writing and is
currently collaborating with several artists on projects, including the
Tiny Circus in America (www.thetinycircus.blogspot.com).
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Publisher: Lubin and Kleyner
Publication
Date: Nov
2007
Paperback/Hardback?
Paperback
First
collection?: Yes
Awards: Longlisted for the Frank O'Connor International Short Story Award 2008 Author
bio: Niki
Aguirre is a London based fiction writer, born in the United
States to Ecuadorian parents. She studied English Literature at the
University of Illinois and holds an MA in Creative Writing from the
University of London. She is currently working on her first novel.
Read
an interview
with Niki Aguirre
Buy this book (used or
new) from:
The
Publisher's Website: Flipped Eye
Author's recommended bookseller: Amazon
AbeBooks
BetterWorldBooks.Com
And...don't
forget your local booksellers and independent book shops! Visit IndieBound.org to find an independent bookstore near
you in the US
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