by Emily Ruskovich
This collection is made up of five short stories, all connected by the same haunting, quietly devastating voice.
The first story, Victor’s Room, follows Rebecca, a young mother who moves to a remote farmhouse where her husband spent his childhood. The story is told from her perspective as she wonders how she ended up there. She looks back on meeting her husband at university, where he taught and she was a student, and remembers their relationship, marriage, and the birth of their daughters. Over time, Rebecca realizes that many of her life choices were not truly her own, and she starts to see that her husband is not who he claimed to be. He tells her about growing up in the house, his childhood, and the death of his brother Victor, in a room that Rebecca later chooses as a sanctuary for herself. Reading this story made me feel uneasy; the relationship between Rebecca and her husband is very one-sided and manipulative.
The second story, Owl, follows a young man whose wife is shot by some neighbourhood boys who mistake her for an owl. Their relationship is already strained, so when she later disappears, he suspects either the boys are involved or that something from her past has finally caught up with her. I found this story heartbreaking and incredibly sad, with characters who feel like nothing more than victims of circumstance.
The third story, Round Lake, centers on a young woman who, after learning the truth about a key event in her life, starts to question everything, especially the life she has built around her memories. There were moments in this story I found incredibly easy to identify with. As I was reading, I kept thinking, I have totally responded this way, and this is exactly what I would have done.
Petty Creek Road is the one story I couldn’t quite identify with. It follows two older brothers who, because of circumstances in life, move in with each other and become the best of friends. When Butch, the younger brother, is tragically killed, his brother Will has to come to terms with his loneliness, the relationship he has with his son, and a gift he has denied possessing until now.
The final story, Nightjar, is about a young girl, Tess, who has to look after her little brother Rory during summer vacation. While doing so, she experiences something miraculous that gives her a sense of purpose and peace in her otherwise lonely and isolated life. The relationship between the young girl and her brother is incredibly realistic, sometimes funny and very heartbreaking.
Emily Ruskovich is a talented writer. Her stories draw you in with their beauty, and her writing is rich with description and metaphor. She is one of the best writers I have read.
Every story in this book will be suitable for High School study.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the copy.
Ink And Spine 