Edited by Madison Smartt Bell (Algonquin Books, $14.95, 357 pages)
BY CLIFF BELLAMY
cbellamy@heraldsun.com; 419-6744
When I think of short fiction, I always remember those masterpieces I read in various high school and college anthologies. In "Paul's Case," Willa Cather's story about a troubled adolescent, she gave us one of the greatest story endings ever ("...Paul dropped back into the immense design of things"). I also on occasion re-read Ernest Hemingway's short stories. His "Big, Two-Hearted River" is as close as I'll ever get to trout fishing, and probably just as good.
Since 1986, Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill has been giving us annual reminders of the great short fiction in our midst in our time. This past week, Algonquin published the 2009 version of "New Stories from the South: The Year's Best, 2009." Author Madison Smartt Bell chose 21 stories for the anthology, many of them drawn from small literary publications or academic journals.
In this anthology, Bell and Algonquin have once again brought some small treasures to a wider audience.
Like previous editions, this 24th "New Stories" seeks to highlight the best fiction from Southern writers, or fiction about the South. I will not belabor the point about what Southern literature is: Bell has a short and worthy introduction about how the South is becoming more diverse internationally, and how writers undoubtedly will respond.
To me, the most surprising and gratifying example of what Bell is talking about is Rahul Mehta's story "Quarantine, " which he says in his brief discussion is "fairly autobiographical." It is drawn from the experience of a family originally from India who have settled in West Virginia. Mehta sets up two main sources of conflict in this piece. Bapuji, the narrator's paternal grandfather who has to move from India to be taken care of, constantly nags the narrator's mom, Bapuji's true caregiver. The grandfather never truly acclimates to American ways, as his son has. To accommodate his grandfather's world view, the narrator takes almost comical measures to hide from his grandfather the fact that his friend Jeremy is also his partner for life.
We often link the South with various traditions. Mehta shows us a glimpse of another culture's equally strong traditions, transplanted to our region.
Bell also notes the presence of Hurricane Katrina in several stories, and among them is the opening work "Muscle Memory," by Katherine Karlin. In this story, Destiny works in a shipyard in New Orleans but wants to become a welder so that she can earn better wages and help support her mom in the aftermath of Katrina. Her quest leads her to approach ship yard master welder Augustine Beaudry, who also is the former singer with a New Orleans rhythm and blues band called The Scorchers. She becomes Beaudry's apprentice, learning about the difficult art of taming a welding torch, but also a lot about old New Orleans music.
Other stories are about relationships or families in flux -- Charlotte Holmes' "Coast" (about a man in the middle of an affair), Stephanie Soileau's "The Camera Obscura" (about a teacher who ponders one) and Elizabeth Spencer's "Sightings" (about a divorced man reconnecting and finding common ground with his 16-year-old daughter).
I can only give you a taste here. Pick up this book to find out what other writers are saying about this place we live, from many different vantage points.
