Tag: literary fiction

Book Blitz: Skyline by William Fowkes

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Today’s spotlight is on Skyline: Tales of Manhattan by William Fowkes, a fascinating collection of short stories focusing on the lives of some of the residents of Manhattan.

SkylineAbout the Book

In Skyline: Tales of Manhattan, award-winning playwright and author William Fowkes presents stories of New Yorkers – gay, straight, and confused – making startling connections and discoveries. On the West Side, a man approaching his 60th birthday tries a new haircut, with disastrous consequences. On the East Side, a Park Avenue Republican gets a taste of life on the “down low” in Central Park. In the East Village, a struggling writer papers his kitchen wall with rejection letters. In SoHo, a graphic designer takes drastic steps to get the attention of her editor. At MOMA, a woman physically attacks a man examining a sculpture she doesn’t like. Downtown, a transplanted New Orleans cabaret singer deals with life and love in the aftermath of 9/11. There are 19 stories in all—enough to demonstrate that Manhattan’s residents are just as striking as the city’s celebrated skyline.

Fmat: ebook Publisher: Ivor Publishing Pages:
Publication: 1st March 2016 Genre: Short Story

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WilliamFowkesAbout the Author

William Fowkes is a playwright and author based in Manhattan and Connecticut. His short fiction has been published in many literary journals. His plays have been presented in 20 states and the District of Columbia. Several have been broadcast on the radio. His full-length plays include All in the Faculty (Dramatists Play Service), Sunshine Quest (Fresh Fruit Festival), Private Property (The Players Ring), The Best Place We’ve Ever Lived (Love Creek Productions), Couple of the Century (Downtown Urban Theater Festival), The German Lesson (Great Plains Theatre Conference Playlabs) and others. His short plays include The Dakota (Best Short Play, Downtown Urban Theater Festival), The Brazilian Dilemma (First Prize, McLean Drama Company; film version by Collective NY Films), The Next Move (Best New One-Act Play, Brevard Theater), The Session (Pushcart Prize Nominee), Table Manners in Chicagoland (Winner, Nor’Eastern Play Writing Contest), An Accident in the Park (William Inge Theatre Festival), A Remarkable Man (Gallery Players, Brooklyn) and others. He has been a finalist for the Reva Shiner Comedy Award (Bloomington Playwrights Project) and the W. Keith Hedrick Playwriting Contest (HRC Showcase Theatre) and a semi-finalist for the Playwrights First Award (National Arts Club), the Promising Playwright Award (Colonial Players, MD) and the Princess Grace Playwriting Award. He is a graduate of Yale University and Northwestern University (M.A., PhD) and a member of the Dramatists Guild and the Pulse Ensemble Theatre Playwrights’ Lab. He was formerly a philosophy professor and a marketing executive at several media companies, including Showtime and HBO. He is married to Stephen Michael Smith, a music conductor. His daughters, Laura and Julia, work in the fashion industry in New York City.

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Book Review: Wake Me When I’m Gone by Odafe Atogun

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Wake Me When I'm GoneAbout the Book

Everyone says that Ese is the most beautiful woman in the region, but a fool. A young widow, she lives in a village, where the crops grow tall and the people are ruled over by a Chief on a white horse. She married for love, but now her husband is dead, leaving her with nothing but a market stall and a young son to feed. When the Chief knocks on Ese’s door demanding that she marry again, as the laws of the land dictate she must, Ese is a fool once more. There is a high price for breaking the law, and an even greater cost for breaking the heart of a Chief. Ese will face the wrath of gods and men in the fight to preserve her heart, to keep her son and to right centuries of wrongs. She will change the lives of many on the road to freedom, and she will face the greatest pain a mother ever can.

Format: Hardcover Publisher: Canongate Pages: 247
Publication: 3rd August 2017 Genre: Literary Fiction    

Purchase Links*
Amazon.co.uk ǀ Barnes & Noble
*links provided for convenience, not as part of any affiliate programme

Find Wake Me When I’m Gone on Goodreads

My Review

Wake Me When I’m Gone tells the story of Ese, widowed and bringing up her young son, Noah, alone. The language is simple and straightforward, almost in the manner of a fable, and the sense that the reader is listening to a story is enhanced by the first-person narrative.  There is a timeless quality to the tale being told, although from the mention of items like radios, it is clear that it is set not that far off the present.  I felt the picture of the small village and the faraway big city also contributed to the feeling of a fairytale.

Through Ese’s eyes, the reader witnesses the inferior position of women in the social order of the village. In this patriarchal society, a woman’s role is circumscribed and tradition is used as a reason for preventing any change. Hence, the attempt by the Head Priest and Chief of the village to force Ese to remarry or face the prospect of losing custody of her son to a male relative.

This is also a community influenced by superstition, fearful of the wrath of their gods in case they send bad weather or other natural disaster and who believe that defiance of the gods will bring madness and death.  The people cling to cruel beliefs such as children made orphans by the death of their parents are responsible for those deaths because they are cursed. The orphans must be shunned, left homeless and without means of support.

Ese is unwilling to accept unquestioningly the customs of the village, particularly where they threaten her son or where they seem morally wrong. Her resistance brings unwelcome consequences and she is forced to begin a lonely search for safety and shelter.

Throughout the novel, stories play a key part. There are the fearsome stories the priests tell to prevent resistance to the laws of the village. And there are the stories Ese tells to help her son cope with the loss of his father and the difficulties they face; hopeful messages that ‘one day things will change’ and that she has given him ‘the secret of happiness’ so he will never be sad. Her simple wisdom is rooted in principles of truth, kindness and generosity.

I found Ese’s story, although sad at times, ultimately uplifting with its message that good can come out of tragedy and a person’s legacy can persist long after they are gone. I really enjoyed this book: for the story, the insight it provides into Nigerian customs and traditions, and its simple, graceful prose. I will definitely seek out the author’s first book, Taduno’s Song.

I received an advance reader copy courtesy of NetGalley and publishers, Canongate Books, in return for an honest review.

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In three words: Uplifting, hopeful, magical

Try something similar…The Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s Wives by Lola Shoneyin

Odafe AtogunAbout the Author

Odafe Atogun was born in Nigeria, in the town of Lokoja, where the Niger and Benue rivers meet. He studied journalism at the Times Journalism Institute in Lagos and is now a full time writer. He is married and lives in Abuja.

His first novel, Taduno’s Song, was published by Canongate Books in 2016.

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