Where The Dog Star Never Glows

In this 17-story collection, writer and editor Masih (The Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Writing Flash Fiction) examines characters balanced precariously on the edge of contentment and disillusionment. Delicate, sparse prose contributes to the heavy-heartedness of such stories as "Say Bridgitte, Please," in which sadness overtakes ecstasy during a teenage girl's sexual encounter with a stranger; and "Asylum," as a daughter agonizes over her mother’s encroaching madness, and what it means for her own fate. Masih's first-person narratives are the most riveting, whether assuming the voice of a young girl witnessing her parents' marriage crumble from the backseat of a 1963 Thunderbird ("Sunday Drives"), or an aging father grieving the death of his friend’s adult daughter in the light of a late-winter bonfire ("The Burnings"). Compiled from two decades of work, Masih's stories are minimally but skillfully detailed—no last names, vague settings—giving extra weight to simple, recurring phenomena like water and color ("the evening’s August melon light"). Striking and resonant, this collection should prove memorable for any fan of New Yorker-style literary short fiction. - Publishers Weekly

ISBN 0982576056   DEWEY edition DC21 ISBN13 9780982576052 (What's this?)   Pages 164 Publisher Press 53   Weight (grammes) 216 Imprint Press 53   Published in Winston-Salem, NC Format Paperback   Height (mm) 140 Publication date 15 Feb 2010   Width (mm) 216 Library of Congress 2009913146   Spine width (mm) 9 DEWEY 813.6   Academic level General

In this 17-story collection, writer and editor Masih (The Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Writing Flash Fiction) examines characters balanced precariously on the edge of contentment and disillusionment. Delicate, sparse prose contributes to the heavy-heartedness of such stories as Say Bridgitte, Please, in which sadness overtakes ecstasy during a teenage girls sexual encounter with a stranger; and Asylum, as a daughter agonizes over her mothers encroaching madness, and what it means for her own fate. Masihs first-person narratives are the most riveting, whether assuming the voice of a young girl witnessing her parents marriage crumble from the backseat of a 1963 Thunderbird (Sunday Drives), or an aging father grieving the death of his friends adult daughter in the light of a late-winter bonfire (The Burnings). Compiled from two decades of work, Masihs stories are minimally but skillfully detailedno last names, vague settingsgiving extra weight to simple, recurring phenomena like water and color (the evenings August melon light). Striking and resonant, this collection should prove memorable for any fan of New Yorker-style literary short fiction. - Publishers Weekly



 Write a review