I picked this up in a used book store and was excited to find it, since the author has ties to the area where I went to school and his work was recommended to me by a dear friend. MacLeod, raised in Windsor, Ontario, was nominated as a finalist for the 2010 ScotiaBank Giller Prize for this collection and has received widespread praise for his work. He is also the son of the renowned author Alistair MacLeod (whose book No Great Mischief is currently sitting on my shelf waiting to be read).
These are the stories featured in this collection:
- Miracle Mile
- Wonder About Parents
- Light Lifting
- Adult Beginner I
- The Loop
- Good Kids
- The Number Three
What makes these stories powerful to me is how easy it was to slip inside them and walk around in the characters’ shoes, despite the differences between them all. I could see each scene so clearly, it was as if I had been there before. MacLeod’s mixture of short, punchy lines between longer sentences creates a smooth rhythm of description and insight. The vocabulary is not overly complex, yet he is still able to convey compelling narratives and messages about life and loss.
I was also struck by the raw portrayal of the unpleasant details of life that are not often given attention in such elegant prose. By this I mean the in-depth infatuation the narrator has with the history of lice in “Wonder About Parents,” the graphic imagery of pussing wounds in “The Loop.” MacLeod knows how to make the reader shiver with disgust, but in a way that brings them fully into the scene and makes the story more real and tangible than if these elements were simply glossed over.
The stories I connected to on a more personal level were “Miracle Mile” – because of my experience with running competitively – and “The Loop” – because of my experience working a low-paying job at a pharmacy where customers often gave me too much information about their ailments and family histories. Yet I was surprised by how much I was entranced by the other stories which I have no relation to, such as the street hockey gang in “Good Kids” and the Tuesday swimming pool crew in “Adult Beginner I.” I think one of the keys to good storytelling is to immerse a reader in a story with subject matter with which they lack experience or affection. This requires characters anyone can empathize with or descriptions that are familiar yet also uniquely placed within the narrative.
While I believe each story must be looked at as an individual piece, there are some common themes among them: the pains of being overworked, the struggles of growing up and the effects of past traumas. Although there are serious issues explored within this collection, there are still light-hearted moments and sentiments that remind the reader of the importance of humour and frankness. It is always important to have a balance of light and dark in literature, especially when dealing with grave issues, and I think MacLeod effectively speaks about problems people suffer from in a way that makes the reader think but does not take away their hope for resolution.
Every time I read a book, I mark some of my favourite quotes with sticky notes. The sentence or paragraph struck a special cord with me, made me laugh or said something vital about the piece. I will share a few of those with you now:
“We are what we want most and there are no miracles without desire” (“Miracle Mile”).
“I come to relieve her. 10:30 at night. Freezing outside. Other things will happen, but we will never live clearer than this” (“Wonder About Parents”).
“The people in those apartments all had their little idiosyncrasies. I remember the first time I realized it, the first time I really understood that, just like being young, there were lots of different ways a person could be old” (“The Loop”).
“There are things we must allow each other that have nothing to do with kindness” (“The Number Three”).
So what did I take away from this collection of stories? Short sentences can be effective if not overused. Imagery is essential to painting a story in the mind’s eye. And finally, that the everyday details of human experience are what bring stories to life, not just the life-changing moments the narratives revolve around.
Have you read Alexander MacLeod before? What is your favourite story by him? Do you think he is an effective storyteller? Let me know in the comments section down below.
My next post will be about Alice Munro, as I have a collection of her work I have been meaning to read.
Read, Write, Repeat 