Rating: 3 stars
Headline: Well written, but missing scene setting and context, Wade’s words don’t always dazzle, but in their moments they do sparkle
Review:
As an avid reader, I like to keep my ear to the ground on what’s hot in publishing. And, while I have no data on hand to prove my argument, in recent years there has been a general uptick in the number of short story recommendations within my reading circles. There are many reasons why this could be the case, but my theory is simple – we are increasingly time poor and distraction rich. A full story in three pages? Sign me up!
Penned by author Trinity Wade, I Won’t Keep You is a collection of short stories and personal essays. Ranging in topic and theme, these 134 pages will transport readers from awkward outdoor gatherings, to telephone exchanges, to the struggle of small town living. Wade’s collection of thirty four tales are all told through a first person lens, which gives readers a unique insight into the thoughts and feelings of the narrator, sometimes for as little time as the words on two pages. In some cases readers are left with more questions than those answered.
The writing quality in itself is pretty good. The detailed thought process of the narrator and their reaction to surrounding characters and situation falls very much into the purple prose camp, in that it reads more poetic than anything else. In these sections the reader really could get lost in the word spinning craft of Wade as an author.
Where this book falls down a little is in its frequent lack of detailed scene and location description. Reading this book, it often feels like a set of characters are interacting in a vacant white room. Where are the sights, sounds and smells? And while the view point of the first person narrator is often strong and punchy, in a number of the stories that voice feels isolated, blunt and harsh, with limited softness and variation between each tale. As they are all written in first person, it quickly becomes very difficult to detangle what is fiction and what is personal essay. The narrator sounds the same in every story, unless that is intentional, in which case it may need to be clearer from the offset of the book.
I Won’t Keep You is a neat little book, but probably not the best for readers who are entering the short story genre for the first time.
AEB Reviews
Links:
Reedsy Discovery Review: AEB Reviews – “I Won’t Keep You: Short Essays & Little Fictions” by Trilety Wade
Purchase Link: “I Won’t Keep You: Short Essays & Little Fictions” by Trilety Wade (Amazon)
Author Website: https://thecuriousword.com/
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My Housemate's a Mermaid 