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Ladataan... Insurrections: Stories (University Press of Kentucky New Poetry & Prose)Tekijä: Rion Amilcar Scott
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A suicidal father looks to an older neighbor--and the Cookie Monster--for salvation and sanctuary as his life begins to unravel. A man seeking to save his estranged, drug-addicted brother from the city's underbelly confronts his own mortality. A chess match between a girl and her father turns into a master class about life, self-realization, and pride: "Now hold on little girl. . . . Chess is like real life. The white pieces go first so they got an advantage over the black pieces." These are just a few glimpses into the world of the residents of the fictional town of Cross River, Maryland, a largely black settlement founded in 1807 after the only successful slave revolt in the United States. Raw, edgy, and unrelenting yet infused with forgiveness, redemption, and humor, the stories in this collection explore characters suffering the quiet tragedies of everyday life and fighting for survival. In Insurrections, Rion Amilcar Scott's lyrical prose authentically portrays individuals growing up and growing old in an African American community. Writing with a delivery and dialect that are intense and unapologetically current, Scott presents characters who dare to make their own choices--choices of kindness or cruelty--in the depths of darkness and hopelessness. Although Cross River's residents may be halted or deterred in their search for fulfillment, their spirits remain resilient--always evolving and constantly moving. Kirjastojen kuvailuja ei löytynyt. |
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When I started Insurrections by Rion Amilcar Scott, I didn't enjoy it. The first short story was so strange- a man is rescued from attempting suicide by his neighbors. As their relationship grows, the man invites the neighbors to his child's birthday party where he has spent all his money on a Cookie Monster costume that smelled like it came from the dump to make his child happy. The kids run due to the smell and the man is left saddened. The neighbor returns with the Cookie Monster head, listening to the laughter from above, but expecting he would find his neighbor hanging, except this time dead.
I shared the whole story because this is the tone of this book.
The stories are not happy stories. There are not happy endings. This isn't about happy endings though and that is when I got it!
Many times, collections of short stories are named for one of the stories contained within the book. In the case of this book, Insurrections is the title because each story takes place in Cross River, Maryland and deal with the lives of the African American residents that reside within. Each is battling to overcome something- a man who keeps getting mistaken for his drug addicted brother and decides to try to rescue him, a girl who is beaten in chess by her father who claims to be the best chess player in the world until he is beaten in chess by the park expert, or a student who ruins his teacher's life and has to deal with the consequences. All the stories are about overcoming something and sometimes realizing there is a ceiling holding you down.
These are powerful stories of trying to overcome the odds when the odds are so stacked against you. Sometimes the odds are overcome only to learn that there isn't much hope. As stated, this isn't a book with a lot of happy endings.
Scott's writing just flows and is very poetic. He changes his style through the stories to give voice to his characters. I sometimes forgot I was reading the stories of one author. With that written, like many short story collections, there are ones that will connect and others that just will not. I went back to re-read the first story and it still wasn't my favorite of the collection. Neither was A Friendly Game. The three-202 Checkmates, Juba, and The Legend of Ezekiel Marcus really were touching in their own way, but still heartbreaking. I really enjoyed 202 Checkmates for some reason.
As written, this is not a pick to pick up to make you feel good, but it is a group of stories that need to be told. I am currently reading Homegoing and The Underground Railroad, so this book fit right into place of what I am currently reading as a different side to the same story.
I gave this one a solid 4 stars. (