New books: week of August 6
Here’s a quick look at some of the great books out this week. Happy pub day to all! Crystal Hana Kim, If You Leave Me Morrow From Publishers Weekly: “A family struggles to balance tradition and change in Kim’s…
Author: CRAFT
A Closer Look: ORCHID & THE WASP, Caoilinn Hughes
In Orchid & the Wasp, Caoilinn Hughes has created a singular character in Gael Foess. From the opening pages, set in Ireland in 2002 when Gael is only 11, to the conclusion, when 20-year-old Gael is back in Dublin in…
New books: week of July 9
Here’s a quick look at some of the great books out this week. Happy pub day to all! Keith Gessen, A Terrible Country Viking From Publishers Weekly: “In Gessen’s exceptional and trenchant novel, floundering 30-something professor Andrei Kaplan flees…
CRAFT Fiction
Since we launched in October, CRAFT has published 23 stories. Take a reading break this holiday week and enjoy some wonderful short fiction. Be sure to read the Author’s Note that accompanies each of the stories: each writer considers an…
Multiple Storylines
Novels almost always include multiple storylines. But when it comes to short stories, whether it’s due to the brevity of space, or the intense focus on the primary storyline, we often see stories that only travel one path. This tendency…
Character’s Imagination
Exploring the imagination of a character is a wonderful way to allow the reader insight into the way a character thinks and behaves. How characters behave with others—their actions and their words—can move a story forward and, of course, are…
“Watershed” by Jack Noland
Distilling a city to its essence is a fool’s errand, but Dublin in December tests the fool. It’s all magnified: wind-blown rain; the serious, northern-latitude darkness that drives pub traffic and tea sales; a high holiday looming that’s both hearty-Catholic…
New books: week of June 11!
Here’s a quick look at some of the great books out this week. Happy pub day to all! Nick Arvin, Mad Boy Europa Editions From Kirkus Reviews: “Across the battlefields of the War of 1812, a young boy races to…
A Closer Look: RESTLESS SOULS, Dan Sheehan
A novel that follows a trio of childhood friends from Dublin to northern California, Dan Sheehan’s debut novel, Restless Souls, nicely investigates male friendship as well as the impact of trauma. Strong first-person voices provide a narrative that flows easily, with…
New books: week of June 4
Here’s a quick look at some of the great books out this week. Happy pub day to all! Adrienne Celt, Invitation to a Bonfire Bloomsbury Publishing From Kirkus Reviews: “Trembling with atmosphere, Celt’s (The Daughters, 2015) second novel follows…