Almost Gone: A Novel-In-Stories

by Brian Sousa, Frank X. Gaspar ( Author of introduction, etc.)

Brian Sousa's debut collection of interlocking stories depicts the Portuguese American experience from a new perspective; alternately gritty, suspenseful, and illuminating.

Brian Sousa leaves sentiment and saudade behind in Almost Gone, a linked collection spanning four generations of a Portuguese immigrant family. In this hardscrabble world, the youth struggle with the secrets left behind by their elders, just as their parents fought through the pain and joy of assimilation. Told through various perspectives, Almost Gone is a working-class tale of survival that finds no easy answers, but cuts straight to the bone.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction

192 pages, Paperback

First published February 12, 2013

About the author

Brian Sousa is the author of the novel-in-stories Almost Gone and his fiction and poetry has appeared in numerous journals and anthologies. He teaches at Boston College, edits the music and culture online magazine Mule Variations, and plays guitar in the band Ocean*Transfer.

Reviews

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

These linked stories, about three generations of a Portuguese-American family (although "family" is a kind of cozy word, and this book is not that), digs into and also disorients you. If I plotted out the stories on a timeline, they would start with Nuno and Helena in Portugal; then go to the two of them and the next generation, their son Paulo and his wife Claire in coastal Rhode Island; and finally all of them and Paulo and Claire's son Scott, with wife Hailey and daughter Emily, also in Rhode Island. But the stories are not set in chronological order; they begin and end with Scott, who has reached a point in his adult life where he's trying to get lost -- through travel, through drinking -- after an irreparable trauma.

These stories seem steeped in sadness to me. It's like the family legacy, and as you read and find your way along the through-line of the narrative, one death seems to echo another, as one hoped-for but failed connection seems to echo another. (Nuno and his adult son, Paulo, both desire an important secondary character, the beautiful Catarina, and both in their own way fail with her.)

And yet the narrative, which is filled with losses, is not unrelievedly grim. The lightness doesn't necessarily come from any great happiness, but from the writing itself. Sousa's description of the cities, neighborhoods, and beaches where characters follow their drives and desperately conceived plans is sharply drawn and makes the places themselves seem alive. The characters rarely get what they want, but their wants are deeply felt, and that's due to Sousa's skill.

I read this book a couple of months ago, and the stories of Nuno, Helena, Paulo, Scott, and Catarina have stayed with me, as though the characters had a real existence in the world. The stories of Hailey and Claire, however, feel less fully realized. I wanted them to be bigger.

I picture Scott still traveling in Brazil, still getting lost. The other characters may be almost gone, but Scott I think cannot go back. I wonder, too, if he and Catarina, who is also always on the move and last seen headed to Granada, will somehow meet up. That may be impossible. They have left places and people behind, and it's not certain that they will find new places or people to settle on.

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full disclosure, he's a friend and I was asked to blurb this, but it's a very good book of linked stories. Here's my blurb:

The deceptively straightforward stories of Almost Gone sneak up to unfold in every direction, across distance and generations, as in raw-edged, pared-down lyricism Brian Sousa reveals a humming web of tragedy and wonder staked across the sprawling networks of modern life. In his resonant overlapping of characters losing and finding themselves he works magic, revealing those timeless in-between spaces where life—and art—mean the most.

[KJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was only 2 pages in when I almost missed my bus stop on the way to work. 'Almost Gone' continued to demand my attention throughout it's entirety and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a thoughtfully woven set of brilliant stories. Each story has a very unique air about it, almost as if you are in the presence of each of his characters' energy. I absolutely look forward to reading more work by Brian Sousa.

[S. · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn’t bring myself to read this book till the very end. I didn’t sympathize with any of the characters and I didn’t find the plot very appealing. This isn’t the kind of book that I was expecting. It really wasn’t for me.
However, I think that the concept of writing a narrative through various short stories is a very fine idea. Too bad I couldn’t bring myself to finish the book.

[April]

I received a copy of this book free through Goodreads first Reads.

I work at a Senior/Youth center and donate all print books I win in giveaways to the library.

I hope I get a chance to check this one out in the near future!!!

I can say it must be a really good read because it has been checked out since I added it to the library shelves!!

[Alice Bola · Rating 3 out of 5]

I jumped at the opportunity to read this novel. This is the first time I am reading anything by a fellow Portuguese American and I looked forward to reading a work of fiction by someone who shares my heritage. I was optimistic especially since this novel promised to encompass the feeling of being an immigrant, of living in two very different worlds.

Because of my optimism, it pains me to say this. Honestly, I’m on the fence about this novel. I really liked Mr. Sousa’s writing style. He is gifted and I know he will have a successful career. He made me believe I was on a journey though the beaches of Lagos and Brasil. He wrote interesting characters, kept them real and unassuming. I was there with Scott and Hailey as they dealt with their grief. I felt Helena’s certainty that a black dog was ruining her husband’s garden. I understood their pain. It was beautiful, real.

My concern with Almost Gone is the formatting of the novel. It reads like a collection of short stories however these stories have characters that are intertwine and skip back and forth though time. Sadly, the transitions weren’t smooth. It was well written but too scattered. Although this was an interesting way to tell the story, it would have benefited from some focus. Perhaps it would have helped if it was told in chronological order. The problem was I couldn’t see the point to it all. There were no resolutions, and too many holes. More than once, I expected something else and was a disappointed.

What I did enjoy were the characters. I really liked Scott. I wish I knew more about him. I worry about him and how his life changed. I also loved Scott’s grandmother Helena. Her story game me chills. And Paulo’s wife Claire. Let’s face it, I really liked each character and what they had to give. I wish they could have given more. This novel left me with a sense of bitterness. As I was reading Almost Gone, I came to realize that each character was bitter. That bitterness they felt didn’t come from what each character didn’t have or what they were denied, it comes from knowing they had the opportunity to do something different and they chose not to. Man, I love stuff like that.

On a personal note, I thought this novel would be more in line with my story as a Portuguese American and it was far from it. Maybe my family is the exception to rule. I could understand where the characters where coming from but it wasn’t my story. It made me sad for them. Made me wish they would have done something.

Overall, I am glad I read this novel. I look forward to reading Mr. Sousa’s future work and I will recommend Almost Gone to my Portuguese and Brasilian friends. I think anyone who knows what it’s like to build a life in one country when their heart still belongs to another will appreciate Almost Gone.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book. If, like me, you prefer your stories to be told in chronological order, you’ll find this “novel in stories” frustrating. We move not only among various characters’ points of view but shift erratically in time between 1941 and 2010 and in place among Brazil, Spain, Portugal and the United States. In the end, it all makes sense, but the reader has to work to keep up. This is not a feel-good book. It gets a little dark and violent. That said, the characters are wonderfully portrayed, the writing is masterful, and the stories offer powerful statements about the weaknesses of human beings in the face of love, anger and fear. Sousa also gives us a realistic picture of the Portuguese-American culture.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Raw and bittersweet. These short stories tell life like it is. It was fun to piece together the characters and how they are related.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing way of weaving together stories of different people, places and times. Honest writing about the struggles of relationships.