The Journey Prize Stories 28: The Best of Canada's New Writers

by Kate Cayley (Other)

The celebrated annual fiction collection showcasing the best stories by the best new writers in Canada, all contenders for the prestigious $10,000 Writers' Trust of Canada/McClelland & Stewart Journey Prize.Like the O. Henry Prize Stories, The Pushcart Prize, and the Best American Short Stories series, The Journey Prize Stories is one of the most celebrated annual literary anthologies in North America. But what makes it unique is its commitment to showcasing the best short stories published each year by some of Canada's most exciting new and emerging writers. For more than 25 years, the anthology has consistently introduced readers to the next generation of great Canadian authors, a tradition that proudly continues with this latest edition.     The stories included in the anthology are contenders for the $10,000 Journey Prize, which is made possible by Pulitzer Prize-winning author James A. Michener's donation of Canadian royalties from his novel Journey. The 2016 winner will be announced by the Writers' Trust of Canada in November 2016.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Anthologies

226 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 27, 2016

About the author

Kate Cayley is the artistic director and co-founder of For Stranger Theatre. The Hangman in the Mirror is her first novel for young adults. Her writing, including poetry and short fiction, has appeared in a variety of literary magazines. She is currently the writer in residence at the Tarragon Theatre in Toronto, Ontario.

Reviews

[Esil · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Journey Prize Stories 28 is a 2016 collection of short stories by emerging Canadian writers. It's a treat to read this collection because it truly represents a cross-section of Canadian life and experience -- both in terms of geography and life experience. For example, stories focus on urban new immigrant families, and younger and older people struggling to eke out a life in small town and rural areas across Canada. The settings and people are very recognizable. Much of the writing is excellent. I was struck by a pervasive sense of melancholy and loneliness in many of the stories, making me ponder if this is representative of a Canadian ethos that surfaces in our literature or whether it's a common feature of short stories. In any event, a collection well worth reading. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an opportunity to read an advance copy.

[PattyMacDotComma · Rating 5 out of 5]

5★
I admit to a fondness for short stories. I like vignettes, slices of life, episodes, chapters. I do want a sense of a “whole” that the story is part of, not just a random thought that popped into someone’s mind.

I enjoyed most of these, and I especially liked J.R. McConvey’s “How the Grizzly Came to Hang in the Royal Oak Hotel” .

A film director has foolishly decided to bring a real, wild grizzly from the Yukon into a hotel lobby for a film shoot. The story’s narrator, a recently discharged soldier and now a lowly bellboy, describes the bear’s understandable rampage and the subsequent mayhem.

A congressman, who is a guest in this fancy hotel, appears on the scene, believing “as long as it was alive, it presented a significant danger to the public, which he simply couldn’t permit on his watch. that’s when he pulled the vintage Colt single-action .357 Magnum revolver from the holster on his belt and told the cameras . . .”

Well, you can see his dreams of heroism and imagined headlines. But this is not a shoot-em-up action piece. It's a thoughtful piece of work as is his other story in this collection.

I also particularly enjoyed “The Emigrants” by Colette Langlois, which is a combination of two stories—messages “home” to Earth from a woman on a 2042 mission to Mars and letters “home” to his sister in England from a man settling in Manitoba with his family in the late 1800s. The fierceness of the weather, the challenges of the landscape – wonderful.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin/Random House for an advanced review copy. I’ll be waiting to see who wins the prize. Here’s some information about it from the Publisher’s website.

http://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/boo...

“The celebrated annual fiction collection showcasing the best stories by the best new writers in Canada, all contenders for the prestigious $10,000 Writers’ Trust of Canada/McClelland & Stewart Journey Prize.

Like the O. Henry Prize Stories, The Pushcart Prize, and the Best American Short Stories series, The Journey Prize Stories is one of the most celebrated annual literary anthologies in North America. But what makes it unique is its commitment to showcasing the best short stories published each year by some of Canada’s most exciting new and emerging writers. For more than 25 years, the anthology has consistently introduced readers to the next generation of great Canadian authors, a tradition that proudly continues with this latest edition.

The stories included in the anthology are contenders for the $10,000 Journey Prize, which is made possible by Pulitzer Prize-winning author James A. Michener’s donation of Canadian royalties from his novel Journey . The 2016 winner will be announced by the Writers’ Trust of Canada in November 2016.”

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good anthology of short stories from modern Canadian talent. This is the 2016 edition of the anthology.

I wonder why the editors chose two selections by the same authors instead of two selections from different authors? Was there not enough talent to go around in Canada? I doubt it.

The stories with bold headings were probably my favourites of the bunch.

4.1 Stars







Story-by-Story Notes, Thoughts, and Critique. (Don't read any of this if you haven't read the book and want to be surprised)


1. 'Paris' -- Souvankham Thammavongsa

- A decent short tale of Laotian Canadians working in a factory. Red, the main character, a 'plain' woman, her boss, and his catalyst for nose jobs, a woman named Beauty.


2. 'The Person You Want to See' -- Alex Leslie

- A great look at religion, Facebook, relationships, break-ups and self-image
- Lots of gym and working out
Page 11 quote: "...but now she learns how religion is a crutch for numbness."
Page 32: Interesting scene where Laura, the main character, intentionally swerves at cyclists:

"She swerves gently again, hears the bellow of surprise from the cyclist this time, how she can press herself gently into him. She swerves again, comes back to centre. His yell comes clear through the glass: "CRAZY FUCKING BITCH." This time she slows down as she swerves. Looks across the passenger seat and sees the cyclist's face. Not the hardened urban cyclist she'd expected but a teenaged boy clinging to the handlebars like a tree branch he's climbed too far out on. His fearful hunch, face angled across his neck, eyes stretched wide. She swerves one more time and watches him go over into the ditch."

3. 'Home Range' -- J.R. McConvey

- A man finds a young girl in a cargo container, clearly there for trafficking reasons which may be tied up with his employer
- His girlfriend died years ago giving birth to his own six year old daughter
- He leaves the girl in the woods with some clothes and supplies, because he's afraid of his corrupt foreman, cop corruption, and possibly losing his job or his daughter.
- Then there's a crazy plot twist
- Full of strange similes and time references
- I like the story to an extent, and the author, but I don't quite buy this or love it


4. 'Chins and Elbows' -- Carleigh Baker

- The main character is a recovered meth addict. She goes to help salmon by killing them and taking their eggs and sperm, with an inmate.
- Too short, too 'B.C.', and not enough happens


5. 'If I Ever See the Sun' -- Charlie Fiset

- A woman working in a gold mine in QC, trying to fit in
- It turns into a paranormal, X-Files-like story
- Strange ending, doesn't quite work for me. Not thrilling enough, not enough suspense, not enough meat, structure, or build-up -- too quick to reach unclear ends
- I did really like how the story was set in a gold mine though


6. 'The Origin of Jaanvi' -- Mahak Jain

- An understated tale of a daughter's birth, and of the differences between a scientific father and religious mother in an unhappy arranged marriage


7. 'The Roar' -- Paige Cooper

- This story is a bit confusing
- A visceral tale of violent, beautiful nature, sex and death at a hunter's retreat
- A look at the strange inner world of a hunting lodge
- Crazy women, and/or possible paranormal activity


8. 'Mani Pedi' -- Souvankham Thammavongsa

- A washed-up Laotian boxer quits boxing and starts working at his sister's nail salon.
- A nice, simple little tale


9. 'The Emigrants' -- Colette Langlois

- One woman is all that remains of a Martian colony from earth -- the team psychologist, and an emigrant
- Flashes back to letters written by her British emigrant ancestors, the harsh beauty of homesteading on the prairies in Canada
- Told through letters
- A bit of a plot twist
- Well done!


10. 'Progress on a Genetic Level' -- Andrew MacDonald

- In this Ukrainian-Canadian tale, a man's father died of a heart attack and he tries to get his mom to go to the funeral
- The man is not doing as well as his brother, but makes the deep decision to be better
- Good!


11. 'How the Grizzly Came to Hang in the Royal Oak Hotel' -- J.R. McConvey

- A former soldier, who went through hell in Afghanistan, deals with a live grizzly and an important politician in a fancy hotel
- Good!

[Bradley Baker · Rating 4 out of 5]

A mostly enjoyable collection of short stories. This is my first time reading a Journey Prize collection and I will be following the competition and its winners from this point onwards. As it goes with many short story collections with multiple authors, there were a few 'misses' ... but I suppose most of this comes down to preference. For me, some stories had that annoying 'so what?' factor and I was left wondering what point I'd missed. Having said this, I didn't find any of the stories to be pretentious, and in most cases the author's intention was quite clear.

The gem of this anthology was Paige Cooper's 'The Roar'. It is the story of Loyola who works as a sort-of hostess/cook/cleaner for a hunting-holiday resort in a remote forest. The story has some beautifully crafted metaphors and symbols. Its sense of tension and unease captured me from the start. It would be my choice for the winner - and I look forward to finding out who won (or will win) the prize.

Other highlights for me were Souvankham Thammavongsa's 'Paris' and 'Mani Pedi', Mahak Jain's 'The Origin of Jaanvi' and Andrew MacDonald's 'Progress on a Genetic Level.' All three of these authors wrote convincing narratives: basic plots with excellent characterisations, unique settings and a bit of heart. Can't go wrong with those ingredients ...

Some of the longer stories seemed to lose their way and I found myself switching off. But any time I found myself losing interest, the next story would usually recapture it. Some good thought went into the story order - or so it seems!

[Ann Douglas · Rating 5 out of 5]

My annual treat for my short story loving brain. This carefully curated collection of short stories never disappoints and always inspires.