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Emancipation
Short Story Collection
- GenresFiction
160 pages, Nook
First published August 1, 2010
2 people are currently reading
83 people want to read
About the author
Michael R. Lane
14 books64 followersMichael R. Lane is the founder of Bare Bones Press. He is a published writer and poet who turned to Indie Publishing. His novels include the C. J. Cavanaugh mysteries, The Family Stone, and Exchange Student. His short story collections are Emancipation, UFOs and GOD, and Long Journey Home. He has also penned five books of poetry: A Leap Year of Haiku, Love & Sensuality, Mortal Thoughts, Sandbox, and A Drop of Midnight.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
May 13, 2016
This is my own personal bias and stubbornness, but since I live in America I'm usually disinterested in reading about what I already know about the people and the culture. This attitude started when I was a university student majoring in English literature reading all of those British authors and poets and watching BBC dramas and English melodramas from the 1930s and 40s. Shortly after I read Sigrid Undset's trilogy Kristian Lavransdatter I almost completely turned my nose up at American writers. Also being forced to read so much American literature for high school English classes also had a role in stymieing any enthusiasm I had about American writers. I would say Emancipation caused a return to American writing and literature. Admittedly, I've loved African American writers from the Harlem Renaissance period since the time I was introduced to them when I was in college, but I never took it upon myself to read beyond the African American literature syllabus. Emancipation and the current racial climate in the country may have brought me back to my roots.
Emancipation is a collection of short stories that I would describe as nearly a novel but not really. Here are twenty short stories beginning with a crazy old bum who preaches hellfire and damnation on the street followed in the same story the tale of a young boy named Gratey who is watching a World War II movie on television. The tragedy that happens that day in Gratey's home radiates out and resonates through the rest of the stories. These are slice of life psychological stories about everyday people many of us know or have heard about especially if we're African American, the people with good potential but who never quite find their way to a somewhat smoother path. There are also a few non-black characters here. The language is sometimes gritty, old school hip and at other times poetic. These short stories are a mixed narrative in sometimes the first sometimes the third person. The author Michael R. Lane shows that he really has observed people and has the capability to dive deep into the human soul. I really enjoyed this book and strongly recommend it.
Emancipation is a collection of short stories that I would describe as nearly a novel but not really. Here are twenty short stories beginning with a crazy old bum who preaches hellfire and damnation on the street followed in the same story the tale of a young boy named Gratey who is watching a World War II movie on television. The tragedy that happens that day in Gratey's home radiates out and resonates through the rest of the stories. These are slice of life psychological stories about everyday people many of us know or have heard about especially if we're African American, the people with good potential but who never quite find their way to a somewhat smoother path. There are also a few non-black characters here. The language is sometimes gritty, old school hip and at other times poetic. These short stories are a mixed narrative in sometimes the first sometimes the third person. The author Michael R. Lane shows that he really has observed people and has the capability to dive deep into the human soul. I really enjoyed this book and strongly recommend it.
August 25, 2012
I’m usually a fan of chick-lit and women’s fiction so Michael Lane’s Emancipation wasn’t something that I would normally go for. However, I was completely hooked from the first pages and I didn’t put the book down until I had finished reading every word. To sum it all up in one word: Wow.
Emancipation is a collection of short stories which are very well written and told in a way that hooks you in and keeps you there. The stories struck me as very much true to life, showing the knock-on effect that one person’s tragedy can have on another’s.
The characters and descriptions are so well written that everything just seemed to come to life and jump right out of the pages. Everything seemed so real, I felt as though I knew the characters, and as though I was stood watching the events unfold in front of me. Gratey in particular was a fantastically written character that stayed with me long after I had finished reading.
Michael Lane is a very talented author who has written a strong and compelling collection of stories. He takes the reader on a powerful and emotional journey through the lives of a group of individuals who are connected and linked together by the same thread, proving that perhaps we are not all that different from each other and that we are all bound together in some way.
Emancipation is a collection of short stories which are very well written and told in a way that hooks you in and keeps you there. The stories struck me as very much true to life, showing the knock-on effect that one person’s tragedy can have on another’s.
The characters and descriptions are so well written that everything just seemed to come to life and jump right out of the pages. Everything seemed so real, I felt as though I knew the characters, and as though I was stood watching the events unfold in front of me. Gratey in particular was a fantastically written character that stayed with me long after I had finished reading.
Michael Lane is a very talented author who has written a strong and compelling collection of stories. He takes the reader on a powerful and emotional journey through the lives of a group of individuals who are connected and linked together by the same thread, proving that perhaps we are not all that different from each other and that we are all bound together in some way.
March 22, 2012
Emancipation opens with the story of a tragic event. The author cleverly draws the dark thread of this tragedy through the lives of the all characters in the story collection. Most effected was Gratey who carried his guilt through his teens, his time in Vietnam , into his marriage and finally to a spot in Kauffmann's doorway where he found that he and his guilt could live in peace. Along that journey the author introduces us to the characters who touched Gratey's life and whose lives in turn were effected by the tragedy that shaped Gratey . All the stories are beautifully written and the characters keenly observed. I thoroughly enjoyed Emancipation and recommend it.
October 30, 2013
From start to finish this was a great collection of well written short stories all connected together, depicting the life-story of a Vietnam Vet who struggles with PTSD. The first chapter really breaks your heart and compels you to read on. With only 160 pages, you'll finish this book in a day. I thoroughly enjoyed it and I'm looking forward to reading more from this author!
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews