Habits of Silence

by Stephanie Buckle

The role of silence in the relationships of the people who populate this richly varied collection of stories is mirrored in the restraint of the writing that captures them. While the characters have all the difficulties communicating that we can recognise in our own lives, Buckle's deceptively understated style reveals them with startling cumulative power.

Genres: Short Stories

202 pages, Paperback

Published August 26, 2017

Reviews

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stephanie Buckle's short stories are taut, elegant and piercing. The collection covers moments when words aren't there, and all the impossible, wishful, awful things people cram in their place. Each story is perfectly honed, without excess words or emotion, and linger beyond the end of the volume.

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been champing at the bit to read local author Stephanie Buckle’s debut short story collection, Habits of silence, ever since I attended its launch in August by John Clanchy at the Canberra Writers Festival. The readings that both Clanchy and Buckle herself gave from the book grabbed my attention and convinced me that this would be a book I’d like. However, it had to wait its turn in my review copy pile. Finally its number came up – and I devoured it. I will never understand why some readers don’t like short stories. At least, I understand their reasons in my head, but I don’t in my readerly heart! (If that makes sense.) For my complete review, please see: https://whisperinggums.com/2017/11/23...

[Jack Heath · Rating 5 out of 5]

With their foibles, longings and tangled relationships, these characters feel so utterly real that each story, on its own, seems like it must be autobiographical. It's only once you've read the whole collection that Buckle's skill as a writer becomes clear - she cannot possibly have lived all these lives. She cannot have been a secretly gay middle-aged biochemist and a paraplegic man trapped forever in a hospital and a young woman who steals from her husband and a Vietnam veteran who sells furniture with his estranged brother. Some of these experiences, perhaps all, must have been invented, or at least overheard and captured with remarkable insight and empathy. I wish I could write like this.
Note that this book can be hard to find. Ask your local bookseller, or if you don't have one, go to the publisher's website.

[Simon Storey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first short story collection I’ve really enjoyed. Buckle has real talent for piercing shorts and some characters are more fleshed out than ones who have entire novels dedicated to them. Some of them are better than others but overall this is a fantastic collection.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked the stories, but they weren’t bitey enough a this time.

[Jemma Tan · Rating 4 out of 5]

beautiful collection - favourite story was ‘oakdene’. i’ve never really loved short story collections but this one was so inspiring + i forget how much depth you can find in such small pieces