Lands and Forests

by Andrew Forbes

A story collection by award-nominated writer Andrew Forbes that rifles through the domestic and wild moments that make us human.

Escaping government-sanctioned flooding, obsessing over camera-equipped drones, violently mourning a lost brother, discovering a new passion in fencing, watching a wildfire consume a whole town: the stories in Lands and Forests survey the emotional landscapes of women and men whose lives, though rooted deeply in the land and their small communities, are still rocked by great cultural change. These are raw, honest character studies reminiscent of the work of Alexander MacLeod and Lisa Moore, but with a style and energy all their own.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction

224 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2019

About the author

Andrew Forbes is the author of the short story collections Lands and Forests (Invisible Publishing, 2019) and What You Need (2015), the latter of which was shortlisted for the Danuta Gleed Literary Award, and named a finalist for the Trillium Book Prize. He is also the author of The Utility of Boredom: Baseball Essays (2016), and The Only Way is the Steady Way: Essays on Baseball, Ichiro, and How We Watch the Game, (2021). Forbes lives in Peterborough, Ontario.

Reviews

[Anne-Marie]

dnf'd at page 68

I bought this in 2019 at a library book sale because I'm trying to read more CanLit.

Unfortunately I liked the Canadian setting and references more than I did the writing, characters, or stories (I read 5).

Not for me but I'm sure it'll work for other readers.

[Jean-Michel Berthiaume · Rating 4 out of 5]

Touchant receuil de nouvelles qui explore un florilège de raisons qui font que des gens sont dans l'impossibilité de vivre ensemble, toutefois sans jamais nommer la raison de front. C'est un recueil hanté, de l'absence, de l'envie, de la tristesse et de l'appartenance. Chaque nouvelle est d'une sensibilité très unique sur le poids d'être complet, ainsi que la légerté d'être fragmenté.

[Jean Derome · Rating 5 out of 5]

Malgré ma pause d'un an et demi au beau milieu du livre, ma lecture qui a commencé dans les terres de St-Félix-d'Otis a repris de manière aussi vive que les incendies illustrées dans ce roman. Andrew Forbes fait toujours mouche, qu'il parle du baseball ou des forêts du Canada anglais.

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lands and Forests gives us a series of stories about the kinds of people we are and the places we choose to make our lives and our memories in. Some stories ate upbeat, some not so much. Within these short stories, Andrew Forbes asks us to think about the people we are and the places we choose. While no one story stands out as far superior to the others, the collection draws us in so we can move forward. What Forbes attempts to reveal to us is the power of place, both natural and man-made, and the role it plays in discovering who we are.

[Jaye Jarvis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Andrew Forbes' collection of stories is simply wonderful. Fans of Raymond Carver and Richard Ford need to get their hands on this one.

[Karen Lowe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Engaging stories and wonderful characters that stayed with me after the stories ended.

[Aly · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Peut-être qu'avec son village qui allait bientôt devenir une note de bas de page de l'histoire, elle se sentait investie d'un nouveau courage."

Un excellent recueil de nouvelles.

[Olivier Boivin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mes deux histoires préférées sont ''jeu de pieds'' et ''les signaux''.