In the tradition of the works of Raymond Carver and Richard Ford, this fiction debut shines with verbal brilliance. Disturbing yet compellingly readable, the stories in this collection explore the gap between disappointment and hope, between life as it could be and life as it is.
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In the tradition of the works of Raymond Carver and Richard Ford, this fiction debut shines with verbal brilliance. Disturbing yet compellingly readable, the stories in this collection explore the gap between disappointment and hope, between life as it could be and life as it is.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
AN ENORMOUSLY TALENTED WRITER,
This review is from: A Stranger in This World: Stories (Paperback)
This marvelous debut collection heralded the introduction of a story teller with prodigious gifts. "A Stranger In This World" is inhabited by characters who are all on the outside, individuals who are alienated due to economics, talent or happenstance. And, they are all trying to cut their way out of the emotional nets that have snared them. Canty has the ability to enthrall readers with revealing narrative and a connoisseur's eye for significant detail. His opening lines compel further exploration, such as that found in "King of the Elephants": "The third time we put my mother in the hospital, my father and I had already moved to Florida, to Jacksonville Beach." Or, "Safety" begins with: "Marian is in the bedroom, Saturday afternoon talking to her sister on the telephone, when her two-year-old Will walks in with a plastic bag over his head." It might seem that the author's themes are gloomy; this is not the case. But rather they seem to reveal the contradictions found in every human being. Kevin Canty promised to be and is a writer we will neither ignore or forget. - Gail Cooke
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Gritty and Gripping,
By Robert X Weaver (Fort Lauderdale, FL United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: A Stranger in This World: Stories (Paperback)
This book really caught me off-guard. I bought it because of the sultry-looking young man on the cover, but it was the writing inside that really made me tingle. These are the types of stories that have waited since the dawning of man to be written: a young man torn between his dysfunctional parents and the life that awaits him if only he could break the ties that bind; a recovering drug addict haunted by a former lover and a past he can never escape; a disgruntled dog catcher finds his conscience; a young Gen-X couple lured to a double-wide trailer by the sea and disaster. These are stories about the ignored, the allegedly "inconsequential" members of our society. Kevin Canty writes with stark honesty about their lives and thoughts, and reveals their lives to be far more interesting, shocking, and heart-wrenching than one could have ever suspected. Simply brilliant!
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Dark, disturbing, thought-provoking stories -- brilliant!,
This review is from: A Stranger in This World: Stories (Paperback)
I am the sort of neurotic reader that reads two books at the same time -- a "meaty" book that is thought-provoking and substantial or if it's a historical to be at the very least historically accurate and an "escapist" romance book to entertain me, though that one also has to have some substance. (I sometimes also read two escapists books at the same time. It all depends on the mood I'm in.) I was looking for a book that would satisfy my need for something that is dark and thought provoking as well as wanting to read a short fiction collection (even better if it had historically-set stories) of some sort to complement the romance book with three novellas that I'd planned to read. I found what I needed with A Stranger in this World. Even though all the stories here are contemporary, they are all fascinating and contain dark, compelling characters and great narrative that draw you in and don't let go until its final pages. This is the sort of book that anyone could relate to one way or another because it deals with characters that don't feel good about themselves or feel different and alienated from the rest of the human race due to various reasons, like drug addiction, poverty and inferiority complex. Some of the stories are quite disturbing but they are all compelling and speak to the reader in ways that keep you enthralled. My favorite stories are "Moonbeams and Ice Cream," "A Stranger in this World," "Junk," "Blue Boy," and "King of the Elephants." The tone in these stories are somber to the point of being somewhat depressing, but I love this sort of writing because it captures the human condition in all of its diverse, conflicting emotions and personalities. Canty has a great eye for detail and makes you feel his stories. He is in the same league as Joyce Carol Oates and Aimee Bender. This book more than satisfied my need for something that would move me to the core. Kevin Canty is a great author and I will look to his other works in the future. I cannot wait to give Honeymoon and Other Stories a whirl.
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