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Midge Raymond

Forgetting English Paperback – March 22, 2011

by Midge Raymond (Author)

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In this new, expanded edition of her prize-winning collection, Midge Raymond explores the indelible imprint of home upon the self and the ways in which new frontiers both defy and confirm who we are. Including new stories, Forgetting English takes us around the world, from the stark, icy moonscape of Antarctica to the lonely islands of the South Pacific, introducing us to characters who have abandoned their native landscapes only to find that, once separated from the ordinary, they must confront new interpretations of who they are, and who they are meant to be.

"Raymond's prose often lights up the poetry-circuits of the brain, less because of lyrical language and more due to things that work as both literal and symbolic nouns: stolen rings, voice-mail messages gone astray, heavy-footed humans in the middle of fragile habitats." -- The Seattle Times

"All of her stories are heartbreakingly honest ... I wouldn't be surprised if she started getting compared to Alice Munro or Jhumpa Lahiri." -- The Seattle Books Examiner

"Raymond's style of writing is engaging, her locations exotic, her endings are often resonant and deftly written, and what her stories express about travel and exploration is honest and forthright." -- The Short Review

"Raymond has quiet, unrelenting control over the writing; each story is compelling and thrives because each detail and line of dialogue reveals just a little more about the characters and the evocative settings." -- The Rumpus

Print length

164 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Press 53
Publication date

March 22, 2011
Dimensions

5.98 x 0.38 x 9.02 inches
ISBN-10

1935708384
ISBN-13

978-1935708384
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"Raymond's prose often lights up the poetry-circuits of the brain." -- Seattle Times

"Raymond has quiet, unrelenting control over the writing; each story is compelling and thrives because each detail and line of dialogue reveals just a little more about the characters and the evocative settings." -- The Rumpus

"All of her stories are heartbreakingly honest ... I wouldn't be surprised if she started getting compared to Alice Munro or Jhumpa Lahiri." -- Seattle Books Examiner

About the Author

Midge Raymond's short-story collection, Forgetting English, received the Spokane Prize for Short Fiction. Her stories have appeared in TriQuarterly, American Literary Review, Indiana Review, North American Review, Bellevue Literary Review, the Los Angeles Times magazine, and many other publications. Her work has been nominated for three Pushcart Prizes and received an Artist Trust/Washington State Arts Commission Fellowship.

Midge taught communication writing at Boston University for six years, and she has taught creative writing at Boston's Grub Street Writers and Seattle's Richard Hugo House. While living in Southern California, she held writing workshops and seminars at San Diego Writers, Ink, where she also served as vice president of the board of directors.

Midge lives and writes in the Pacific Northwest. Visit her online at MidgeRaymond.com.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Press 53 (March 22, 2011)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 164 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1935708384
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1935708384
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 7.2 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.98 x 0.38 x 9.02 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #7,338,636 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #96,487 in Short Stories (Books)
- #263,799 in Literary Fiction (Books)

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Midge Raymond

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Midge Raymond is the author of MY LAST CONTINENT, a novel, and a short-story collection, FORGETTING ENGLISH, which received the Spokane Prize for Short Fiction. Her articles and stories have appeared in TriQuarterly, American Literary Review, Bellevue Literary Review, the Los Angeles Times magazine, Poets & Writers, and many other publications.

Midge worked in publishing in New York before moving to Boston, where she taught communication writing at Boston University for six years. She has taught creative writing at Boston's Grub Street Writers, Seattle's Richard Hugo House, and San Diego Writers, Ink. She has also published two books for writers, EVERYDAY WRITING and EVERYDAY BOOK MARKETING.

Midge lives in the Pacific Northwest, where she is co-founder of the boutique publisher Ashland Creek Press. Visit her online at www.MidgeRaymond.com.

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Harriet Cannon

Some of the tales Ms. Raymond recounts are quite ...

Reviewed in the United States on February 7, 2015

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Some of the tales Ms. Raymond recounts are quite engaging, memorable and give plenty of food for thought from her experience and perspective. There were times, however where her stories were more self indulgent, self centered than I found interesting. As someone who has lived and traveled in Latin America, it's always interesting to see another America woman's perspective.

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Wendy Call

Utterly delicious stories!

Reviewed in the United States on December 11, 2011

Verified Purchase

I have read this book several times over, given it as a gift to at least half a dozen friends and family members, and soon will teach it in a contemporary literature class. I can't wait to share these elegantly crafted stories with my students! Midge Raymond has an ear for poetic prose, an eye for essential detail, and a heart that will open your heart to all of her protagonists -- as different as each one is. A beautiful collection.

One person found this helpful

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Patti M. Marxsen

A Voyage of Self-Discovery

Reviewed in the United States on May 23, 2011

The stories of Forgetting English travel a fine line between memory and forgetting. Each story is a voyage--inward or outward--and each voyage takes the young woman at the center to a new and unexpected place. Perhaps one has to "forget" one's comfort zone before another, more authentic comfort zone becomes possible. Perhaps the only way to grow is by forgetting what brought you this far. Such are the real-life dilemmas addressed here in the guise of "fiction."

Midge Raymond's collection is daring because it confronts such questions and allows that discomfort might be a condition of self-discovery. Each story involves hard choices between self-knowledge and self-denial spread across a geographic sweep that feels like circumnavigation. With subtlety and grace, Raymond guides her characters to states beyond forgetting.

One person found this helpful

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Elizabeth Austen

Unforgettable Travels

Reviewed in the United States on July 10, 2011

This book of short stories makes a perfect travel companion. Each story occupies dual landscapes--the literal, geographic setting (often somewhere unfamiliar to the general reader), and the intense emotional terrain of relationships that we all must navigate.

The characters in this newly released and recently extended edition of Midge Raymond's FORGETTING ENGLISH are so vividly drawn that they stayed with me at the close of each story. I found myself thinking about them as if they were actual people, friends I'd somehow--regretably--failed to stay in touch with.

Though each story stands alone, the collection as a whole creates an engrossing, complex and very satisfying experience. Great gift book for someone about to take a trip.

One person found this helpful

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Mindy

What Every Reader Wants

Reviewed in the United States on April 15, 2011

Through Midge Raymond's stories, I was transported to many exotic locations from the South Pacific to Antarctica. Her vivid descriptions of landscapes literally immersed me physically. I met characters so real they moved off the page and into my life. If this sounds a little like literary wizardry, it just might be. To lose oneself in another reality, to experience other worlds--isn't this why we read?

In these finely crafted short stories, Raymond exposes her characters' deepest yearnings and the emotional push and pull that results. She is a master storyteller--her delicious prose, a feast for the reader. I wait impatiently for her next book.

3 people found this helpful

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Clifford Garstang

Characters who try to reinvent themselves

Reviewed in the United States on November 22, 2015

This is a fine collection of short stories (Spokane Prize Winner, published by Press 53). I enjoyed the settings around the world -- Taiwan, Tonga, Antarctica, etc. -- and the great characters. The stories explore fidelity as well as the ties that bind us, drawing us back from attempts to reinvent ourselves. A great read.

Reviewed in the United States on April 13, 2011

As a mother of two young girls, I rarely find long stretches of time to read, so I've really been enjoying short story collections. My favorite recent read is Midge Raymond's collection, Forgetting English. It won the Spokane Prize for Short Fiction, and I understand why. Besides the lyrical language and lovely use of metaphor, I was drawn completely into the characters' lives. These are women, in varying moments of crisis or crossroads, whom you'd like to have coffee with, or comfort, or give a stern talking to. And, for me, the underlying theme of the book hit home: What's lost and what's found when we travel the world? How does being somewhere foreign both take us away from ourselves and bring us closer to our true selves? These stories are little gems and, put together, they give the reader a cohesive journey to savor. I highly recommend Forgetting English. Great fodder for book club conversations, too.

3 people found this helpful

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Sean Farley

"Forgetting English" is a powerful collection of short stories

Reviewed in the United States on January 9, 2013

"Forgetting English" is a strong, mesmerizing, unforgettable (no pun intended) collection of short stories. Written in fine, exquisite prose, the stories in "Forgetting English" will leave you wishing each story was its own novel. Personally, I enjoy short stories. More importantly, I enjoy short stories that provide a novel's worth of depth and intimacy in just several muscular pages. From "The Ecstatic Cry" to "The Road to Hana," you'll not only be pleasantly entertained, you'll be surreptitiously educated. Give this collection a chance. Midge has a supreme voice in the way of literature.

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Forgetting English Paperback – March 22, 2011

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