A thoroughly fresh voice and a rarely observed rural world come together in this extraordinary debut collection. The stories revolve around a small town in the Trinity Mountains of Northern California and the people who live there -- or flee. Caught between the fantastic and the real, existing on the fringes of mainstream society, these characters include a solitary marijuana grower who must deal with an intruder in his garden, a mystical Native American whose camp is about to be destroyed by loggers, a wanderer who finds a mentor in the wilderness, and other strange, beautiful, and haunting men and women. The driving lyricism of his writing, arresting originality of the subjects and landscapes, and insights into human nature mark this launch of a brilliant writer's career.
Publishers Weekly,Life in a small town in the rugged, lush and soaring Trinity Mountains of Northern California is the canvas for these breathtaking short stories. Whether the author is talking about a famous author forced to return from Alaska to speak at his estranged brother's funeral, or a game warden who lives the double life of a pelt-poaching, closeted homosexual, Parvin's stories possess a lyrical, mesmerizing quality, hypnotizing in its sweeter moments, haunting when bitter. But the delicately spun prose never takes away from the fact that these are stories about everyday people on the rough edge of civilized life. Parvin's characters confront head-on the deaths of loved ones, the destruction of dreams, and continue on with their lives as best they can. A violent youth who escapes a sadistic foster parent finds understanding in the company of a former semipro baseball player, now a crippled hermit living in a rundown shack. A married couple from San Francisco flee the city and a random infidelity ("Any man could buy flowers like the spray of dahlias and baby tears Edward had bought her. But Harry, he was the kind of man who... built window boxes to put them in"), rescue a bear and stumble across redemption in a tale that's at once poignant and witty. Whether offering salvation or searing pain, Parvin captures real life in these fleeting pages: an unforgettable collection, an awe-inspiring debut. (Jan.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved,Publishers Weekly,Publishers Weekly,Life in a small town in the rugged, lush and soaring Trinity Mountains of Northern California is the canvas for these breathtaking short stories. Whether the author is talking about a famous author forced to return from Alaska to speak at his estranged brother's funeral, or a game warden who lives the double life of a pelt-poaching, closeted homosexual, Parvin's stories possess a lyrical, mesmerizing quality, hypnotizing in its sweeter moments, haunting when bitter. But the delicately spun prose never takes away from the fact that these are stories about everyday people on the rough edge of civilized life. Parvin's characters confront head-on the deaths of loved ones, the destruction of dreams, and continue on with their lives as best they can. A violent youth who escapes a sadistic foster parent finds understanding in the company of a former semipro baseball player, now a crippled hermit living in a rundown shack. A married couple from San Francisco flee the city and a random infidelity ("Any man could buy flowers like the spray of dahlias and baby tears Edward had bought her. But Harry, he was the kind of man who... built window boxes to put them in"), rescue a bear and stumble across redemption in a tale that's at once poignant and witty. Whether offering salvation or searing pain, Parvin captures real life in these fleeting pages: an unforgettable collection, an awe-inspiring debut. (Jan.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
