The Little Washer of Sorrows: and Other Stories, by Katherine Fawcett
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The Little Washer of Sorrows: and Other Stories, by Katherine Fawcett
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The Little Washer of Sorrows is a collection of short stories that explores what happens when the expected and usual are replaced with elements of the rare and strange. The book's emotional impact is created with strong, richly drawn characters facing universal issues, but in unusual settings. The collection is both dark and comical with engaging plot twists and elements of the macabre as characters attempt to cope with high-stakes melodramas that drift further out of their control. The threat of something sinister lingers beneath the surface in many of Fawcett's stories, as she explores the messy "what ifs?" of life and the ever-present paradox of free will. (2014-09-24)
The Little Washer of Sorrows: and Other Stories, by Katherine Fawcett- Amazon Sales Rank: #2605979 in Books
- Brand: Fawcett, Katherine
- Published on: 2015-03-31
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 8.50" h x .66" w x 5.50" l,
- Binding: Paperback
- 208 pages
Review
NPR Books, March 31, 2015The Little Washer of Sorrows is not what it seems. At first glance, the debut collection of short stories by Canadian author Katherine Fawcett offers funny, sympathetic sketches of characters who might live next door to you: The homemaker who underutilizes her college degree; the aspiring heavy metal musician with delusions of stardom; the aging couple who can barely muster the passion to even bicker anymore.
And it works well on this level alone; Fawcett has a flair for quiet drama and unfussy detail, and her dialogue positively fizzes. Little Washer startles, however, thanks to its commitment to the fantastic. Amid the mundaneness of these 19 contemporary tales, whimsy and weirdness abound. Artificial intelligence lurks in the suburbs. Accountants nurse monsters. Movie stars appear as mirages. If Fawcett's characters actually did live next door to you, your life would be in for some serious upheavals.
Fawcett lets her speculative side run wild. Like fellow fabulist Kelly Link — not to mention forebears such as Donald Barthleme — she finds fertile ground in the fuzzy territory between realism and surrealism. In "BLK MGC," a ripped-from-the-headlines pyramid scheme takes a left turn somewhere near The Twilight Zone; in "The Anniversary Present," an aging Mother Earth is addicted to beauty products while her husband, Father Time, has adulterous feelings for Sister Moon.
Domesticity plays as big a part in Fawcett's story as science fiction, fantasy, and mythology do. The tenderly combative interplay between the married couple in "Lenny and the Polyamphibians" — which only intensifies when a mermaid enters into the equation — is poignantly layered, even as it sparks with snark. The couple in Little Washer's title story, on the other hand, are haunted by the most prosaic of monsters: Bankruptcy. As their estate manager begins to exhibit supernatural qualities, though, the balance of reality gets turned on its side.
Little Washer is playful when it comes to age-old tropes, from android imposters to Saint Peter at the Pearly Gates. But they're still age-old tropes, and the book's one major flaw is an overreliance on clichés, as freshly as they're approached. Luckily Fawcett transcends that with her bright, nimble voice, not to mention her pop culture savvy and eye small, telling details: A hapless high school teacher presides over a class of students whose names all begin T; in purgatory, people love singing Survivor's "Eye of the Tiger" at karaoke. It all works at a deeper level than these breezy stories might imply, as does Fawcett's use of technology as a complication for her characters. Alienated spouses use texting to maintain their disconnect; a computer buffering and freezing emphasizes the communication breakdown between teacher and pupils.
Occasionally a story flirts with fabulism without diving headlong into it — and in the case of "Suburban Wolf," it makes for the best bit in the book. Wagg is a part of a gang of semi-feral kids who roam neighborhoods, pack-like and barely civilized. Nothing about their situation is explained, nor does it need to be. It's only important to know that it's Wagg's 15th birthday, and he just received his first kiss, and that ecstatic coming of age isn't going to last long.
Just as Fawcett injects the weird into the mundane, she hides hard, barbed little truths in her otherwise lightweight yarns. "Captcha" might appear to be nothing but a clever spin on The Stepford Wives, but it winds up deftly exploring the nature of monogamy. "Swimming to Jonny Depp" seems like a sweet, silly vignette, but there's a nugget of sadness to the protagonist's middle-age daydreaming. Ultimately, The Little Washer of Sorrows is about epiphanies: their scarcity, their power, and their uncanny ability to make our everyday lives look downright unreal by comparison.
Jason Heller is a senior writer at The A.V. Club and author of the novel Taft 2012.
(2015-04-01)About the Author
Katherine Fawcett was born in Montreal, raised in Calgary, has lived in Japan, and now calls the small town of Pemberton, British Columbia home. She started her writing career as a sports reporter before venturing into freelance journalism and commercial writing. After becoming a mother and turning forty, Katherine could no longer ignore her tendency to dance fancy jigs on the boundary between real and imagined and has since turned her hand to fiction. She teaches music in Whistler, BC, and plays fiddle in a band called The Wild Irises. Her short fiction has been published in Wordworks, Event, Freefall, subTerrain, and Other Voices, and her plays have been performed by several community theatre groups.
AWARD RECOGNITION:Winner Federation of BC Writers Short Story Contest: 2008. Winner Whistler Writes Creative Non-Fiction Award: 2008. Winner Event Magazine Non-Fiction Contest: 2009. Nominated for National Magazine Award for Personal Journalism: 2009. Finalist Burnaby Writers Society "Lost and Found" Competition: 2009. Shortlisted for Writers' Union of Canada Writing for Children Contest: 2009. Finalist for Writers' Union of Canada Writing for Children Competition: 2009. Honourable mention in Freefall Magazine Prose Contest: 2009.Winner Pique "Summer of Funny" Contest: 2009. Shortlisted for Event Non-fiction Contest: 2011. Shortlisted for Event Non-fiction Contest: 2012. Longlisted for Carter V. Cooper/Exile Short Fiction Competition: 2014
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. Lenny learned of Helen's hormonal issues when she accidentally texted him instead of Kirsten. Still no period and fucking hot flash again. This is insane! I'm only 33!!!! 2 young 4 menopause. Then: Oops, wrong person. Disregard. U cant untext your husband. U ok? She didn't reply. That night in bed, he brought it up again. "Listen. About the period thing. Do you think you're pregnant?" "No, dipshit," she said, still facing the wall. "I'm not pregnant." "Then what is it? What's going on? Do you think you're eating too much of that salmon roe? Maybe that's affecting things. You know. In the female department." She hoisted herself up on her elbows, misted her face with the saline spray she kept on the night table, then squinted at him. "I don't know if you've noticed, Lenny, but something is wrong with me. My vagina is drying up. And shrinking. My period stopped two months ago. My legs and feet hurt all the time. Sometimes I feel like my throat is closing. My skin is all weird. I'm losing weight and I'm scared." Lenny felt terrible. He hated seeing her suffer, but he knew exactly what was going on. He raised his hand to touch her cheek and couldn't help wondering if her eyes had always been that far apart or if it was just his imagination. It wasn't as if he didn't care that his wife was becoming aquatic. But what could he do? What could he say? "Maybe you should see a gynecologist." She burst into tears and a bubble came out of her mouth.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Oh, My! By Karen McLeod Oh, my! How does Fawcett come up with these fantastic, original stories? I picture the author and her friends on a dock, it’s a summer evening, they’ve had a few, and then the “What if?” conversation starts.In Dire Consequences, there’s a shocking result of momspeak, “Eat your greens.” One of my favorite stories, Jesus on the Candy Bar (what a title!) has the distinct, authentic voice of a teenage girl. Fawcett remembers the awkwardness of adolescence like it was just last summer. Another favorite is The Little Washer of Sorrows. Brilliant! The last line was perfect. I chuckle every time I think about it.The first story in the collection, Captcha made me laugh the most, more of a shake my head, oh my, kind of laugh. Her use of language is exactly what I like to read. Johnny Longsworld’s Third Option has the best image: “Johnny stormed back through the immense lobby looking for a spare seat, fuckity-fucking through his teeth the whole way.”I smell a Giller. And a grilled cheese with hot chocolate. That was in Dire Consequences. Those don’t even go together, but the image is fresh and nostalgic at the same time.I broke my rule of reading only one short story per night. More than once.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. When I read a good book I am one of those who can’t let ... By amanda sandahl Thoroughly entertained by this book! When I read a good book I am one of those who can’t let go until I get to the end. Right now I don’t have time for that – so I chose to get a book with short stories. Love it! The stories are quirky and unique – they suck you in right away and the best word I have to describe this book is entertaining. Nothing boring , no skipping chapters… Katherine is a brilliant writer and I highly recommend this book and look forward to more to come!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. A brilliant, original collection that with make you smile By Nancy Routley A brilliant, original collection that with make you smile, twitter and laugh out loud. Katherine weaves fantastical, quirky stories, taking unusual often mythical characters and putting them modern day setting with modern day sensibilities. These stories are like nothing you have ever read before so don't be surprised that you gush about them to your friends!
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