During this long political season, AT has been distracted by politics and political commentary. As a result, we neglected our literary posts, which, we admit, is one of our abiding interests.
Thankfully, the holiday weekend gave us a chance to catch up a bit and spend some time with Annie Proulx and her wonderfully gritty Wyoming stories. We recently found a used hardback copy of Bad Dirt, the second volume of her Wyoming stories (the first volume was Close Range, if memory serves).
Proulx, who lives in Wyoming part of the year and seems to have a special insight into the people there, writes about folks in the fictional town of Elk Tooth, where the locals frequent one of the hamlet's three bars.
As we suggested above, most of Proulx's stories feature tough, hard-working characters, ranch hands, game wardens and bartenders who live in trailers and manage to scrape out a living on the high plains of the mountain west.
The opening story, "The Hellhole," features a game warden named Creel Zmundzinski and some of his surly law breakers, who, in Proulx's imagination, get their comeuppance in a particularly vicious way.
Another story focuses on Willy Huson, an Elk Tooth eccentric, who once had a good out-of-town job as a mechanic for United Airlines but returned home to fix cars and lawn mowers, at least when the feeling strikes. In this story, however, Huson decides to set up a hot tub outside his trailer, which is why the story is called "Summer of the Hot Tubs."
Next time you're in the market for some original short fiction with an edgy twist, check out Annie Proulx's Wyoming stories. She's the real deal.
5 comments:
I read Close Range but not Wyoming Stories yet. She really is the real deal. I have relatives, not in Wyoming, but in Idaho, and she is very good at describing these folks.
Yogi,
Thanks for your comment. We rarely receive any comments on our literary posts, which we take as a bad sign (that is, a sign that people are not reading serious lit). So it's great to hear that someone else around here is paying attention to Proulx and other fiction writers.
michael kors outlet, oakley vault, ray ban outlet, kate spade handbags, ray ban sunglasses, christian louboutin shoes, michael kors outlet online, michael kors outlet online, prada handbags, longchamp handbags, tiffany jewelry, louis vuitton outlet online, coach outlet, christian louboutin, polo ralph lauren outlet, nike air max, burberry outlet online, jordan shoes, louis vuitton outlet, louis vuitton handbags, tiffany and co jewelry, red bottom shoes, gucci handbags, michael kors outlet online, true religion outlet, michael kors outlet online, nike shoes, kate spade outlet online, longchamp outlet online, prada outlet, coach outlet, louis vuitton outlet, coach purses, longchamp outlet, true religion, louis vuitton, cheap oakley sunglasses, tory burch outlet, chanel handbags, coach outlet store online, polo ralph lauren, burberry outlet online, nike free, christian louboutin outlet, oakley sunglasses, nike air max, michael kors outlet store
uggs outlet, uggs on sale, beats headphones, lululemon outlet, vans outlet, nfl jerseys, soccer jerseys, nike trainers, wedding dresses, jimmy choo shoes, ferragamo shoes, mac cosmetics, chi flat iron, rolex watches, longchamp, new balance outlet, abercrombie and fitch, p90x workout, bottega veneta, reebok shoes, canada goose outlet, ghd, roshe run, mcm handbags, soccer shoes, instyler ionic styler, valentino shoes, canada goose outlet, ugg outlet, north face outlet, celine handbags, north face jackets, ugg soldes, herve leger, giuseppe zanotti, mont blanc pens, nike huarache, ugg, asics shoes, insanity workout, canada goose outlet, hollister, canada goose, marc jacobs outlet, ugg boots, birkin bag, babyliss pro
swarovski jewelry, converse shoes, ugg, canada goose pas cher, hollister, oakley, canada goose, juicy couture outlet, pandora uk, hollister canada, converse, moncler, louboutin, replica watches, timberland shoes, pandora charms, pandora jewelry, iphone 6 case, ray ban, swarovski uk, uggs canada, moncler, gucci, moncler, vans, montre femme, juicy couture outlet, moncler, ralph lauren, coach outlet, moncler, moncler, moncler outlet, links of london uk, thomas sabo uk, louis vuitton canada, supra shoes, baseball bats, wedding dress, hollister clothing, karen millen, canada goose uk, toms outlet, parajumpers outlet, air max, lancel, canada goose, nike air max
Post a Comment