Home
The End of the Ice Age (Biblioasis $19.95)
Dirty realism was a label attached to a group of American short story writers in the early 1980s. Their work reflected the lives of the impoverished and blue-collar workers of small town America in a bare, unsensational style.
Terence Young probably would not appreciate being compared to its proponents like Raymond Carver because most of his characters in The End of the Ice Age are not blue-collar. They are primarily unemployed-but that's because they're pursuing degrees at university, or are financially endowed, or have been fired.
Young's minimalist style and stark realism are nonetheless Carver-like. His stories are also gritty and precise, with touches of poetic prose, without much resolution. If you're one of these old fashioned folk who want to like the protagonists in your stories, you're in trouble.
For instance, if you want to know whether bartender Boone will actually kick-start his life in The Big Money, you'll have to write your own story. If you want to know what is going to happen to the relationship between the once champion squash player and his girlfriend in Dream Vacation, dream on.
If you want to see some light at the end of the tunnel for the nameless protagonist in Fair Enough, forget it.
These are people you want to shake; shout in their faces, "What's wrong with you!"; This is what Young does so well: he offers static with a sneer. But the process is uplifting because he uses poetry and deft phrasing to flesh out his characters. There are terrific lines to savour.
The unnamed narrator in Fair Enough describes a woman he's hitting on at a wake: "Girl jock finally meets middle age, teeth like a perfect hand of cards.";
Young describes a pugilistic partygoer: "Buzz-cut has been watching and he's angry on the other guy's behalf, the sort of person who borrows battles when he can't find any of his own.";
The author of four previous books, including The Island in Winter, nominated for the Governor General's Award for Poetry, Terence Young has also co-founded The Claremont Review, a journal for young writers. His work defies labels.
9781897231913
[BCBW 2010]
Terence Young probably would not appreciate being compared to its proponents like Raymond Carver because most of his characters in The End of the Ice Age are not blue-collar. They are primarily unemployed-but that's because they're pursuing degrees at university, or are financially endowed, or have been fired.
Young's minimalist style and stark realism are nonetheless Carver-like. His stories are also gritty and precise, with touches of poetic prose, without much resolution. If you're one of these old fashioned folk who want to like the protagonists in your stories, you're in trouble.
For instance, if you want to know whether bartender Boone will actually kick-start his life in The Big Money, you'll have to write your own story. If you want to know what is going to happen to the relationship between the once champion squash player and his girlfriend in Dream Vacation, dream on.
If you want to see some light at the end of the tunnel for the nameless protagonist in Fair Enough, forget it.
These are people you want to shake; shout in their faces, "What's wrong with you!"; This is what Young does so well: he offers static with a sneer. But the process is uplifting because he uses poetry and deft phrasing to flesh out his characters. There are terrific lines to savour.
The unnamed narrator in Fair Enough describes a woman he's hitting on at a wake: "Girl jock finally meets middle age, teeth like a perfect hand of cards.";
Young describes a pugilistic partygoer: "Buzz-cut has been watching and he's angry on the other guy's behalf, the sort of person who borrows battles when he can't find any of his own.";
The author of four previous books, including The Island in Winter, nominated for the Governor General's Award for Poetry, Terence Young has also co-founded The Claremont Review, a journal for young writers. His work defies labels.
9781897231913
[BCBW 2010]
Submitted on September 2, 2010 in By David.
