Gordon Lawrie reviews Eric J Smith's latest collection of short stories.
Coffee, Steak, And Eggs: 101 Stories from the Wrong Side of Nowhere by Eric J. SmithMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Eric Smith's writing is so atmospheric, you almost feel you've been transported to his world. Told in a series of short stories of varying lengths, he "unfolds" rather than "tells" his tales. Oddly enough for a Maryland resident, his "fiction world" is very much rooted somewhere in the American Mid-West, a world of small-town bars, run-down garages, red-knecks and tough women. Don't expect to find too many smart suits or city girls.
I love Coffee, Steak and Eggs. I believe I've read a handful of them before on the legendary Friday Flash Fiction site, but Smith has reworked most of them to give a freshness that makes everything seem new. As he says in the introduction, removing the somewhat artificial constraints set by flash fiction sites has allowed him to develop each story a little and control the pace more carefully. If I have to pick a favourite it would be Living Alone. Everything's there in that little tale, which almost stretches out to a full short story.
I strongly recommend Coffee, Steak and Eggs. It's just the sort of book to have at your side to while away a bus or train journey, or an hour in an airport. Or you might have it by your chair to pick up and read in an odd moment. It won't interrupt whatever else you're reading, this is stuff to dip-in to, and to savour.
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