Fires of Our Choosing

I've always found it challenging to write book reviews. Even when I was back in school, it was my least favorite kind of writing assignment. Obviously you had to put in something about the plot, just to prove to the teacher or professor you'd read the thing. But how much to summarize? And what in the world could I say about this story? I (was) a fifteen-year-old kid, (am) a first-time author. I have no idea what was going through the author's head when they wrote it, no appreciation for where they're coming from. As much skill can go into that sort of critique, at the end of the day I'm just one guy with an opinion, telling my experience of a story.

Fortunately for me, this time it's different. First, I'm doing this because I want to. No teacher to please, just an audience to inform. Second, I have a bit more of an appreciation for the author, and where he's coming from. Fires of Our Choosing is a terrific new book by a former classmate of mine, Eugene Cross. 

The book is a collection of several short stories, "literary fiction" style, full of beautifully-crafted characters and situations. The title is apt: we see the fiery passions - either expressed or suppressed - of nearly every character Cross creates. It's one thing to write a believable situation, quite another to write a believable character. Cross has excelled at both. It takes an extremely skilled author to make the reader really feel what the character is feeling. Cross has pulled that off in his very first book. 

One thing that struck me about each of his stories is that they all have a very strong sense of place. It probably helps that I've driven those stretches of Route 20, been to that pool hall (or one very much like it) on upper Peach Street, and seen what an Erie winter does to the land and the people around you. Cross is able to make those settings come alive.

I won't summarize the stories here. (It feels great to say that!) But any reader will get to them all soon enough. Even for my voracious reading habits, this was a page-turner.