February 2024 MBR The Literary Fiction Shelf

The Literary Fiction Shelf

Tali Girls: A Novel of Afghanistan
Siamak Herawi, author
Sara Khalili, translator
Archipelago Books
https://archipelagobooks.org
9781953861665, $22.00, PB, 391pp

https://www.amazon.com/Tali-Girls-Afghanistan-Siamak-Herawi/dp/1953861660

Synopsis: With the publication of "Tali Girls", author Siamak Herawi brings=
 Afghan women center stage and takes us deep into the heart of his motherla=
nd to witness the reality of their lives under the Taliban's most extreme i=
nterpretation of Islam. Based on true stories, the result is a sobering and=
 harrowing tale that relates the current ethos of a country under occupatio=
n by one power or another for more than half a century.

"Tali Girls" is deftly written in a direct, conversational prose that offer=
s us a vivid picture of the endless cycle of the suffering of girls and wom=
en in the grip of the Taliban authorities, of the imbalance of power and op=
portunity.

The central figures illuminate the power of love, friendship, and generosit=
y in the face of poverty and oppression. Their experiences and dilemmas hav=
e a visceral power and we become deeply attached to Kowsar, Geesu, and Simi=
n. These are testaments of resilience, hope, courage, and visceral fear, of=
 doors of opportunity opening just a crack that offer a way out.

In Sara Khalili's vibrant and nuanced translation from the Persian, "Tali G=
irls" tears down the curtain and exposes the treacherous realities of what =
women are up against in modern-day, war-torn Afghanistan.

Critique: A riveting (and often heart-breaking) read from start to finish, =
"Tali Girls" reflects author Siamak Herawi's narrative driven storytelling =
skills that, as a novelist, elevates this original and compelling story to =
the elevated heights of literary excellence. Expertly translated into Engli=
sh for an American readership by Sarah Khalili, "Tali Girls" is especially =
and unreservedly recommended for community and college/university library L=
iterary Fiction collections. It should be noted for personal reading lists =
that "Tali Girls' is readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $1=
6.99) as well.

Editorial Note #1: Siamak Herawi was born in Herat province, Afghanistan, i=
n 1968. He studied at Kabul University and Stavropol University in Moscow. =
Returning to Afghanistan in 1991, Herawi started his career as a reporter a=
nd later joined Anis Newspaper as its editor in chief. In 2003 he was appoi=
nted deputy spokesperson to President Hamid Kharzai, a position he held unt=
il he was transferred in 2012 to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as deputy =
spokesperson. A year later, he was appointed charges d'affaires of the Emba=
ssy of Afghanistan in London. Herawi resigned from his position in 2014 whe=
n Ashraf Ghani was elected president and remained in the UK. Despite his lo=
ng career in politics, Siamak Herawi is most recognised as one of Afghanist=
an's most prolific writers whose body of work includes twelve novels.

Editorial Note #2: Translator Sara Khalili is an editor and translator of c=
ontemporary Iranian literature based in New York. Her many translations inc=
lude Censoring an Iranian Love Story by Shahriar Mandanipour. (https://en.w=
ikipedia.org/wiki/Sara_Khalili)

Prima Facie
Suzie Miller
Henry Holt & Company
www.henryholt.com
9781250292209, $27.99, HC, 288pp

https://www.amazon.com/Prima-Facie-Novel-Suzie-Miller/dp/1250292204

Synopsis: Tessa Ensler loves her job. She's worked her way up to being a to=
p criminal defense barrister against all the odds, and fights to defend tho=
se pleading not guilty. Tessa believes in the law, believes in the system. =
Her quick-witted cross-examinations and intelligence in the courtroom see h=
er clocking up win after win - including securing freedom for men accused o=
f rape and sexual assault. Innocence until proven guilty is, after all, the=
 bedrock of a civilized society.

But when Tessa is raped by a coworker, she struggles to find the strength t=
o bring him to justice in the face of the barriers and opposition within th=
at same system. Determined to have her day in court, Tessa is forced to con=
front the stark reality that the law was not written for victims, and that =
she is the one on trial. She fights on, even as her evidence is manipulated=
 to make her look like a liar, even while she is retraumatized in the stand=
.

Critique: A deftly crafted work of fiction that is based on the Olivier and=
 Tony Award-winning play, author Suzie Miller, in her debut as a novelist, =
is able to raise her crime thriller "Prima Facie" to a impressive level of =
literary excellence. This is a compelling story of what happens when a vict=
im who is exceptionally familiar with the legal system experiences must lea=
rn from personal and hardcore experience that there is very little justice =
in the justice system -- even for her. While especially and unreservedly re=
commended for community library Contemporary Crime/Justice System Fiction c=
ollections, it should be noted for personal reading lists that "Prima Facie=
" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $14.99).

Editorial Note: Suzie Miller (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suzie_Miller) i=
s a contemporary international playwright, screenwriter, and novelist. Base=
d in both London and Sydney, Australia, Miller has had her work produced ar=
ound the world, winning multiple prestigious awards, including for her smas=
h-hit one-woman play Prima Facie, which ran a sold-out, critically successf=
ul season on London's West End, winning the Laurence Olivier Awards for Bes=
t New Play 2023 and Best Actress 2023; followed by a critically successful =
season on Broadway, receiving four Tony Award nominations and a win for Bes=
t Actress 2023. Miller is educated in science and law, with a doctorate in =
drama and mathematics. She practiced human rights law before turning to wri=
ting full-time and is currently developing major theater, film, and televis=
ion projects across the UK, USA, and Australia, including feature film adap=
tations of her plays. "Prima Facie" is her first novel.

Burn Man: Selected Stories
Mark Anthony Jarman
Biblioasis
www.biblioasis.com
9781771965477, $19.95, PB, 320pp

https://www.amazon.com/Burn-Man-Selected-Stories-ReSet/dp/1771965479

Synopsis: Drawing together the best of his short fiction published over the=
 last four decades, "Burn Man: Selected Stories" showcases Canadian author =
Mark Anthony Jarman's sharply observed characters and acrobatic, voice-driv=
en prose in stories that walk the tightrope between the commonplace and the=
 mystical.

Also featuring an insightful introduction from John Metcalf, "Burn Man: Sel=
ected Stories" offers truly revelatory selection highlights from one of the=
 most spirited and singular contemporary masters of the short story format.

Critique: Showcasing the best of Mark Anthony Jarman's literary works over =
the past few years, this anthology of his short stories from Biblioasis is =
an especially and unreservedly recommended addition to community and colleg=
e/university library Canadian Literary & Short Story Anthology collections.=
 It should be noted for personal reading lists that "Burn Man: Selected Sto=
ries" is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99) as=
 well.

Editorial Note: Mark Anthony Jarman is a Canadian fiction writer. Jarman's =
work includes the novel Salvage King, Ya!, the short story collection Knife=
 Party at the Hotel Europa and the travel book Ireland's Eye. A graduate of=
 the Iowa Writers' Workshop, Jarman is currently a faculty member of the En=
glish department at the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton. Previou=
sly, he has taught at the University of Victoria. Jarman's writing has won =
the O. Henry Award, the Gold National Magazine Award in nonfiction, the Jac=
k Hodgins Fiction Prize, and has been a finalist for the Journey Prize. Jar=
man has been awarded the Maclean-Hunter Endowment Award twice. (https://en.=
wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Anthony_Jarman)

The Hollow Beast
Christophe Bernard, author
Lazer Rhendler, translator
Biblioasis
www.biblioasis.com
9781771965552, $20.95, PB, 600pp

https://www.amazon.com/Hollow-Beast-Biblioasis-International-Translation/dp=
/177196555X

Synopsis: In a 1911 hockey game in Quebec's Gaspe Peninsula, local tough gu=
y Billy Joe Pictou fires the puck into Monti Bouge's mouth. When Monti coll=
apses with his head across the goal line, Victor Bradley, erstwhile referee=
 and local mailman, rules that the goal counts.

Monti's ensuing revenge for this injustice sprawls over three generations, =
one hundred years and dozens of alcohol-soaked tall tales, from treachery i=
n northern gold-mining camps to the appearance of a legendary beast by turn=
s playful and ferocious.

Now it's up to Monti's grandson, Francois, to make sense of the vendetta be=
tween Monti and Bradley that has shaped the destiny of their town and every=
one who lives there.

Critique: Ably translated into English for an American readership by Lazer =
Lederhendler, "The Hollow Beast" is a deftly crafted and original literary =
masterpiece by author/storyteller Christophe Bernard who uses a definitivel=
y sumptuous and unpredictable language that is laced through and through wi=
th slapstick style humor. A master of epic storytelling, "The Hollow Beast"=
 is an inherently fascinating saga of a read from start to finish. While es=
pecially and unreservedly recommended as a high quality pick for community =
and college/university library Literary Fiction collections, it should be n=
oted for personal reading lists that "The Hollow Beast" is also readily ava=
ilable in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99).

Editorial Note #1: Originally from Carleton-sur-Mer in the Gaspe region of =
Quebec, Christophe Bernard (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christophe_Bernar=
d) studied literature in Quebec City, Aix-en-Provence and Berlin. A prolifi=
c literary translator, Bernard was a finalist for the 2016 Governor General=
's Literary Award for English-to-French Translation.

Editorial Note #2: Lazer Lederhendler is a four-time finalist for the Gover=
nor General's Literary Award, and won the award in 2008 for his translation=
 of Nikolski. His translation of The Immaculate Conception by Gaetan Soucy =
was shortlisted for the 2006 Scotiabank Giller Prize and won the French-to-=
English Translation Prize from the Quebec Writers' Federation. Lederhendler=
 lives in Montreal, where he teaches English and film at the College intern=
ational des Marcellines. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lazer_Lederhendler)

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