A Song for Nettie Johnson
by Gloria Sawai
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2002 Governor General's Literary Award Winner for Fiction In her stunning debut collection of short stories, Gloria Sawai examines the heartbreaking lives of people on the margins. A group of young school students prepares a memorial for the town's deceased doctor, at the inadvertent risk of deeply offending his widow. A young girl learns important things about herself - some of them extremely unpleasant - on a storm-ravaged Mother's Day weekend. A woman on a road trip in search of her show more erstwhile husband finds instead the one thing she never expected to see again in her lifetime. A woman sitting on the deck outside her Moose Jaw home receives an unusual and unexpected gentleman caller. And, in the title story, an outcast and misunderstood woman and her disgraced lover struggle toward what may be their last chance at redemption These and other vividly drawn characters populate the stories collected for the first time in A Song for Nettie Johnson. With insight and passion, Sawai throws light into dark corners and reveals dark truths. Some stories are linked by common characters and settings; others are worlds unto themselves. But all are told in a rich yet spare style that imbues them with understated foreboding and unease. As Sawai deftly turns over the stones of these people's lives and finds the squalor, fear and unhappiness that lie beneath, she also uncovers that most precious of gems: hope. Hope that things will not always remain the way they are. The realization remains, however, that there's a lot more to changing things than simply wanting them to change. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
I didn't realize when I picked up this book that it was a collection of nine short stories, six of which are what I would call 'connected stories' focused on the inhabitants of small Stone Creek, Saskatchewan.
The first story, A Song for Nettie Johnson, more of a novella at some 90 pages in length, was a fascinating story about small town opinions, self-righteousness, damaged souls and the ability to reach for something, even if it frightens you. It was also a great introduction to the inhabitants of Stone Creek and the next five connected stories. Half way through the book I was happily engrossed in the lives of both the children and the adults as they grappled with issues from alcoholism and religion to death and illness. The show more storytelling was fresh, war, and inviting.
The last three stories were not connected to the lives of the inhabitants of Stone Creek, and for me, that is where it all started to fall apart. I enjoyed the story Hosea's Children - a mother's journey to try and find the husband that left her years ago only to reconnect with the daughter that had left earlier that same year - found 'The Dolphins to be alright but nothing special and was left completely baffled by the last story in the collection.
I think the collection would have been better if the book had stopped with just the six stories connected to Stone Creek. The last three stories are almost tag ons or after thoughts that made it more difficult for me to relate to them with the same strength I did with the earlier stories. show less
The first story, A Song for Nettie Johnson, more of a novella at some 90 pages in length, was a fascinating story about small town opinions, self-righteousness, damaged souls and the ability to reach for something, even if it frightens you. It was also a great introduction to the inhabitants of Stone Creek and the next five connected stories. Half way through the book I was happily engrossed in the lives of both the children and the adults as they grappled with issues from alcoholism and religion to death and illness. The show more storytelling was fresh, war, and inviting.
The last three stories were not connected to the lives of the inhabitants of Stone Creek, and for me, that is where it all started to fall apart. I enjoyed the story Hosea's Children - a mother's journey to try and find the husband that left her years ago only to reconnect with the daughter that had left earlier that same year - found 'The Dolphins to be alright but nothing special and was left completely baffled by the last story in the collection.
I think the collection would have been better if the book had stopped with just the six stories connected to Stone Creek. The last three stories are almost tag ons or after thoughts that made it more difficult for me to relate to them with the same strength I did with the earlier stories. show less
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ThingScore 75
With its drug store, churches, café, beerhall, and funeral parlour strung out along Main Street, Stone Creek, the setting for six of the nine stories collected in A Song for Nettie Johnson, could be any small town in Canada.
added by kathrynnd
Lists
Governor General of Canada's English Fiction Awards
89 works; 3 members
Author Information
2+ Works 76 Members
Awards and Honors
Common Knowledge
- Original publication date
- 2001
- Important places
- Alberta, Canada; Saskatchewan, Canada
- Epigraph
- Look to the rock from with you were hewn,
the quarry from which you were dug.
---Isaiah 51:1
Grace is everywhere
---Georges Bernanos - Dedication
- For my parents, Gustav and Ragnhild,
my brothers, Donald and Robert,
my children, Naomi and Kenji - First words
- From her chair at the edge of the quarry she looks down at the bottom of the pit--as wide and long as a garden, as big as a front yard with grass, or the sunny porch of a white mansion somewhere far away.
- Blurbers
- Stenson, Fred
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 72
- Popularity
- 438,153
- Reviews
- 1
- Rating
- (3.58)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 6
- ASINs
- 1
