liralen's review
4.0
Fire, fire. Chasing Smoke is all at ground level: Williams as an experienced crew member, by turns reveling in and exhausted by the grind of a summer fighting fire. There's not a great sense of scope here—we know only a little about what the overall wildfire picture looks like, and a tiiiiiiny bit about Williams's background—but that smaller scope keeps the action more immediate.
I'm left not entirely sure where Williams stands in this picture. How wedded is he to firefighting? Where do his other dreams lie? His bio says that he is/was working towards an MFA—does this mean that firefighting is in his past, or are they simultaneous pursuits? I'd have been curious to see a bit more about Williams and what drew him, and his colleagues, to the job. Still, an engaging read.
I'm left not entirely sure where Williams stands in this picture. How wedded is he to firefighting? Where do his other dreams lie? His bio says that he is/was working towards an MFA—does this mean that firefighting is in his past, or are they simultaneous pursuits? I'd have been curious to see a bit more about Williams and what drew him, and his colleagues, to the job. Still, an engaging read.
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