A review by litdoes
Acts of God by Ellen Gilchrist
4.0
This collection from Arkansas short story writer Ellen Gilchrist focuses on characters who deal with forces beyond their control; from natural disasters like hurricanes, debilitating illnesses, terrorist attacks, accidents, to simply the passing of time and old age. Despite the potentially sombre subject matter, Gilchrist approaches each of the ten stories with a light touch, doling out in small doses, her wit and backporch wisdom that betray her Southern roots.
Longtime readers will be pleased to welcome back the brash and alarming Rhoda Manning, who had seared herself into readers' consciousness in Gilchrist's earlier writing. Rhoda feature in "The Dogs", in a fiery exchange of letters with her new neighbours, and with an interesting development by the end of the story. Writer Anna Hand, another familiar character, makes an appearance via her niece, a documentary writer, in of all places, Heathrow airport, during the terrorist attacks in the summer of 2004 in the piece "Toccata and Fugue in D Minor".
Two stories focus on characters who respond to the call for help. A group of teenagers help out in Adkins in the aftermath of a tornado and are forever changed by a moving event in "Miracle in Adkins, Arkansas". Single Mother, new professor and a First Responder with the National Guard, goes on a Mission to New Orleans, suffers betrayal and finds an unexpected turning point in her life that gives her a second wind.
In all of these stories, Gilchrist shows how people deal with the unexpected, and while they may not always handle the situations in the most ideal ways, they always look for that little bit of grace and beauty, and some dignity, when they confront their own mortality.
Longtime readers will be pleased to welcome back the brash and alarming Rhoda Manning, who had seared herself into readers' consciousness in Gilchrist's earlier writing. Rhoda feature in "The Dogs", in a fiery exchange of letters with her new neighbours, and with an interesting development by the end of the story. Writer Anna Hand, another familiar character, makes an appearance via her niece, a documentary writer, in of all places, Heathrow airport, during the terrorist attacks in the summer of 2004 in the piece "Toccata and Fugue in D Minor".
Two stories focus on characters who respond to the call for help. A group of teenagers help out in Adkins in the aftermath of a tornado and are forever changed by a moving event in "Miracle in Adkins, Arkansas". Single Mother, new professor and a First Responder with the National Guard, goes on a Mission to New Orleans, suffers betrayal and finds an unexpected turning point in her life that gives her a second wind.
In all of these stories, Gilchrist shows how people deal with the unexpected, and while they may not always handle the situations in the most ideal ways, they always look for that little bit of grace and beauty, and some dignity, when they confront their own mortality.