Dark Continent and Other Stories - Softcover

The stories in Kalpakian's newest collection are traditional in that they inform as well as entertain. Most are acutely observed studies of character, with character becoming plot as entire lives unfold. Thus, in "A Christmas Cordial" we begin to understand the life of spinster Louisa Wyatt, who lives alone in a suburb of London. In the title story, an old-fashioned fable of lost honor, of integrity retained in spite of harsh circumstances, Colin French is initially contemptuous of Africa Benn, for whose illegitimate child he is searching. But as he learns more about Africa he begins to admire her passion as well as her integrity. Ultimately, Colin has been on a journey not only to find Africa's child but to discover (and recover) himself, and the story flows as seamlessly as time. Kalpakian's most recent collection was Fair Augusto and Other Stories ( LJ 2/1/87).
- Marcia Tager, Tenafly, N.J.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

These six tales introduce various, mostly small-town women, among them Africa, who is "a strange terrain" to certain men; Manila, who goes mad over her son's death in WW II; and Jolee, ambivalent toward her mother's irresponsible second husband. According to PW , "Readers disaffected with trendy, minimalist, new-age fiction may enjoy Kalpakian's frankly sentimental storytelling."
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.