Other Worlds: Stories

Windham-Campbell winner Alexis (Fifteen Dogs) dazzles with these stark and enchanting stories, many of which feature Trinidadian immigrants in small-town Ontario. In “Consolation,” a young man reflects on his late father’s philandering. In the magical realist “Contrition: An Isekai,” a 70-year-old shaman living in 19th-century Trinidad is killed by a snake bite and reincarnated as a seven-year-old boy in 1957 Ontario, where he struggles to fit in. “A Misfortune” centers on a young woman who accidentally shot her father when she was six and believed she’d killed him, only to learn as an adult the real reason behind his death. The highlight of the collection, “Pu Songling: An Appreciation,” follows an elderly scholar of black magic who trades stories with an aspiring apprentice about people they’ve seen raised from the dead. Taken as a whole, the collection offers striking connections and layers of meaning. For instance, the “Consolation” narrator’s profound reflections on his father’s legacy (“It’s difficult not to wonder how far the misery goes back—like wondering about light from a distant star and marveling at its persistence”) speak to the resilience of the boy in “Contrition: An Isekai.” This deserves to be the author’s U.S. breakout. Agent: Ellen Levine, Trident Media Group. (May)