I just finished another short story collection, The Night In Question, by Tobias Wolff and once again I’m extremely impressed with his ability to create details that make the stories seem true to life. I am also intrigued by his Northwest connections, he grew up in Washington State, and so he often sets stories there or makes references to the area; “Powder,” “Flyboys,” and “Firelight.” His tour in Vietnam seems to be a well of inspiration (two of his books are about that experience-the memoir in the Pharaoh’s Army and his novella The Barracks Thief); it is also the inspiration for “Casualty” and “The Other Miller.” I’m pretty sure I read “Bullet In The Brain” somewhere before-Harper’s magazine? Short and sweet, it is the successfully realized story of the last moments of the life of a bitter critic. Perhaps, not as impressive as his earlier short story collection-back in the World, but barely so. Unfortunately, his oeuvre is quite small, there’s only a couple books left that I haven’t read yet.
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