Best Canadian Stories 91

Hugh Oliver is Editor-in-Chief, OISE Press.

Although most of the stories in this volume have previously been
published in magazines, these days there aren’t many outlets for short
stories, and this annual volume—now in its twenty-second year—does a
valuable service in promoting Canadian examples of the genre.

Unlike last year’s volume, in which there were a couple of extremely
good short stories and one or two that should never have made it into
print, the present crop neither reaches the heights nor descends to the
depths. Most of the stories are mood pieces, poems in prose, strong on
character, weak when it comes to plot. There is obviously nothing wrong
in such an approach to short-story writing, but I would have enjoyed
greater variety

The authors are as follows: Margaret Dyment, Thomas King, Eugene
MacNamara, Beverley Daurio, David Manicom, Kristin Andrachuk, Michael
Kenyon, George McWhirter, Carol Malyon, Chetan Rajani, and Ann Diamond.