Comfort Zones

Britta Santowski is a freelance writer in Victoria, British Columbia.

In this collection of short stories, peripheral characters take centre
stage and then retreat back to the sidelines or completely disappear.
Throughout these stories, we have the opportunity to view various
characters from differing perspectives.

In the title story, Lisa’s childhood is comfortably enveloped by her
brother Dan and her sick mother, Agnes. Lisa “grows up” in a series
of stories told from various perspectives. She becomes not just who she
sees herself to be but also what her teacher, mother, lovers, and others
see.

In “Laundry,” the previously flat character of Agnes blossoms into
a multifaceted personality when she is forced to confront her
relationship with her abusive husband, Reg, upon his death. Reg has his
own story in “Good Courage,” in which he shifts away from his
identity as a framed abusive husband and becomes an ex-soldier with a
history. Even the local bootlegger has a tale to tell in “My Soul to
Take.” The collection closes with “Last Dance,” in which we return
to Lisa, now a grown woman.

This rich and diverse collection captures the essence of life in the
Maritimes and presents overlapping stories in a novel and intriguing
way.