The Porcupine's Quill Reader

Claire Wilkshire is a Ph.D. candidate in English at the University of
British Columbia.

In his introduction to this superb collection of short fiction, editor
John Metcalf rightly describes The Porcupine’s Quill as “one of
Canada’s best small presses.” A fundamental part of the press’s
mandate, Metcalf states, is to publish writing that is “stylistically
innovative,” energetic, elegant, and sophisticated. This anthology
includes work from established writers (Clark Blaise, Hugh Hood, James
Reaney), those who are well on the way to Canadian literary celebrity
(Caroline Adderson, Stephen Heighton), and relative newcomers (Gil
Adamson, Patricia Robertson, Mary Borsky)—in all, 19 writers and 19
compelling fictions, either short stories or excerpts from novels.

All of these fictions deserve special mention. Consider Clark
Blaise’s meditation on ice cream: “Is there a taste explosion in the
world finer than the first lick of the Dairy Queen cone, the roughened
vanilla from a freshly opened tub, the drowning in concentrated
carbohydrate where fats and starches come together in snowy
concupiscence?” Or Terry Grigg’s portrayal of a sudden death:
“Planted by the kitchen sink, a slab of cake in her hand and a lump of
lard clogging her arteries, damming her heart, she was a target; what
could death do but knock her flat like a disgruntled and abusive
husband?” Recommended.