Going to Cuba

Sika Eliev is a library assistant in the J.N. Desmarais Library at
Laurentian University.

Gowan’s 12 short stories have one common theme: people dreaming of
escaping from their ordinary lives, but unable to do so. From office
towers to small farms, people are trying to confront their monotonous
lives; all are struggling to acquire wholeness and independence.

The two stories I enjoyed the most in this collection are “Les
Oubliettes” and “Going to Cuba.” In “Les Oubliettes,” a tone
of sadness pervades the story. The title means “forgotten ones.” As
Shawn peaks into a narrow cave, he realizes that these are dungeons
where prisoners were left to starve—left as les oubliettes. This
story, vividly written, comes alive. “Going to Cuba” is more
amusing. On a bus a young girl and an old man discuss the girl’s trip
to Cuba. The narrow-minded old man tries to convince the girl that there
is more good in Canada than in Cuba.

Gowan, a prominent young poet and novelist, has written a fine first
collection of readable, intriguing and nostalgic stories.