Grandview Drive - Softcover

Blackett, Tim

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0889714649 ISBN 13: 9780889714649

Publisher: Nightwood Editions, 2024

Synopsis

A debut short story collection investigating the strange and unexpected intersections of loneliness and connection.

From his car, a lonely, heartbroken man secretly watches strangers going about their lives in the comfort of their own homes; when caught, he wrecks his car in an attempt to escape. A man hears a car wreck outside his home and has a wild night of romance with a strange woman he meets at the scene. A reclusive old writer starts to believe he is becoming his own characters as he writes. A college student looks to his girlfriend’s diary for pointers on how he should act. A mother confronted with her estranged son’s death by car wreck organizes a memorial service for a list of attendees she has never met.

This collection of sixteen connected short stories investigates the ways we humans so often feel lonely and alone, yet cannot avoid having our lives be contingent upon others―often in ways we can neither see nor understand. Blackett’s characters long for meaningful connection and struggle to find it; they are too often unaware of the connections that are right in front of them.

Grandview Drive is a collection that builds on itself; the stories stand on their own, but they are strengthened by the (sometimes secret) connections they hold with each other. Blackett’s debut asks the reader to think about love and loss, loneliness and heartbreak, redemption and starting life anew.

About this title

About the Author

Tim Blackett is a Canadian writer whose work has appeared in Briarpatch, [spaces] and a small Saskatchewan journal called Swift, Flowing. He holds a Bachelor of Theology and a BA in English from the University of Regina, as well as a certificate in creative writing from Humber College. His forthcoming short story collection, Grandview Drive, placed second in the John V. Hicks Long Manuscript Award (2019), and the titular story was longlisted for the Carter v. Cooper Short Fiction Award (2012). Blackett lives in Regina, SK.

Edition details

• Publisher: Nightwood Editions
• Publication date: 2024
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0889714649
• ISBN 13: 9780889714649
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 224