One of the tests of a good short story, as exemplified by recent work from Jan Carson, Stephen King and Amor Towles, is if it leaves the reader wishing the writer had gone the whole hog and made a novel of it.
Such feeling is engendered several times in this third volume of shorter (mostly) fiction from Dubliner John Connolly, the man behind the marvellous Charlie Parker supernatural detective series, which, as was recently revealed, should be on a TV/streaming service in the near future, with Colin Farrell possibly involved in some shape or form.
The Pilgrim’s Progress: A Tale of the Caxton Private Lending Library & Book Depository successfully creates its own alternate realty, based around said institution which has been on the go since the morning in 1477 when William Caxton, a printer of books including an edition of The Canterbury Tales, found five of Chaucer’s characters in his yard.
When it becomes clear that they’re who they claim to be, Caxton’s man, whose unlikely name Wynkyn de Worde may be a nod to the reader to keep a pinch of salt handy, conducts an experiment to see if other fictional sorts will appear. This involves the Flann O’Brien-like Venerable Cominatus of Skopelos, patron saint of unsuccessful poets and other ordinary folk. It’s a story that echoes the power of writing theme Connolly explored in his Lost Things series and, despite a second visit involving Emily Brontë’s Cathy feeling slightly rushed, a worthy addition to his impressive oeuvre.
The same can be said of the other tales in Night & Day, including hauntings by both otherworldly presences and grief (“a rat in a maze” is an accurate description), some Cern-inspired science fiction that you again wish was longer, and even a touching children’s guide to adult separation.
The most space is given over to a combination of memoir, mostly concerning his late father, and film critique centred around 1972′s Horror Express starring the always fascinating Christopher Lee. It’s not, by any stretch of the imagination, Lawrence of Arabia, but the warmth of Connolly’s writing is almost enough to make you watch it again. He’s a gifted author who seems able to turn his hand in any direction, and this entertaining collection will more than do to be going on with while we await the next Parker adventure.
Pat Carty is a critic
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