# Kilter: 55 Fictions by John Gould



## strangedaze (Jun 21, 2005)

Yes, folks, there are fitty-five pieces in the book's 204 pages. The shortest piece is around a page and a bit, the longest hovers around four, four and a half. Most of these are snapshots of broken-down communication between couples, lovers, and family members. Some have the sort of jarring twist that you'd expect to see from well-written flash fiction, while other pieces resonate for hours afterwards.

My main concern with this book is consistency. Though this was a surprise Giller Prize nomination in 2003, you never know if the next story is going to be an explosion or a dud. It really is hit or miss. 

If you want to see some innovative short-short fiction, Kilter would be a good place to start. The majority of the work is bang on, which sucks, because you start expecting high quality all the way through, only to be disappointed when you hit a story that's rubbish.

Verdict?

 :3stars: - maybe on the lower end of that.


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