Phoenix Irish Short Stories 1998 edited by David Marcus Phoenix House 227pp, £15.99 in UK
This is David Marcus's third Phoenix anthology and it is a fine collection, with talents ranging from well known writers to gifted newcomers.
The Irish short story has often been viewed as a symptom of the Irish psyche, showing the preoccupations of the times. Presented with such an expectation, the anthologist can choose between two methodologies. He or she can compile a collection which reflects aspects of contemporary Irish society, or present the best unpublished stories at the moment of choice, regardless of trend.
This has been Marcus's method. He has avoided turning his anthology into a guide to "Ireland 1998" and instead has followed his nose. The resulting collection is well balanced, even if almost half of the sixteen stories are concerned with hardy annuals such as sex and death. No matter; in Marcus's words, "life is made up of hardy annuals and the short story cannot avoid or ignore such material".
Death and renewal is the theme of "Cultural Exchanges", by Gillman Noonan, in which the author explores the clash between a young German couple and an old schoolteacher resigned to death. The tension is cultural and generational, as the old man cautiously enters their world and, with the death of the young German man, rediscovers a zest for life.
Mairide Woods explores the decline and death of a parent in "The Time of Poplars". The death of Maura's father makes him inaccessible even in dreams, because "the gap where he would have been in my life has closed completely".
"Inside Out", by Desmond Traynor, is a fine story exploring the transgressions of a young girl in a strict Christian community. He is expert at writing of her illicit joy even as the sermon of an American preacher is broadcast around the RDS. Not only does Traynor locate the girl's nascent sexuality, but offers a searing critique of her religion and the effect of it on her family and, ultimately, on her mother, with her swelling, pregnant body.
Two of the finest stories in this collection are longer than is usual in the short story. This is a treat, like having two novels in one book. In "In Xanadu", William Wall explores the death of Eileen, a friend's lover. He recounts their university days in unforgiving colour: the high spirits, shallow pockets, baked beans existence navigated by Kevin, Eileen, Terry and Jim. The story of Eileen's relationship with both Kevin and Jim (the narrator) is framed by their young adult soul-searching, which eventually gives way (in a narrative shift) to a tryst with Jim's girlfriend. "In Xanadu" is distinguished by detachment and a refusal to sentimentalise either death or the past.
Likewise, "The Outfielder, the Indian-Giver", by Blanaid McKinney, is an inverted road story. Two men go to America, Martin to cover baseball for his newspaper and Fergal to research Native American culture. The story fuses brilliantly Famine-diary and First Nations narrative, as the holiday gently exposes the secrets of both men. Martin is a gay man whose wife is dying of breast cancer, and Fergal is a selfish, whining ditherer. The road narrative is set against the senseless tragedies of famine and genocide. Neither man finds more than drunken solace, and their troubles pale into insignificance with the twinning of Irish and Indian tragedies.
This is an excellent collection, proof of the healthy state of Irish writing. It is heartening that Marcus includes a call for manuscripts after the biographical notes, and it bodes well for future anthologies. Pity it's published in England, though.