Voices of the Lost and Found gives the reader a well-written collection of short stories, each crafted in a distinctively different voice than the one before. How author Dorene O’Brien manages to carry all these personalities around in her head, I can’t even begin to imagine. But this, together with edgy story lines and delicious irony, is what makes Voices of the Lost and Found an impressive work.
Eleven stories in all, the characters are truly the heart of the book. From the gripping story of a graffiti artist (Way Past Taggin’) to the humorous tale of a fishery worker whose boss was murdered with only his left hand remaining (No Need to Ask), the narration is so realistic you’ll swear you’re hearing voices. I don’t know if it’s this way for everyone, but when I read, it’s usually my own voice slightly altered to fit the character. Men are a little lower register, sometimes with an accent, but it’s still me in there. With O’Brien’s work, I heard actual voices. Please don’t turn me in. I just tell it like it is.
I had the honor of interviewing Dorene O’Brien about her experiences writing this book. I’ll be posting that tomorrow, so make sure and stop by.
If you want to hear voices in your head too, you’re in luck. I have one extra copy of Voices of the Lost and Found to give away. There are three ways to win: All subscribers are already entered into this and all future giveaways, so if you aren’t subscribed, you can do so in the right hand column of this page. Or you can leave a comment telling me what interests you about this book. (Something more than “sounds good” is kindly requested.) You can also link back to this post in your blog for an entry. Do all three, and you have three entries! I’ll draw a winner on at midnight EST on April 27th, 2008.
Special thanks go out to Bloggy Giveaways, who does a fantastic job of promoting. They’re hosting a giveaway carnival right now, so if you like winning things, this is your spot.
