The Seaboard Review: March 10th, 2025
Date Volume 2, Issue 10
Hello, TSR Subscriber! April 1st is fast approaching, and it marks, not only April Fool’s Day, but our one-year anniversary! It is also Poetry Month, and we are currently preparing to observe both events. A very busy month, to be sure.
New Admin!
We are happy to announce that Selena Mercuri is now an admin here at TSR! Selena is very involved in the CanLit scene, and she has recently announced that she has been accepted into the Creative Writing Program at Guelph (Ontario) in the fall. Selena also creates our social media graphics. Congratulations, Selena!
Michael Greenstein Reviews:
Hot Takes!
(Note: clicking on the underlined link takes you to the book’s publisher page for more information or for purchasing purposes)
The Plains by Federico Falco (Charco Press, 2024)
The Plains by Argentinian writer Federico Falco chronicles the aftermath of a life-changing decision the narrator has made to leave Buenos Aires following the breakdown of his relationship with his lover and partner, Ciro. The narrator is a writer and teacher of creative writing, a city dweller his entire adult life, so the decision to leave the city for rural Zapiola, in the Argentinian Pampas—farming country—is something of a paradox. The story the narrator tells is of the land, the seasons, the weather, interspersed with personal anecdotes about family, encounters with neighbours, the relationship just ended. The Plains is a contemplative novel, one that sets a rhythm that the reader either settles into or resists. Falco’s prose is filled with lush sensual descriptions, some pleasing, others not so much. The story builds slowly, its emotional impact for the most part muted.
In the end, we may not share the narrator’s enthusiasm for the country life he's chosen, but we can see and perhaps understand the allure of new and unfamiliar possibilities in the wake of a devastating emotional crisis. (Contributed by Ian Colford)
Vigil: Stories by Susie Taylor (2024, Breakwater Books):
Each story in Vigil places you in the fictional town of Bay Mal Verde, a town struggling with addiction, violence, and poverty. The characters in this town are doing what they feel they have to do to get by, whether that's dealing drugs to make some money or taking pills to fill the emptiness. Some of the characters stand out as leaders in the community, while others blindly follow wherever they are led. Some have already given up, while others are still holding on to hope. They want what everyone wants: to love and to belong. I loved every story, right down to the unexpected "Resurrection" of Stevie Loder, five years after his death.
Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield (2022, Flatiron)
Marine biologist, Leah, becomes stuck for months in a research submarine, and returns home changed. Her wife, Mari struggles to cope with Leah's transformation after her return, and cannot get any answers from Leah's employer about what happened on the submarine. This dual-timeline novel is beautifully written and will leave you wondering about the line between perception and reality. Thoroughly enjoyed the read! (Contributed by Pamela Sinclair)
Why is this author so happy? Her books are on Kobo, that's why!
TSR Admin Heather McBriarty is happy to announce that her books are available on a Canadian platform again.
Thanks for reading this issue of The Seaboard Review!
James M. Fisher, editor-in-chief
Thanks James!!
An interesting selection. Thank you. Particularly, Our Wives Under the Sea, Green to Grey, The Crane. Only Insistence. A lot to follow up on in one issue.