Curtain Creek Farm

            My friend handed me a book about two weeks ago. She didn’t say anything except, “I think you’ll like the writing.” She was right. I did. I love my friends—both the book ones and the real live human ones. And I really love it when these friendships overlap. The book my real-life human friend handed me was Curtain Creek Farm by Nance van Winckel. Since my friend didn’t give me much information about the book, I didn’t have any expectations or real ideas about what I would be reading. I don’t often have this experience, but I enjoy it when it happens. It’s sometimes nice to go into a situation with no prior knowledge.

            Curtain Creek Farm is a collection of eight stories, each told by a different woman. These women live or visit Curtain Creek Farm a commune started in the sixties by a group of anarchists whose only rule is “no violence.” The narrators range in age and cover many different themes, but many of the stories focus on ideas of love, place, grief, and acceptance. Throughout the stories, the reader can see the commune grow and change. However, the focus remains on the characters. Mostly we learn about the commune by seeing how the setting affects the characters' development and interaction. 

            I enjoyed these stories immensely. They contain humor, grief, happiness, toil, loss, change, so many different things, but no apathy. These are women working to make life meaningful. They don’t always succeed—sometimes they can’t seem to find a way forward. Nevertheless, they keep trying. They learn from past mistakes. See the beauty around them. Help others. I don’t know. These stories felt rejuvenating in a way. After reading them I feel like I’ve been in the woods camping or relaxing in a bath. Participating in something soothing. These stories are not always happy. In fact, they contain their fair share of pain, but they have a contentedness about them. If you’re looking for a good and enjoyable read, I highly recommend Curtain Creek Farm.

Reading Suggestions

If you are like me, you have a shelf full of books waiting for you to read them. If you aren't like me, or you are but you still feel like you want a suggestion, let me suggest a collection of short stories. I recently read The Oxford Book of American Short Stories edited by Joyce Carol Oates. The great thing about a collection of short stories by multiple authors is that for about $15 you can preview a lot of different authors. You might discover that you love Eudora Welty or that you hate her, but I can almost guarantee there will be at least a few authors that you like and haven't read yet. And if you know what kind of writing you enjoy, you can narrow it down by genre, time period, geographical setting, etc. Another great thing about short stories in general and collections by multiple authors specifically is that nothing is too long to get bogged down in. You might not enjoy Faulkner's novels, but his short stories are much easier to get through, so you can educate yourself on his style. Side note: after reading a few of Faulkner's short stories, I found it much easier to read his novels because I understood his writing style and approach more.

There is so much to read in the world, and short stories can be a great way to read many different authors and genres. Are there any short story collections or writers that are a must read for you? Share them in the comments.