The Fahrenheit Twins and Other Stories

This is the best collection of short fiction I've read in many years, and that includes all the marvelous stories by T. C. Boyle. Faber's prose is leaner and meaner than Boyle's; both writers have a marvelous ear for language, but Boyle has a weakness for spaghetti sentences that go on for half a page, leaving the reader gasping for breath. Faber is subtler; his sentences sparkle, and there is rarely a false note. However, these stories are anything but conventional. Realism and fantasy are mixed in unpredictable ways, and the meaning of the story is usually less than obvious; but Faber's unique take on surrealism gives these pieces a unique power. This is the first time I can remember sitting down and reading a book of short stories, one after the other. Like a compelling novel, this volume was impossible to put down. Of course there are a couple of weaker pieces, but Faber sets the bar very high. "Vanilla Bright Like Eminem" is one of the most powerful pieces I've ever read, and yet almost nothing happens. (Actually, a lot happens ... but you need to read the story to see what I mean.) The U.S. Edition is titled "Vanilla Bright Like Eminem", and includes all the stories except "The Fahrenheit Twins", which appears in the U.S. title "The Courage Consort." This is one of the most satisfying books I've read in a few years. Highly recommended.

An intruiging short story that looks at the lives, and near deaths, of twins living in the middle of the ice in the northern hemisphere. The twins, and their shady father, are illustrated extremely well, inviting us the reader into their icy world. The dogs are brilliantly described, especially their reaction to the wrong sort of tinned food.