Contemporary Fiction Views: Upcoming and available reads

A novel about the Wobblies, protests and rich gentry in a small Northwest city just after the turn of the last century? Yes, please. Jess Walter, one of the most insightful writers I know, has his first novel in eight years coming out in October.

The Cold Millions is set in Spokane (yes, it's my hometown and the author's, which makes me even more delighted that this novel was written) and concerns a protest that turns into a riot. Rye, 16, is there only to support his older brother, but becomes a cause celebre in the riot's aftermath and isn't excited about it. His brother, Gig, remains imprisoned and starts a hunger strike. Meanwhile, a rich man thinks he can control how people feel about all this, and control the people themselves.

Elsewhere in book news, it's that time of year when readers vote for their favorite titles that did not make the Booker Prize longlist. Although the time to vote for books to make the "Not the Booker" shortlist has passed, the list of books that were voted on makes for a wide-ranging list of possible books in which to get lost. My favorites include The Glass Hotel.

And in these days when attention spans are challenged, Emily Temple at Lithub.com came up with a splendid list of "43 of the Most Iconic Short Stories in the English Language". The language qualifier bothers me, as apparently it means no Murakami, but there are some great stories included -- "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" (which was the basis of a remarkable episode of The Twilight Zone), Hemingway's "The Killers", "The Swimmer" as Cheever's entry, Ursula K. Le Guin's “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” which was a touchstone in last week's featured novel, Pew, Alice Munro's "The Bear Came Over the Mountain" and Carver, sigh, Carver, with "What We Talk About When We Talk About Love". And, of course,"Brokeback Mountain" which is one of the greatest short stories of all time.

Lastly, the power of work by First Nations authors (who are not named Erdrich or that other guy) is recognized by The New York Times.