Forgetting English

Author's Summary: In this collection of stories, Midge Raymond stretches the boundaries of place as she explores the indelible imprint of home upon the self and the ways in which new frontiers both defy and confirm who we are.

From a biologist navigating the stark, icy moonscape of Antarctica to a businesswoman seeking refuge in the lonely islands of the South Pacific, the characters in these stories abandon their native landscapes only to find that, once separated from the ordinary, they must confront new interpretations of who they are, and who they’re meant to be.

Review: Forgetting English by Midge Raymond is an exquisite thematic collection of short stories. The stories describe women in exterior and interior transit. The characters face a myriad of crossroads such as, divorce, infidelity, unemployment, abortion, and attempted suicide while a moonlight mile from home.

Each story deftly details the characters’ impact and adaptation to their foreign surroundings. Raymond’s masterful prose transports the reader to various locales including Antarctica, Japan, and Tonga to name a few. Similarly, the author’s keen insights into matters of the psyche gave this reader much to ponder after each story’s coda. Every story in the collection is a like a fine chocolate to be savored, but I especially enjoyed the lyrical prose in “Translation Memory.”

The mixture of characters in crisis in exotic locales made for highly enjoyable reading!