Small Avalanches by Joyce Carol Oats (2003) - Fiction

A collection of young adult(?) short stories that will inspire a lot of caution and a bit of healthy fear in your life

Joyce Carol Oats is the cream of the crop when it comes to modern fiction. She's published over 650 short stories and over a dozen novels with a plethora of well deserved literary accolades.

In an interview with Greg Johnson concerning Small Avalanches (SA) Mrs. Oats says she was "encouraged to write a young adult novel, which, for me, became an experiment in genre" (quod.lib.umich.edu). I don't think SA exactly qualifies as Young Adult fiction. The stories are about young adults but it's hard to imagine them in the same category asThe Hunger Games, The Hate You Give, or anything by John Green. I'd categorize them more as Mature Young Adult fiction mostly for their use of creepy child predators. To illicit extreme squeamishness in readers Mrs. Oats does not resort to graphic sex or bloody murder scenes. She relies more heavily on the readers' socially acceptable-behavior antennas to recognize the faults in her characters then the readers' imaginations to visualize what likely happens to these characters.

One of the most impressive aspects of SA is how the characters' external conflicts function to exasperate already brooding internal ones. Their internal conflicts usually relate to self-deceit, duplicity, bitterness, ignorance, and an Electra Complex ("daddy issues"); while the external ones revolve around dysfunctional relationships with parental figures, online chatrooms, homophobic small towns, psychotic grandmothers, strange middle-aged men who dress like younger men, and a Mrs. Oats favorite: getting into cars with strange middle-aged men who dress like younger men.

The most memorable stories in SA focus on possible dangers of being a young adult female. For any parent of a female teenager SA will likely keep you awake at night wondering how to keep your little princess safe. SA reminds me of the 1991 movie Cape Fear with Robert De Niro whose ex-convict character preys upon a family and especially the 14 year old daughter, luring her ever-so persuasively.

Because of Mrs. Oats keen ability to spotlight possible female adolescent missteps she hasn't faired well with feminists critics. I think this highlights an even bigger issue some readers find in her works: namely, there are few heroes or people to admire. In a New Yorker magazine interview Mrs. Oats states:

"The concept of a “hero” is unreal and of little interest. Also, we fall in love with imperfect people—some of us with actual criminals, murderers. This is a fact of life. Only in fiction are individuals supposed to be perfect—a woman must be “beautiful” to be a protagonist. In life, virtually anything goes....If only perfect people were loved, where would that leave the rest of us? It’s hypocritical to expect of others that they be perfect when we know how imperfect we are ourselves" (newyorker.com)

This isn't to say that there are no heroes or strong female characters. They are there. But Mrs. Oats speciality is in showing us reality; and how in spite of our depraved natures, how we might live to rise above our current selves.

If your looking for psychological eerie stories with a similar feel of Stephen King (minus the supernatural), and with an added touch of John Steinbeck-like realism and Flannery O'Conner grotesqueness, you'll likely enjoy SA.

Highest Score - 5 Trophies

Writing: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆

Readability: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆

Plot: 🏆🏆🏆🏆

Characters: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆

Overall: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆