Chosen because she wrote a historical novel I loved, Slammerkin, back when I was reading lots of historical novels about prostitutes, like this one and this one.

These short stories are set in contemporary times, and are grouped by theme (Babies, Domesticity, Death). Not surprisingly I was most interested by the Babies stories. One ("Sleeping Through the Night") reminded me so much of my own experiences it was uncomfortable. But my interest waned as the stories went on and farther afield (Cajun buddies/rivals in Lousiana; a lesbian couple battling over a sick cat).

As a former student of southern literature, I was excited when Finn was published -- a novel imagining the life of that bogeyman, Pap, who haunts Huckleberry Finn in Mark Twain's book.

Like I hoped it is a beautifully written book. As the mother of a 6-month old I had to read it in little chunks now and then (the old days of spending a weekend afternoon on the couch with a good book are long gone) and still, it was easy to get quickly caught up in the story.

Finn is one of the strangest characters I may ever come across in fiction. He is solitary, passionate, stubborn, self-reliant, a riverman of superb skill, often pathetic, maybe even sometimes sympathetic. He is vicious and mean. Terrible things happen to him and around him, and he performs one of the most terrible acts of all, the one that will leave young Huck motherless and ignorant of his own origins.

The terrible things that happen in this book are so vividly (yet not graphically) portrayed that I had to put down the book for a few days after each time, to let the horror fade before I could go on. That's the reason I told another mother in my playgroup, whose 6-month-old is named Finn, that she should probably not pick up this book. I don't want her to have any bad associations with that name. But I'd recommend it anyone else, especially anyone who loved Huck Finn and is ready to see the misery from which he came.

I watched this movie on DVD and really, it's the best thing I've seen in a long time. There's a woman on Ocracoke Island who says "the book is always better" than the movie. But in this case, I don't think you can say that. Ang Lee has made a completely different work of art that is still true to the story. It's like saying a poem is better than a painting, or a sculpture is better than a song.

I had read the story many years ago (in "Close Range: Wyoming Stories") and reread it while at my parents' house this weekend. It's quick, spare, and heartbreaking as I remembered.