Tuesday, November 3, 2015

BfloGirlReads: Buffalo Noir, a collection of short stories

credit: Akashic Books
There’s something pretty cool about opening a book and saying “Hey, I know that place!” That’s what happened when I opened the new anthology Buffalo Noir, published by Akashic Books and edited by Ed Park and Brigid Hughes.

The Richardson Complex, Delaware Park, Anchor Bar, Nottingham Terrace – all place we’ve heard about on the news, walked by or even visited, and all are in this book. The 12 short stories, by writers like Tom Fontana and Joyce Carol Oates, resonate from the darker side of Buffalo, but have a tone that will leave you smirking to yourself by the end of the tale.

In spite of its darkness, Buffalo Noir is a book one can easily get lost in. Picture this as a great beach read, where you’ll finish a couple of stories, look at the next one and say, “Oh, this is short, I can read this one too…” Before you know it, the book is done, the sun is going down, and you feel like you’ve accomplished something on that day at the beach – I mean, you finished reading a book after all!

Buffalo Noir is part of a collection of anthologies from Akashic Books, which began with Brooklyn Noir in 2004. There are now over 60 volumes available, telling tales from around the world. Both Park and Hughes are native Buffalonians, and all of the writers have Buffalo connections.

Buffalo Noir, officially released today, is currently available at Amazon in both print and Kindle versions, and will likely be available at book stores throughout Buffalo. On Friday night, November 6 at 7 p.m., the launch event for the book takes place at Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center, 341 Delaware Ave. in Buffalo.

Special thanks to Susannah at Akashic Books for the advanced copy of Buffalo Noir!

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