When I Saw the Animal – Bernard Cohen
Our choice for this week’s Sunday fiction is several in one. When I Saw the Animal is a collection of short stories by Australian author Bernard Cohen.
It has ticked all the boxes to hit our to-read pile:
Interesting reading
Reward
Well written
A dash of intrigue
A new perspective
He brings a contemporary and unique voice to a selection of short fiction; focussing on flipping the ordinary to an all-new perspective, sometimes even jointly narrated by character, and observer.
Cohen is well versed at creating tension (and ultimately creating reward) by withholding details. His writing is dark, witty, and with an undercurrent of poignant humour.
He predominantly uses first person perspective to bring his narrative to life. But much like the undercurrent of this collection, he switches up format as well to keep the experience fresh.
“Playful, inventive and bursting with insight into contemporary life and the ways we cope (or sometimes don’t)”
