Wheels by Ron Tanner
Chapbooks are the literary equivalent of afternoon tea, worth taking the time to put the kettle on for because its quickly consumed, but if well put together, with a nice combination of nourishment and confectionary, hands-down the most enjoyable meal of the day. Wheels by Ron Tanner, is the opening of a novel in progress, and winner of the 2009 Gertrude Press Fiction Chapbook competition. It behooves me to say that I know Ron, so if this posting snacks of nepotism, so be it, because he’s a damn fine writer and these twenty-one and a smidgen pages distill his gifts to a T.
Twenty-seven year old Rainy regrets quitting being a drummer in a band and feels bad about damning her too-nice boyfriend with faint praise. She drives over the treacherous Donner Pass to visit her ailing father and now she, he, her blinkered mom, and conventional brother, are spinning their wheels, unable to see clearly in life’s descending and thickening fog. Wheels combines wit and brevity with depth, my favorite literary (and tea-time) combo and is available here. Write on, Ron…