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Hollows
In Hollows, Tommy Dean reveals the crawlspaces and attics of American families, the places we dread and the places we yearn for -- moments we didn't know we needed until they were already lost. These fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, brothers, wives, and best friends crack and bend under the pressure of conventional love, running away and toward one another, longing for a space to call home, often giving in to the hollow securities of their lives.
In these forty-five flash fictions, you'll find the last two people on Earth, wondering if love or ramen will keep them alive; two brothers racing the Y2K clock as they consider their fear for the future; a son convincing his father to abandon a decrepit house that has come to represent the old man's stubbornness. These stories thrum with the electricity of wonder, challenged by the open wounds of love and guilt -- for parents, for loved ones, for broken selves surviving among their desires to strike out in a world that threatens to harden them into desperate creatures. Dean's clear and urgent prose unites reader and character as they wind down dark and uncertain paths toward the fading light.
In these forty-five flash fictions, you'll find the last two people on Earth, wondering if love or ramen will keep them alive; two brothers racing the Y2K clock as they consider their fear for the future; a son convincing his father to abandon a decrepit house that has come to represent the old man's stubbornness. These stories thrum with the electricity of wonder, challenged by the open wounds of love and guilt -- for parents, for loved ones, for broken selves surviving among their desires to strike out in a world that threatens to harden them into desperate creatures. Dean's clear and urgent prose unites reader and character as they wind down dark and uncertain paths toward the fading light.
162 pages, Paperback
First published March 14, 2022
40 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
January 29, 2022
I edited this book for Alternating Current Press, and it's super good.
March 16, 2022
Delightful collection of flash fiction.
June 26, 2022
The best flash fictions are compact and intense, and here you'll find some of the best of the form.
March 19, 2022
In this not-to-be-missed collection of flash fiction, Tommy Dean packs the sadness, guilt, and longing of ordinary people, yearning for change. They might have lost a child, or they might stand to lose their parent, or their partner, or their house, or their planet. The words here are so rich, you'll want to read them out loud to whoever is around. Each story is a world unto itself, and you'll want to linger on each, let it sit with you, before moving onto the next. Give yourself that gift.
March 19, 2022
Most of what I’m reading lately is flash or novellas-in-flash, and this collection fits right in. Each story is so different but linked by Dean’s distinct voice. I’m not sure this will ever go on my shelf - I’ll probably keep it out and continue re-reading stories every few days. It makes me want to write, and that’s a true sign of a great book!
June 16, 2022
Tommy smashes it again! These stories feels familiar somehow - figures from your high school days, houses you wasted weekend afternoons in. Tommy has always had the ability to will the compressed space of a flash piece into this existing world that continues beyond the limitations of the page. I love Tommy, this book, the whole shebang. Buy it, read it, tell your friends.
August 28, 2022
Laser focused and hard hitting, small details telling enormous and excellent stories. I took notes cause it is a master class! The last sentence of the book still haunts me. Tommy Dean is a masterful storyteller!
August 27, 2022
Dean's stories live in the hollows, in the places where sadness and joy, despair and hope sleep side by side. His ordinary characters are about to break open with extraordinary light. Dean is the master of story telling in a flash. I loved the mother in "God's Eye" who understands "the corpse's message of spectacle", the father in "Past Lives" who wants to know if his sons earlier parents loved him more. Like the boy in "Naming the Darkness", I want to put my lips close to these pages and whisper, "hallelujah".
March 17, 2023
Tommy Dean is an absolute master of the flash form. These mesmerising stories shine a light into the deepest corners of the ordinary life, they’re moving, electrifying and tender. I loved this book and could not recommend it more highly. For anyone who loves short fiction and for anyone who loves reading. Unmissable.
March 16, 2024
Carefully crafted and expertly told, the stories comprising Hollows hum with electricity. Dean weaves together flash pieces boiling over with visceral emotion and short stories like “Baby, Alone” that stretch their legs but make you hold your breath all the same. Hollows is a flash collection among the greats that I will keep on my shelf to return to again and again.
October 23, 2024
One of my favorite collections. These short stories invite the reader into a world of family and friendship, the aspects of which we do not talk about. I entered this world and am better for it! A raw and engrossing read!
October 6, 2024
Tommy Dean's full-length debut is fantastic! If you like flash fiction, this one is for you.
October 23, 2024
One of my favorite flash collections. Each story is a burst of emotion, with a big impact. I recommend HOLLOWS for anyone who enjoys powerful storytelling.
March 29, 2023
"Flash" is the perfect word for Tommy Dean stories--readers are dropped into the middle of the action and most potent emotions of every character. These stories and tender and tough, and will stick with me for a long time.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews