The Coast of Good Intentions

by Michael Byers

This dazzling debut collection from a Seattle native features stories evocatively set along the Northwest coast, stories of quiet but astonishing lives. Here are ferry workers, carpenters, park rangers, living alongside crab factories, cranberry bogs, the misty ocean. Here are people puzzled by the processes of growing up, leaving home, parenting, aging. Here are people who realize there are second chances, that from illness can come hope, that from family can come a greater sense of self. Psychologically complex and glowing with warmth, these rich stories recall Tobias Wolff and Raymond Carver. A MARINER PAPERBACK ORIGINAL.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction

163 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

Michael Byers is the author of the story collection The Coast of Good Intentions, a finalist for the PEN/Hemingway Award, and the acclaimed novel Long for This World, winner of the First Novel Award from Virginia Commonwealth University. Both were New York Times Notable Books. A former Stegner Fellow and Whiting Award winner, he teaches at the University of Michigan.

Reviews

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the very first story I read: "I was drunk but not drunk enough to say what I wanted, that we don't live our lives so much as come to them, as different people and things collect mysteriously around us." and I realized that as I read Michael Byer's works I had come to them and they were collecting mysteriously in my memory.

His stories are filled with the compassionate appreciation of an older soul, and images that distill to fine liquor intoxicating the reader. In the story "A Fair Trade," one of my favorites, he describes a white room juxtaposed with what is seen through the window: "Through the windows she could see the garden:tomatoes and beans on their poles. the walls of her room were white, and so was the ceiling; only the doorknob, solid black enamel, stood out in the whiteness, like a single period on a page without text." And in so few sentences, places the character, like the single period of the black enamel doorknob, on the threshold of her new life. Other descriptions that sparked with originality: "...his squarish head hard and burled like a hazelnut."...and "In the morning Andie felt the expectant quiet of the house, like a cup held out to be filled."...and "he seemed desperate, like a salesman with a bad territory."

There are plenty of other shining passages throughout this collection of well crafted stories, and while I've rated it highly, it does have its inconsistent moments, but they are minor considerations. I hope Mr. Byers is at work on additional stories as these in this collection are most satisfying.

[Jasmin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kept waiting for a story that would grab me and it didn't happen. Seems like he thought up some promising characters and didn't get to know them very well.

[Tim Nason · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb collection of stories that read more like short novels: interwoven plot lines, complex characters, multilayered themes. The author has a deep empathy for his characters; they are treated with dignity and respect even when they do ridiculous things, and a kind of prescience occurs when describing characters of various ages and life-situations, such as a maturing young girl or older couples (Byers was 28 at the book’s publication). Fun and memorable details pop up to give the stories visual and emotional depth, and places vividly described become integral with the plot. These are stories to learn from and enjoy, and read again, but they are not happy stories for the most part; their realities reflect the disappointments and occasional cruelty of life, yet the stories in themselves do not become cynical or mean. And the final story in the collection, “Dirigibles,” for all its poignant sadness has a delightfully gentle conclusion. Great book.

[Erin Bottger (Bouma) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This collection of short stories is a good read set in the Pacific Northwest.

The author is under 30 when these were written yet most of his characters are middle-aged and a few of them are seniors. He likes quirky personalities and focuses on lonesomeness of the childless, divorced and estranged. There are few "traditional family units", more are nieces/nephews and aunts/uncles or cousins.

The first 4 stories are lengthily (some spanning years) while the final 3 are abruptly short - and a little confusing as to their point. Byers has a natural writing style and these stories have a flowing prose.

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great writer and storyteller Michael Byers is. I loved almost all of these short stories; they were told so engagingly that once I started one I couldn't stop until I finished. I especially loved "Settled on the Cranberry Coast," "Shipmates Down Under," "A Fair Trade," and "Blue River, Blue Sun." My least favorites were "In Spain, One Thousand and Three" and "Dirigibles." Michael Byers captures so wonderfully the human experience and the complications of relationships. I love the setting in the Pacific Northwest, mostly around Seattle. I look forward to reading more of him.

[Patrick Barry · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this group of short stories placed in the Pacific Northwest prior to a trip to Seattle in 1998. They did not disappoint. These are stories of normal people brought forth with such empathy that the reader cares for the subject more than they might with a more calloused hand. I have not read too many short story collections in a while. These and those of recently reviewed Frederick Busch remind me that I should be on the lookout for something new.

[Brendan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Low 4

Eight character-driven stories ranging from 8 to 33 pages each. Byers has a calm, mellow writing style. His endings can use some work.

[Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mixed bag and took me forever. Not very compelling.

[Kareninfolsom · Rating 2 out of 5]

He has a recognizable writing style. None of the stories really hit me.

[Camille · Rating 3 out of 5]

A pleasing collection of stories set in the Pacific Northwest. I reviewed it on my blog: https://wineandhistory.wordpress.com/...

[John Luiz · Rating 5 out of 5]

When this collection came out, much was made of the fact that Michael Byers was just 28. It wasn't just the fact that a writer so young could demonstrate such talent, but also that he could write so movingly and insightfully about older characters trying to make sense of their lives after retirement or in the wake of a divorce after a decades-long marriage. At 50, I'm not quite there yet, but I can say I was equally impressed with how well he captured the mindset of people well past his age when he wrote this.

Each of these stories reads like a novel - there's no attempt at post-modern techniques or any sort of artsy short-story trickery. There's plenty of subtext in each story, but there's also enough on the surface that you won't have to scratch your head after finishing a piece and ask, "What the heck was that about?" Each piece simply delivers solid story-telling, good characters, an interesting premise that gives us a chance to see how they act under pressure, and effective clean writing that lets the story unfold on its own. The final three stories have a clever thematic link about the power and impact of illusions.

The rain, mountains, and connections to the ocean in coastal towns provide a consistent visual setting for the pieces, all of which are set in the Pacific Northwest.

The 8 stories in the collection are:

1. Settled on the Cranberry Coast - 15 pp - A retired schoolteacher begins to work as a carpenter and is reunited with his high school crush when she hires him to restore her house. A park ranger now, she's raising the grandchild her daughter abandoned. As he gets closer to them both, he welcomes the opportunities for a second chapter to his life.

2. Shipmates Down Under - 26 pp - A couple's young daughter comes down with a severe fever, forcing them to cancel a trip to Australia and exposing the tensions in their marriage.

3. In Spain, One Thousand and Three - 28 pp - A great exploration of the unexpected directions grief can take. Handsome Martin, a former player with the ladies, settled down when he met cello-playing Evelyn. But after they married young, she unexpectedly died of cancer. In his grief, he finds all his old urges have come back. While still thoroughly mourning Evelyn, he's lusting after every woman he sees, a desire that makes him put the moves on someone he most definitely should not. (The title comes from his watching of the movie Don Giovanni and the number of women that player supposedly slept with in Spain.)

4. A Fair Trade - 33 pp - A young teenaged girl must move in with her aunt after her father dies in WWII and her mother is incapable of raising her. Her spinster aunt lives in a remote town outside of Seattle. With few friends her age, sexual fantasies about a neighboring caretaker for an elderly couple are about all the girl has to occupy herself. Still, as she rambles about the house while her aunt works, the girl learns to enjoy a solitary life, thinking she's as independent as her aunt. That preference for being alone ends up influencing her adult life, but years later she gets a few surprises about how her aunt has lived.

5. Blue River, Blue Sun - 22 pp - A 56-year-old geology professor reels from a divorce, not sure what to do with the dull monotony of his days. Left to wonder where it all went wrong, visting malls, with all their hustle and bustle, is one of the few pleasures he finds in life. But then a secretary in his university department, bitter over her own divorce, presents an opportunity for a date. The story has a very powerful conclusion.

6. Wizard - 19 pp - A substitute teacher writes a play for a very small-time theater about Thomas Edison (a personal obsession of his) and his much younger, first wife. The playwright develops a crush on the older woman cast in the role of the wife, and while they're rehearsing the story takes an intriguing sexual twist.

7. In the Kingdom of Priester John - 8 pp - A 17-year-old boy's crazy uncle goes missing, and with insanity running in the boy's family, he wonders about his own future. (Priester John was a mythical world traveler, whose stories of intrigue in unknown worlds fascinated Europeans in the late middle ages. It applies here because during a history exam the boy has to answer a question about the legendary myths that drove European explorers to Africa. It provides a parallel to the boy's uncle who has his own delusions about reality.)

8. Dirigibles - 12 pp - An older couple lives alone on a mountain, with the wife suffering from cerebral palsy. The wife isn't eager for a visit from a man who was a co-worker of theirs on an island ferry. The husband is eager to show old home movies of their younger days, but when the man shows up, both he and the couple have surprises in store for each other.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Collection of 8 short stories. I wanted to leave this one a five really badly. I genuinely enjoyed the first five tales. They were well written and interesting. The last three, however, killed it for me. All three were the type that make you scratch your head, look around and say, what just happened here. I'm all for a twist or a bit of intrigue, but I can honestly say that the end of Wizard and Dirigible and the entirety of Prester John were pretty much nonsensical - and not in a good way like A Confederacy of Dunces.

These were published when Byers was just 28. What I found most astonishing was that his characters, for the most part, were older....mid-40s, 60s' post-retirement, etc. He seemed to have a tremendous insight into the lives of folks that weren't him. Pretty much destroys my theory that most stories are written about events/people/actions that are relevant to the writer - which makes things like "Human Centipede" terrifying. But this seemed all over the map.

Also of note is that in each tale we meet a character in some sort of low. There is some tragic event impacting them (death of a parent, death of a spouse, divorce, sick child). This makes the package somewhat depressing. Who wants to live through the misery of someone else's divorce? But this is skillfully done that despite negative feelings this can be taken with positive feelings - even if the ending isn't happy. Not all great books have happy endings. Of Mice and Men, Of Human Bondage, many others not starting with "of", are tragic and meloncholy, but still phenomenal. This is not Of Mice and Men. It is a little like Of Human Bondage in that you want to take the various leads (almost all of them) and slap them around to shake them out of their respective funks. At least none of them had a club foot.

I will say it...the mother-in-law boner was weird on multiple levels.

So, while this wasn't giving me the happy-joy-joys, I can appreciate the tales and overall enjoyed the collection. I'm somewhat surprised that Byers hasn't produced more - looks like two other novels in 18 years. Surprising as these were well done.

Picked this up at where else but Book-off.

[Steven · Rating 3 out of 5]

The back-cover blurb makes a big deal about how young Byers is (was), and as beautifully written as most of these stories are, some of the false notes are probably because of his age. This is a subtle point, but he gives his older characters sentiments that, while well imagined—that is, what he supposes someone who had those experiences would feel—those sentiments don’t have the edge of authenticity, they don’t feel like someone lived those experiences. I felt this way about some of Ethan Canin’s early stories too: 25-year olds writing about what they think it feels like to be 45 and divorced or 65 and widowed. They pull it off because they write so superb, yet, there is a little niggle that says this is not how this character (or the kind of person the character stands for) would really feel. That said, there’s some great stories in this collection. “In the Kingdom of Prester John” has the narrator confronted with his cousin’s madness, a genetic trait he waits to strike him too. I liked that the question of where the cousin went when he disappeared is left unanswered, even after the cousin returned. “Settled on the Cranberry Coast” felt off in some of the character’s sentiments, but the scenes are really good, charged with meaning, and work against what the character is thinking. “Wizard” has an interesting tone of nostalgia and a neat device of the actress becoming the fantasy at the end—or maybe he’s still fantasizing. The nostalgic tone of the narrative is inter-cut with realistic scenes where the characters’ tone is cynical, which creates a nice contrast for the ending. “Shipmates Down Under” and “Dirigibles” are both really good stories, with the same mixing of nostalgia and realism as “Wizards,” but they also felt subtly off-key emotionally. Maybe it’s because the emotions are too textbook, not raw enough?

[Nicole Rea · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this so, so much. It's an incredibly quick read, so I think I might have to digest it again in a sitting on some rainy or snowy weekend so I can pick up on all the subtleties I'm sure I missed in the first go.

I thought it was good, but not great, until I got to the story "In Spain, One Thousand and Three." It's told from the POV of a guy whose wife played the cello, but died, and he was pretty much completely obsessed with her for their two years of marriage so now he's coping with that and also lusting after every woman that enters his plain of vision, and he hates himself for it and is worried he's going to start becoming a deviant or something (especially when he "accidentally" feels up his dead wife's mom) and it's just so, so painful and realistic and good. Byers captures all the tiny, seemingly inconsequential details of everyday interactions and relationships perfectly. "A Fair Trade" was another one of my favorites, though honestly, they were all good. It's beautiful in its complete normalcy and the strength of its characters.

I was also particularly impressed by his portrayal of women all throughout the novel. The way he's able to capture certain things about society's overall treatment of and expectations for women through the ages and relate it in writing was apt and impressive. I mean, he's a dude! How does he know all this stuff so intimately? He seems to capture everyone--young, old, male, female--all dealing with the same drudgery of everyday bullshit and responding to it in a way that's at once completely relatable and yet refreshingly unique to that specific character, as well. It's a quick, great read that took me completely by surprise.

[Miss Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summer Book #14 A collection of short stories centered on the Pacific Northwest, this book was a great read, especially because I read a good chunk of it while waiting for a ferry in Friday Harbor. Drinking coffee. And possibly knitting. I could try to be a little more pacific northwest, but I left my fleece jacket at the campsite.

Like any collection of short stories, there were some that I could do without, but there is one that that will stick with me. "A Fair Trade" starts out slow, recording the day by day life of a 15 year old girl recently displaced to Seattle, and suddenly picks up and starts jumping years and decades in single sentences. It left me a little breathless once I realized what was happening. I won't give away what the character's fair trade was, and I encourage you find out for yourself.

Two lines from the book stood out to me enough to warrant a dog-eared page so I'd remember:

"I'd got these ideas from books, and I knew they couldn't be entirely true, but they intrigued me."
From the story "In the Kingdom of Prester John"

"She sees beauty in the things she sees alone"
From the story "A Fair Trade"

[Catherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

It occurs to me that when I look through books at libraries and bookstores, I'm looking for a certain type of prose: I want the work to read beautifully, observantly of our human thoughts and emotions, and with an unexpected bit of brilliance in certain lines. I want unexpected wit, and a respect for people's thoughts.

All of that is present in The Coast of Good Intentions. These are stunning stories set in Washington state, and I only mention the setting because I'm thrilled finally to find stories that observe the city where I live, Seattle, and its region, so artfully. I've been looking, till now, for work that described Seattle and Washington as well as many classics describe New York, and as some describe Chicago. Finally, I've found it.

That said, these stories are full of universally understandable characters. They are gorgeous stories, in my opinion. The book was a finalist for a PEN/Faulkner Award, and its author now teaches writing at the University of Michigan. I suppose that means that now he'll get to know Ann Arbor as a literary setting. We'll see what results from that, too.

[Eliezer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not sure I can adequately explain what it is about this book that resonated so deeply for me. There was such an understated, almost mundane quality about the characters in the stories and their lives and the situations they find themselves in that was just so note-perfect. The tone of the stories, the flow of them, reminded me a bit of Richard Yates' Eleven Kinds of Loneliness. These are just normal people going about their everyday lives, but that doesn't mean that there aren't these little moments of intense drama and extremely deeply felt emotions happening. High marks as well for the dialogue, which seemed so real and natural and unforced.

It doesn't hurt that moving to Portland is totally my 10-year plan.

[Will]

I've only read one of the stories in this book and it was wonderful. The story, "Shipmates Down Under," was anthologized in the Best Short Stories of either 1997 or 1999 and is a strange and beautiful exploration of marriage and parenthood (two things of which I have no experience, but it's all very convincing). I can't recommend this story highly enough, and if anyone has a copy of this book I'd love to borrow it. Just wanted to put this review up there so that other short story lovers can go seek this one out-- if the other stories in here are on the same level as "Shipmates," it's a great collection.

[Chrissie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I forgot it was a collection of short stories. Byers has an distinct way of sending the reader down a path with a character that is often lonely, unremarkable, yet poignant. The stories began to feel like repeats as the next story would display yet another person waiting for some-thing. Not to say that the characters are written as desperate or pathetic; they are completely unremarkable and simply learning to live in their own world. The male characters are more dimensional; the females seemed a bit flat.
A bit depressing, otherwise decent, but not necessarily worth it to recommend to everyone.

[Jeff · Rating 3 out of 5]

I bought this book because the author married an old friend of mine.

Byers has a deft touch with language. The stories were emotionally deep and i felt sated upon finishing most, enough so that i kept looking for his next book and purchased his first novel, Long for This World, immediately upon publication.

[Nicholas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty remarkable story collection. Each one unfolds slowly and ends up catching the reader in the gut with the struggle of his characters and the moments when they reveal the most about themselves. "Shipmates Down Under", "Wizard", and "In Spain, One Thousand and Three" are very polished and amazing stories.

[Marni · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightful read, lovely prose, not an earthshattering book but very satisfying. Short stories need to create a vivid world quickly, and he has done a very credible and creditible job. My favorite story is n Spain, ONe Thousand and Three'--a very moving portrait of a man grieving after his young wife's death.

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm friends with Michael Byers, having studied with him at Pitt, so there's no way I can write a fair review. I did, however, really like this book. The quote "There is beauty in precision" comes to mind when reading Byers: he has a gift for the perfectly placed detail. Also, I love the way his complex sentences form and unspool, carrying the reader along.

[Arianna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Byers writes beautifully. I'm not really a short-story reader, but he really put a lot of humanness into his characters - they were very easy to relate to, and to imagine. I would be interested in reading his novel at some point.

[J · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can't remember details, as i read the collection earlier this year. i do recall thinking that there was great topical versatility amongst the stories, as well as skill at creating very diverse characters. Padmini had recommended this to me.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't usually like short story collections, but this one kept my attention. The stories all take place in various locations of the Pacific Northwest. The stories are all different, and I liked most of them.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful collection, wide in its range and emotional scope. My favorite story was "Shipmates Down Under." I admired how Byers wove the (fictional) Australian novel into the family's story as subtext. Also, Byers writes children well.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed reading this book of short stories that I just happened to pick up at a used book sale. I lived in Washington State as a young child and this book made me nostalgic for a place I hardly remember. Amazing the writer was so young when he wrote this. I'm very impressed.

[Jeff Hobbs]

Read so far:

Settled on the Cranberry coast --3
*Shipmates down under --
*In Spain, one thousand and three --
*A fair trade --
Blue river, blue sun --
Wizard --
In the kingdom of Prester John --
*Dirigibles --
***
The beautiful days --
Malaria --
Sibling rivalry --

[Myke Reiser · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fucking amazing.