Reviewed by A. C. Riffer
There are currently 16 million vacant homes in the United States and about 580,000 Americans experiencing homelessness (United Way of the National Capital Area, 2024). Through 18 short stories, There’s No Place explores the concept of home and its diverse meanings, emphasizing the creative reimagining of home’s definition by those who have lost a home. A prevalent theme throughout the book is the yearning for freedom. The collection spans genres from science fiction where we have the technology to jump between realities (“Any Time Now”) to the everyday (“Your Teacher’s House,” “Morning Doves,” “Just like Camping,” “The Girl,” “The Old, Old Place,” and “NWABUNWANNE”). The preface states how the collection wanted to focus on home rather than homelessness–home as a thing we all ache for, how home is both abstract and concrete. The emphasis on home rather than homelessness highlights the autonomy that is so often stripped from these individuals. The preface also touches on the repercussions of the Covid-19 pandemic, demonstrating the diverse encounters and obstacles associated with the notion of home.
The opening story, “Your Teacher’s House,” draws attention to the idea of being the “right” amount of disabled to be eligible for aid. “Just like Camping” is exceptional, and underlines the stress of acquiring basic necessities. Another standout story, “Condemned,” uses a fey narrator to highlight the struggle of how members of the majority population often seem more comfortable extending empathy to fantastical ideas than to actual individuals.
As humans, our ability to thrive is closely linked to our capacity to establish intricate webs of mutual reliance with one another, within our local communities, and in connection to our wider surroundings. These intricate webs may encompass ties to family members, colleagues, as well as religious, cultural, and social groups. Additionally, there are smaller connections, such as the familiar coffee shop where our order is recognized, or the valley where we can identify the various trees. When enveloped within this protective fabric, we may not fully grasp the extent of our interdependence and interconnectedness. The longer we remain rooted in a particular place, the stronger and more numerous our connections can become. Our resilience in the face of crises is bolstered when our web of relationships is robust and diverse; a broken connection or a missed opportunity is less likely to unravel us. In fact, we can even become a source of support for others, serving as a vital link in their own tapestries. As the authors’ stories in this collection underscore, to be without a home results in some if not many of these connections being severed–sometimes gradually, sometimes all at once. Individuals, families, and communities may struggle to reconstruct and replenish these connections, and the resulting tapestry will likely never be the same. Indeed, the concept of home is precarious, a theme that has been the focus of countless trite expressions and numerous exceptional works of art and literature. This collection effortlessly expresses these themes without triteness.
The short story can be an unforgiving artform. What the reader wants more of, the writer may deem superfluous. Personally, I think the highest compliment an author could be paid is the reader wanting more, and many of the stories leave the reader wanting more. Overall, this is a moving collection with impeccable flow.
Citation:
Title: There’s No Place: Tales of Home by Storytellers Who Have Experienced Homelessness
Editor: H. E. Casson
Publisher: Renaissance
Year: 2023
Read A. C. Riffer’s review of Crip Authorship: Disability as Method in this issue of Wordgathering.
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About the Reviewer
A. C. Riffer is a hopeless romantic and enigmatic. In their spare time they are a doctoral candidate at the University of Illinois at Chicago.