SWEET LAND STORIES

This new audio edition of Doctorow's 2004 collection of short stories is a treat for fans of the genre. Narrators John Rubenstein and Joshua Swanson both do an admirable job of bringing the stories and their characters to life. Whether the point of view is first person or third, they succeed in their portrayals of people on the fringes of society, living under the radar and using their wits to survive. They speak with the confidence of people who see their actions as neither right nor wrong but simply what their circumstances dictate. There's not much sweetness in these gloomy stories; both narrators deliver their narratives with a straightforward acceptance of the dark sides of this not so sweet land. N.E.M. © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine [Published: APRIL 2014]